Roadway safety account use

AN ACT Relating to expanding access to funding from the multiuse 1
roadway safety account for eligible cities and for the Washington 2
state departments of natural resources and fish and wildlife for 3
maintenance and guidance of motorized recreation on green dot roads; 4
amending RCW 46.09.540; creating a new section; providing an 5
effective date; and declaring an emergency. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:7
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that the green 8
dot roads system has existed for more than half a century and has 9
been a vital network for on and off-road recreational travel. While 10
in the 1980s almost 1,000 miles of green dot roads came under the 11
jurisdiction of what are now the departments of natural resources and 12
fish and wildlife, insufficient funding has meant that the roads have 13
not been sufficiently maintained over time.14
(2) The legislature finds that cities or towns that have enacted 15
ordinances that authorize the travel of wheeled all-terrain vehicles 16
on their roadways should be eligible for funding assistance to 17
promote safety, signage, education, and enforcement of laws relating 18
to the operation of wheeled all-terrain vehicles within their 19
jurisdictions. 20
H-0507.1
HOUSE BILL 1537
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representative Barkis
Read first time 01/23/25. Referred to Committee on Transportation.
p. 1 HB 1537
(3) The legislature, therefore, intends to expand access to funds 1
in the multiuse roadway safety account under RCW 46.09.540 by making 2
the departments of natural resources and fish and wildlife eligible 3
for interagency transfers from the department of transportation for 4
certain purposes and by making certain cities and towns eligible to 5
apply for grants. 6
Sec. 2. RCW 46.09.540 and 2021 c 333 s 720 are each amended to 7
read as follows: 8
(1) The multiuse roadway safety account is created in the motor 9
vehicle fund. All receipts from vehicle license fees under RCW 10
46.17.350(1)(r) must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the 11
account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the 12
account may be used only for grants or interagency transfers 13
administered by the department of transportation to:14
(a) ((Counties)) Local governments to perform safety engineering 15
analysis of mixed vehicle use on any road within ((a county )) the 16
jurisdiction; 17
(b) ((local)) Local governments to provide funding to erect signs 18
providing notice to the motoring public that (i) wheeled all-terrain 19
vehicles are present or (ii) wheeled all-terrain vehicles may be 20
crossing; 21
(c) ((the)) The state patrol or local law enforcement for 22
purposes of defraying the costs of enforcement of chapter 23, Laws of 23
2013 2nd sp. sess.; 24
(d) ((law)) Law enforcement to investigate accidents involving 25
wheeled all-terrain vehicles; ((and))26
(e) ((during the 2021-2023 biennium grants may be made to 27
counties)) Local governments to (i) enhance or maintain any segment 28
of a road within the ((county)) jurisdiction in which the segment has 29
been designated as part of a travel or tourism route for use by 30
wheeled all-terrain vehicles; and (ii) purchase, print, develop, or 31
use educational brochures or mapping technology that aids in the 32
safety and direction of users of wheeled all-terrain vehicle routes ; 33
and34
(f)(i) The departments of natural resources and fish and 35
wildlife, during the second year of each fiscal biennium, with 36
respect to roads that are comanaged by the agencies and which are 37
open for use by wheeled all-terrain vehicles, for the purposes of:38
p. 2 HB 1537
(A) Mitigating impacts to road surfaces caused by wheeled all-1
terrain vehicles on public roadways authorized for wheeled all-2
terrain vehicle travel;3
(B) Erecting signage to identify the designation of public 4
roadways as either open or closed to wheeled all-terrain vehicles, 5
depending on whether the roadway has been authorized for wheeled all-6
terrain vehicle travel; or7
(C) Purchasing, printing, developing, or using educational 8
brochures or mapping technology that aids in the safety and direction 9
of users of wheeled all-terrain vehicle routes.10
(ii) The department of transportation must limit the interagency 11
transfers to the departments of natural resources and fish and 12
wildlife under this subsection (1)(f) such that a minimum of $80,000 13
is available to be allocated for grants to eligible local governments 14
during the biennium. 15
(2) The department of transportation must prioritize grant awards 16
in the following priority order: 17
(a) For the purpose of marking highway crossings with signs 18
warning motorists that wheeled all-terrain vehicles may be crossing 19
when an ORV recreation facility parking lot is on the other side of a 20
public roadway from the actual ORV recreation facility; and21
(b) For the purpose of marking intersections with signs where a 22
wheeled all-terrain vehicle may cross a public road to advise 23
motorists of the upcoming intersection. Such signs must conform to 24
the manual on uniform traffic control devices. 25
(3) Prior to an interagency transfer to either the department of 26
natural resources or the department of fish and wildlife, the county 27
or counties in which the proposed project will take place must first 28
submit a letter of support to the implementing department and to the 29
department of transportation.30
(4) For the purposes of this section, "local government" means: 31
(a) A county; or (b) a city or town that has approved the operation 32
of wheeled all-terrain vehicles on roadways within its jurisdiction.33
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. This act is necessary for the immediate 34
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of 35
the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes 36
effect July 1, 2025.37
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p. 3 HB 1537