Support parks use for excise tax

House Bill 1953 has passed both the House and Senate in Washington, and is expected to be signed by Gov. Gregoire. This legislation will allow Island County to use a portion of Real Estate Excise Tax funds, a tax on the sale of property, for operations and maintenance expenses at county parks for the next five years. Previously, these funds could only be used for capital projects, like acquisition of land.

May 6, 2011 4:11 pm

House Bill 1953 has passed both the House and Senate in Washington, and is expected to be signed by Gov. Gregoire. This legislation will allow Island County to use a portion of Real Estate Excise Tax funds, a tax on the sale of property, for operations and maintenance expenses at county parks for the next five years. Previously, these funds could only be used for capital projects, like acquisition of land.

For those of you dismayed by the recent cutback in services at the parks, this is good news. It provides the county with a way to fund maintenance of our parks, with no new taxes required. If you would like to see basic services like trash pickup and port-a-potties restored at the parks, please contact the Island County commissioners and let them know.

Ron Michelsen
President, FETCH!