§19.3 THE STATUTORY LID PROCESS
This section discusses the statutes that govern LID formation, including constitutional due process requirements, and assessment of property benefited by an LID under Washington law.
(1) LIDs and due process
LID procedures meet the due process requirements of the United States Constitution as long as the person assessed has a hearing and notice some time before the tax is "irrevocably fixed." Londoner v. City and County of Denver, 210 U.S. 373, 385, 28 S.Ct. 708, 52 L.Ed. 1103 (1908). The requirement of "notice and the opportunity to be heard" was enough to satisfy the constitutional requirements of due process, and this requirement has been mirrored in the decisions of Washington courts. See, e.g., Patchell v. City of Puyallup, 37 Wn.App. 434, 443, 682 P.2d 913, review denied, 102 Wn.2d 1015 (1984). However, a municipality fails to provide constitutionally adequate notice if its notice of hearings does not provide property owners with sufficient time to seek and obtain expert testimony to rebut the presumption of special benefit, even if that notice otherwise complies with statutory time requirements. Hasit LLC v. City of Edgewood (Local Improvement Dist. # 1), 179 Wn.App. 917, 957‑58, 320 P.3d 163 (2014). Notice also fails constitutional muster if it erroneously limits testimony or prohibits the introduction of otherwise admissible evidence. Id.
(2) The statutory LID process in general
As noted above, the Washington Constitution gives the state legislature, rather than local governments, the direct authority to enact laws pertaining to special assessments. WASH. CONST . art. VII, §9. Thus, the power of a municipality to levy special assessments depends upon statutory enactment. The only constitutional limitations upon such power are that (1) an assessment may not exceed the special benefit to the property assessed and (2) like properties must receive like assessments. However, a municipality must also comply with any additional limitations or qualifications placed upon its power by the state legislature. In particular, a municipality must comply with specific procedural steps mandated by statute. An outline of the procedures followed during the course of forming an LID is contained in Form 19-1 on the CD accompanying this deskbook. See §19.7, below.
(a) Rules of statutory construction
The general rule of statutory construction is that municipal statutes and ordinances are to be strictly...
