Other LanguagesThe legislature may constitutionally authorize counties and cities to impose and collect a license fee on motor vehicles and/or a tax on motor vehicle fuel and to use the revenue collected therefrom for purposes other than "highway purposes" as that term is used and defined in Article II, § 40 (Amendment 18) of the Washington Constitution.
A legislative enactment providing for the use of the principal and/or income of the state common school fund as a base for a school construction bond issue would be unconstitutional.
1. The Legislature has discretion to prescribe the specific duties of the Superintendent of Public Instruction and to create agencies and institutions to administer the state's public education system; however, it must respect the constitutional language granting the Superintendent "supervisory" power over the public school system. 2. The public school system, for purposes of defining the constitutional "supervision" authority of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, includes the common school system of elementary, intermediate, and high schools, and would also include normal schools and technical schools if the Legislature were to create any. 3. The Legislature may not "delegate" to another officer or agency the "supervision" authority of the Superintendent of Public Instruction over the public schools; however, with this restriction, the Legislature has broad discretion to create state and local agencies and institutions to administer the public education system, and to define their respective powers and duties.
Under Article II, § 41 (Amendment 26) of the Washington Constitution an act of the legislature which is subject to referendum does not take effect until ninety days after the final adjournment, sine die, of the session at which it was enacted; a temporary adjournment of each of the two houses with the consent of the other for a set time period agreed to between them under Article II, § 11 of the Constitution will not cause this time period thereby to begin to run as to bills subject to referendum which have theretofore been enacted.
(1) Legislation would be constitutional which would authorize cities owning transit systems to impose a sales tax on sales of city-furnished utility services (water and electricity); the tax to be collected with the utility charge by the utility and placed in the proper fund to be used to subsidize the city transit.(2) Where the city divided its utility charge into two parts, one a basic minimum charge and one a surcharge based upon the quantity of service used over the stated minimum, a sales tax would be constitutional which was imposed only on the basic minimum utility charge.
The Courts are unlikely to find unconstitutional a temporary rule of the House of Representatives which requires consent of both co-speakers to bring a matter before the House for business. Such a rule appears to be consistent with the equal protection provisions of both the United States and Washington Constitutions, and with constitutional provisions governing the rights and duties of legislators, especially where the House provides alternative methods for bringing matters before the House or provides ways by which a majority of the House could repeal or amend the House rules.
The legislature may appropriate monies from the general fund-capitol building construction account for the purpose of remodeling and renovating the legislative building.
While the constitution provides that bills may originate in either house of the legislature, the manner or method governing the introduction of bills, memorials or resolutions and the procedure to be followed prior to final passage or adoption thereof are subject to the express constitutional rule‑making power of each house. Therefore, since there is no limitation or restriction in the constitution, the house and/or senate may in the exercise of its discretion adopt a resolution at a special session providing that all bills, memorials and resolutions introduced but not enacted or adopted during the regular session shall be reintroduced at the special session in the house wherein they originated; to retain the same number; to be placed in the same committee; or to otherwise hold their same position in the special session as was held during the regular session prior to final passage in that house.
Where, at the request of a new governor, the Senate voluntarily returns the names of those unconfirmed appointees then pending before it, the appointees involved are not thereafter entitled to continue in office until the Governor makes new appointments.
Legal consequences of a failure by the legislature to adopt a biennial state budget prior to the commencement of the fiscal period to be covered thereby.