While lawmakers in Olympia and lawyers across the state gear up for fights in the Legislature and courtrooms, folks not in the I-5 corridor might wonder what effects Initiative 976 passing could have on them.
The initiative calls for vehicle licensing fees to be limited to $30, severely cutting funding for “transportation benefits districts,” like the group of communities that is expanding light rail around Seattle.
So far, it seems local officials’ only concern is that when they go to the state asking for funds for projects like improved sidewalks or street resurfacing, the availability of state funds will be diminished and the atmosphere more competitive as state officials look for ways to pay for projects that would have been funded by the higher car tab fees.
County officials said none of its revenue stems directly from car tabs.
Aberdeen does have a transportation benefits district, but road repair is paid for by sales tax collected just for that purpose, not car tabs. That tax was recently renewed for another 10 years and should not be affected by I-976.
Montesano Clerk and Treasurer Arnel Blancas said the county seat expects the only fallout from I-976 passing is that grants will be more competitive when the city seeks funds from the state.
Once it became clear that the initiative was passing Gov. Jay Inslee put a hold on many state projects.
“I have directed the Washington State Department of Transportation to postpone projects not yet underway. I have also asked other state agencies that receive transportation funding, including the Washington State Patrol and Department of Licensing, to defer non-essential spending as we review impacts,” he said in a statement from his office.
A Washington State Department of Transportation spokesman said the hold enacted by Inslee shouldn’t affect projects on Grays Harbor.
He said the hold was on “capital expansion or capacity improvement projects.”
“Coming up, we have preservation, fish passage and safety projects. I’m not aware of any capacity improvement projects in the Grays Harbor County area,” the WSDOT spokesman said.
