Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account Stakeholder Group

The County Council established a stakeholder group through R2018-102 to recommend a strategic plan for the expenditure of funds related to the Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account ("Sound Transit 3" funds).   The State Legislature passed SB 5851 and HB 1109 to further define the Puget Sound Taxpayer Account. 

Recommendations

The Stakeholder Group met seven times over the course of five months to establish a set of recommendations to be presented to the Pierce County Council.  This was accomplished at the April 9, 2019 Study Session by Council staff.  

Council passed R2019-97 to develop an implementation plan for allocating future proceeds from the PSTAA.  The plan will be presented to Council in February 2020.

Memo | PowerPoint | Recommendations

Past meeting minutes and materials | Timeline

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Pierce County Council Update


The Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account was discussed at the June 17, 2019 Study Session of the Pierce County Council.    The meeting was recorded and a general information document was distributed. 

Members



AmaraPuget Sound Educational Services District
Bates Technical CollegeSound Alliance – SHAPE
Clover Park Technical CollegeTacoma Community College
College Success FoundationTacoma Community House
Communities in Schools - PuyallupTacoma Housing Authority
Community Youth ServicesTacoma Pierce County Health Department
First5FUNdamentalsTreehouse
Graduate TacomaUW Tacoma
Greater Tacoma Community Foundation
Metro Parks & Tacoma Schools
Metropolitan Development Council
Pierce College District
Pierce County Libraries

About the Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account

The Washington State Legislature passed Senate Bill 5987 in 2015 which created the Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Account in the state treasury as a part of transportation funding legislation. The account will be funded from a sales and use tax offset fee of 3.25% of total payments made by Sound Transit on the cost of construction projects from “Sound Transit 3” as approved by voters in 2016. 

State law requires Sound Transit to pay the fee until $518 million in payments have been made to the account; and funds from the account are to be distributed to King, Pierce and Snohomish counties proportionally based on each county’s population in Sound Transit’s jurisdictional boundaries. Sound Transit estimates Pierce County will receive $123 million in total funding between 2019 and 2035 and Pierce County may use these funds “only for educational services to improve educational outcomes in early learning, K-12, and higher education, including, but not limited to, youths that are low-income, homeless, or in foster care, or other vulnerable populations” as prescribed in Section 43.79.520 in the Revised Code of Washington section (RCW).