Washington Revised Code Title 43. State Government--Executive § 43.163.005. Purpose--Construction

Economic development is essential to the health, safety, and welfare of all Washington citizens by broadening and strengthening state and local tax bases, providing meaningful employment opportunities and thereby enhancing the quality of life. Economic development increasingly is dependent upon the ability of small-sized and medium-sized businesses and farms to finance growth and trade activities. Many of these businesses face an unmet need for capital that limits their growth. These unmet capital needs are a problem in both urban and rural areas which cannot be solved by the private sector alone. There presently exist some federal programs, private credit enhancements and other financial tools to complement the private banking industry in providing this needed capital. More research is needed to develop effective strategies to enhance access to capital and thereby stimulate economic development.

It is the purpose of this chapter to establish a state economic development finance authority to act as a financial conduit that, without using state funds or lending the credit of the state or local governments, can issue nonrecourse revenue bonds, and participate in federal, state, and local economic development programs to help facilitate access to needed capital by Washington businesses that cannot otherwise readily obtain needed capital on terms and rates comparable to large corporations, and can help local governments obtain capital more efficiently. It is also a primary purpose of this chapter to encourage the employment and retention of Washington workers at meaningful wages and to develop innovative approaches to the problem of unmet capital needs. This chapter is enacted to accomplish these and related purposes and shall be construed liberally to carry out its purposes and objectives.