Bill would let counties form partial public facilities districts for rural recreation centers

House Bill 1037 drew a sizable in-person public record on Oct. 12, 2025, as local officials and community leaders described plans for community recreation centers in Upper Kittitas County. State Representative Tom Dent, sponsor of the bill, said the measure would allow local communities to create PFDs that match the practical service area for a facility rather than requiring the district to encompass an entire county.

“That’s the last piece of the puzzle that would allow us to have the right taxing district for our community,” Representative Tom Dent said, describing local efforts to build recreation centers without asking the state for operating dollars.

Michelle Rusk, staff to the committee, summarized the existing statute: public facilities districts are municipal corporations that can acquire, construct, finance and operate regional centers (defined in statute as convention, conference or special-event centers that serve a regional population and cost more than $10,000,000). Under current law, a county-based PFD boundary is coextensive with the entire county and governing-board composition varies by type of district. HB 1037 would permit formation by interlocal agreement of a district that covers only a portion of unincorporated county areas and requires a minimum seven-member board, with four members appointed by the legislative authorities of the jurisdictions that created the district and an elected official appointed by each participating jurisdiction.

Local leaders, including Matthew Lund, mayor of Cle Elum, testified that the change is intended to enable small and tourism-driven communities to fund and operate indoor recreation and wellness centers that otherwise would be out of reach. “This legislation would be a game changer for our community and other rural communities like ours to have the ability to create a place,” Lund said, noting Cle Elum’s population of about 2,265 and that roughly 40% of his city’s sales tax revenue derives from nonlocal visitors.

Supporters said the tool would allow sales and lodging tax revenues to be pooled for operations while bond authority and other financing could support capital costs; opponents or concerned parties did not object in principle but asked for technical fixes. The Washington State Association of Counties — represented by Kelsey Hulse — said the association supports the bill’s intent but requested language clarifying the interim treatment of underlying codes and how governance and revenue allocation would function for jurisdictions of differing sizes.

Speakers from the Upper Kittitas County Community Recreation Center Alliance, public-school leaders and veterans described local demand: accessible pools and year-round indoor recreation in a climate with heavy winter seasons, and the need to attract employers and support youth programs. School superintendent John Belcher said rural school districts commonly lack the resources to fund and maintain such facilities on their own.

Representative Dent and sponsors said they expect to work with the Department of Revenue, county officials and other stakeholders to address technical questions, including how the altered board composition would satisfy state tax and revenue administration. The committee took testimony but did not take a recorded vote at the hearing.