Richland council approves 0.1% sales tax to replace $20 car‑tab fee for pavement preservation

The Richland City Council voted unanimously to approve an ordinance converting the $20 car‑tab fee into a sales and use tax of one‑tenth of 1% within the Richland Transportation Benefit District to fund pavement preservation.

Council members approved the ordinance on a first reading and scheduled a second reading in October; staff said the change would require coordination with the Washington State Department of Revenue to take effect on Jan. 1, 2026, if the submitted ordinance meets the department’s timeline.

City staff told the council the existing card‑tab fee, collected since 2019, produces roughly $1 million a year and covers about 25% of the pavement preservation need. Converting to a sales‑tax model would, according to staff estimates presented at the meeting, roughly double that revenue to about $2.2 million–$2.5 million annually and reduce the need for transfers from the general fund and real‑estate excise tax to pay for road maintenance.

"It equates to 1¢ per $10 sales tax transaction or 10¢ per $100 sales tax transaction," said John Amundsen, a city staff member summarizing the proposal and the anticipated effect on households. Amundsen added that many common purchases such as groceries and rent are sales‑tax exempt and pointed to the city’s relatively strong sales‑tax base as a reason the change spreads the cost over general consumption rather than a flat vehicle fee.

Amundsen also explained the Department of Revenue deadline to have implementing paperwork submitted, saying staff needed to provide the Department of Revenue documentation by mid‑October to permit a Jan. 1, 2026 effective date.

Council members who spoke during the meeting expressed support for the change, saying the sales tax approach spreads cost more fairly and reduces reliance on general‑fund transfers for road work. Council commentary cited an estimated pavement preservation need of roughly $4 million a year to keep pavement condition ratings near the current levels; the existing fee contributed about $1 million of that amount.

Council took the motion to approve the ordinance on a first reading and conducted a roll‑call vote. The recorded votes during the roll call were: Council member Jones — yes; Council member Meyer — aye; Council member Van Dyke — aye; Council member Witten — aye; Council member Luxon — aye. The mayor and mayor pro tem were absent. The motion passed unanimously among the members present.

Staff identified city attorney Heather Kinsley for rapid drafting of the ordinance and thanked multiple staff members for quick work to meet the Department of Revenue timeline.

The council set the second reading for the ordinance at its regular meeting in October to complete the formal adoption process and allow staff to submit the ordinance to the state for implementation. If enacted as described, the local sales‑tax rate would rise from about 8.7% to 8.8% inside the city; staff compared that to neighboring cities’ totals in the discussion.

Votes at a glance: • Ordinance (impose 0.1% sales and use tax within Richland Transportation Benefit District; repeal $20 card‑tab fee) — Motion approved on first reading; second reading scheduled for October; unanimous among present council members.

(See provenance for transcript excerpts.)