H-958                _______________________________________________

                                                    HOUSE BILL NO. 414

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

By Representatives Padden and Taylor

Read first time 2/1/85 and referred to Committee on Environmental Affairs.

AN ACT Relating to aquifer-groundwater protection; amending RCW 36.94.020; and adding new sections to chapter 36.94 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  Section 2, chapter 72, Laws of 1967 as amended by section 1, chapter 313, Laws of 1981 and RCW 36.94.020 are each amended to read as follows:

          The construction, operation, and maintenance of a system of sewerage and/or water is a county purpose.  Subject to the provisions of this chapter, every county has the power, individually or in conjunction with another county or counties to adopt, provide for, accept, establish, condemn, purchase, construct, add to, and maintain a system or systems of sanitary and storm sewers, including outfalls, interceptors, plans, and facilities necessary for sewerage treatment and disposal, sole source aquifer protection, and/or system or systems of water supply within all or a portion of the county:  PROVIDED, That counties shall not have power to condemn sewerage and/or water systems of any municipal corporation or private utility.

          Such county or counties shall have the authority to control, regulate, and manage such system or systems and to provide funds therefor by general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, local improvement district bonds, utility local improvement district or local improvement district assessments, and in any other lawful fiscal manner.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 36.94 RCW to read as follows:

          Any county that contains a sole source aquifer may establish and administer an aquifer protection program and impose a county-wide charge not to exceed two dollars per month per household to protect sole source aquifers, subject to voter approval as provided in section 3 of this act.  The county shall not impose a separate charge on the users of on-site disposal systems under its aquifer protection program.  In addition to exercising any other authority granted to a county under this chapter, a county which implements an aquifer protection program may also use revenues collected under the program to finance deferral of local improvement district assessments, to provide for a uniform reduction of local improvement district assessments, to provide financial assistance to qualified low-income residential customers as determined by the county legislative authority, and to reduce local improvement district assessments for property which has unique characteristics when the assessments would be unduly burdensome otherwise.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 36.94 RCW to read as follows:

          Before a county may impose a county-wide charge to implement an aquifer protection program as provided in section 2 of this act, the county legislative authority shall first pass a resolution calling for an election.  Notice of the election shall be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the county in the manner provided by law for notice of general elections.  No person may vote in the election unless the person is a qualified voter under the laws of the state in effect at the time of the election and the person has resided within the county for at least thirty days preceding the date of the election.

          The conduct of a special or general election by the county auditor in accordance with the general election laws of the state.  The results shall be canvassed by the county canvassing board of the county, which shall certify the result to the county legislative authority.