Washington § 54.16.425 - Retail telecommunications services — Payment in lieu of property tax.

(1) Property owned by a public utility district that is exempt from property tax under RCW 84.36.010 is subject to an annual payment in lieu of property taxes if the property consists of a broadband infrastructure used in providing retail telecommunications services.

(2)(a) The amount of the payment must be determined jointly and in good faith negotiation between the public utility district that owns the property and the county or counties in which the property is located.

(b) The amount agreed upon may not exceed the property tax amount that would be owed on the property comprising the broadband infrastructure used in providing retail telecommunications services as calculated by the department of revenue. The public utility district must provide information necessary for the department of revenue to make the required valuation under this subsection. The department of revenue must provide the amount of property tax that would be owed on the property to the county or counties in which the broadband infrastructure is located on an annual basis.

(c) If the public utility district and a county cannot agree on the amount of the payment in lieu of taxes, either party may invoke binding arbitration by providing written notice to the other party. In the event that the amount of payment in lieu of taxes is submitted to binding arbitration, the arbitrators must consider the government services available to the public utility district's broadband infrastructure used in providing retail telecommunications services. The public utility district and county must each select one arbitrator, the two of whom must pick a third arbitrator. Costs of the arbitration, including compensation for the arbitrators' services, must be borne equally by the parties participating in the arbitration.

(3) By April 30th of each year, a public utility district must remit the annual payment to the county treasurer of each county in which the public utility district's broadband infrastructure used in providing retail telecommunications services is located in a form and manner required by the county treasurer.

(4) The county must distribute the amounts received under this section to all property taxing districts, including the state, in appropriate tax code areas in the same proportion as it would distribute property taxes from taxable property.

(5) By December 1, 2019, and annually thereafter, the department of revenue must submit a report to the appropriate legislative committees detailing the amount of payments made under this section and the amount of property tax that would be owed on the property comprising the broadband infrastructure used in providing retail telecommunications services.

Short title—2021 c 294: See note following RCW 54.16.330.