Sales and use tax for local revitalization financing.
(1) Any city or county that has been approved for a project award under RCW 39.104.100 may impose a sales and use tax under the authority of this section in accordance with the terms of this chapter. Except as provided in this section, the tax is in addition to other taxes authorized by law and must be collected from those persons who are taxable by the state under chapters 82.08 and 82.12 RCW upon the occurrence of any taxable event within the taxing jurisdiction of the city or county.
(2) The tax authorized under subsection (1) of this section is credited against the state taxes imposed under RCW 82.08.020(1) and 82.12.020 at the rate provided in RCW 82.08.020(1). The department must perform the collection of such taxes on behalf of the city or county at no cost to the city or county. The taxes must be distributed to cities and counties as provided in RCW 82.14.060.
(3) The rate of tax imposed by a city or county may not exceed the lesser of:
(a) The rate provided in RCW 82.08.020(1), less:
(i) The aggregate rates of all other local sales and use taxes imposed by any taxing authority on the same taxable events;
(ii) The aggregate rates of all taxes under RCW 82.14.465 and 82.14.475 and this section that are authorized but have not yet been imposed on the same taxable events by a city or county that has been approved to receive a state contribution by the department, the department of commerce, or the community economic revitalization board under chapter 39.104, 39.100, or 39.102 RCW; and
(iii) The percentage amount of distributions required under RCW 82.08.020(5) multiplied by the rate of state taxes imposed under RCW 82.08.020(1); and
(b) The rate, as determined by the city or county in consultation with the department, reasonably necessary to receive the project award under RCW 39.104.100 over ten months.
(4) The department, upon request, must assist a city or county in establishing its tax rate in accordance with subsection (3) of this section. Once the rate of tax is selected through the application process and approved under RCW 39.104.100, it may not be increased.
(5)(a) Except as provided in (c) and (d) of this subsection, no tax may be imposed under the authority of this section before:
(i) July 1, 2011;
(ii) July 1st of the second calendar year following the year in which the application was approved under RCW 39.104.100;
(iii) The state sales and use tax increment and state property tax increment for the preceding calendar year equal or exceed the amount of the project award approved under RCW 39.104.100; and
(iv) Bonds have been issued according to RCW 39.104.110.
(b) The tax imposed under this section expires the earlier of the date that the bonds issued under the authority of RCW 39.104.110 are retired or twenty-five years after the tax is first imposed.
(c) For a demonstration project described in RCW 82.14.505(1)(a) except as provided in (d) of this subsection (5), no tax may be imposed under the authority of this section before:
(i) July 1, 2010; and
(ii) Bonds have been issued according to RCW 39.104.110.
(d) The requirement to issue bonds in (a)(iv) or (c)(ii) of this subsection (5) does not apply to demonstration projects authorized by RCW 82.14.505(1)(a)(iii), or any city receiving a project award under RCW 39.104.100 of less than one hundred fifty thousand dollars.
(6) An ordinance or resolution adopted by the legislative authority of the city or county imposing a tax under this section must provide that:
(a) The tax will first be imposed on the first day of a fiscal year;
(b) The cumulative amount of tax received by the city or county, in any fiscal year, may not exceed the amount approved by the department under subsection (10) of this section;
(c) The department must cease distributing the tax for the remainder of any fiscal year in which either:
(i) The amount of tax received by the city or county equals the amount of distributions approved by the department for the fiscal year under subsection (10) of this section; or
(ii) The amount of revenue distributed to all sponsoring and cosponsoring local governments from taxes imposed under this section equals the annual state contribution limit;
(d) The tax will be distributed again, should it cease to be distributed for any of the reasons provided in (c) of this subsection, at the beginning of the next fiscal year, subject to the restrictions in this section; and
(e) The state is entitled to any revenue generated by the tax in excess of the amounts specified in (c) of this subsection.
(7) If a city or county receives approval for more than one revitalization area within its jurisdiction, the city or county may impose a sales and use tax under this section for each revitalization area.
(8) The department must determine the amount of tax receipts distributed to each city and county imposing a sales and use tax under the authority of this section and must advise a city or county when tax distributions for the fiscal year equal the amount determined by the department in subsection (10) of this section. Determinations by the department of the amount of tax distributions attributable to a city or county are not appealable. The department must remit any tax receipts in excess of the amounts specified in subsection (6)(c) of this section to the state treasurer who must deposit the money in the general fund.
(9) If a city or county fails to comply with RCW 82.32.765, no tax may be distributed in the subsequent fiscal year until such time as the city or county complies and the department calculates the state contribution amount according to subsection (10) of this section for the fiscal year.
(10)(a) For each fiscal year that a city or county imposes the tax under the authority of this section, the department must approve the amount of taxes that may be distributed to the city or county. The amount approved by the department under this subsection is the lesser of:
(i) The state contribution;
(ii) The amount of project award granted as provided in RCW 39.104.100; or
(iii) The total amount of revenues from local public sources dedicated or, in the case of carry forward revenues, deemed dedicated in the preceding calendar year, as reported in the required annual report under RCW 82.32.765.
(b) A city or county may not receive, in any fiscal year, more revenues from taxes imposed under the authority of this section than the amount approved annually by the department.
(11) The amount of tax distributions received from taxes imposed under the authority of this section by all cities and counties is limited annually to not more than the amount of annual state contribution limit.
(12) The definitions in RCW 39.104.020 apply to this section subject to subsection (13) of this section and unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(13) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(a) "Local sales and use taxes" means sales and use taxes imposed by cities, counties, public facilities districts, and other local governments under the authority of this chapter, chapter 67.28 RCW, or any other chapter, and that are credited against the state sales and use taxes.