When a vacancy or change occurs in the office of county engineer ((due to resignation, retirement, death or for any other))for any reason, the county legislative authority shall take immediate steps to find a replacement((, either by promotion from within the organization if a competent and eligible person is available, or by advertisement for, and interview of, qualified applicants)). The county legislative authority or county executive shall((, in writing)), by electronic email or official letter, within five ((working))business days, notify the county road administration board of the vacancy or change, the effective date of the vacancy or change and of the procedure to be followed during the period of vacancy. The notice to the county road administration board shall state that the legislative authority or county executive has reviewed the requirements within ((this)) chapter 136-12 WAC.

If for any reason((,)) it is impossible to employ a new county engineer immediately, the county legislative authority shall designate, by resolution, an acting county engineer for an interim period((,)) not to exceed six months((,)) except as provided in WAC 136-12-060. A copy of such resolution shall be forwarded to the county road administration board within five business days of the effective date of the vacancy.

If the acting county engineer is not a licensed professional civil engineer, the legislative authority shall designate a licensed professional civil engineer to perform all professional civil engineering ((services))functions during the interim period as required by chapter 18.43 RCW, and the unlicensed acting county engineer shall perform only those functions of the office not requiring a professional civil engineer's license.

When final arrangements for the employment of a new county engineer have been made, the county legislative authority or the county executive shall, within five ((working))business days, notify the county road administration board in writing and shall include the following information: Name of new county engineer, Washington professional civil engineer registration number, start date, and contact information, including an email address when available. In addition, the notification shall include a copy of the organization chart detailing the responsibilities of the county engineer if there is an adopted change, WAC 136-50-051, and a copy of the appointment resolution, letter of appointment, or copy of the meeting minutes of the legislative authority recording the appointment.

In the case of vacancy or change, if ((notification is not received within the time frame established in WAC 136-12-045, the matter of the vacancy))a county fails to comply with any portion of chapter 136-12 WAC, the matter will be considered at the next regular meeting of the county road administration board. The county road administration board may ((require that all construction by county forces projects be shut down and/or that all distribution of gas tax funds to the county cease))take any action regarding county forces construction, the county's motor vehicle fuel tax distribution, county arterial preservation program eligibility or rural arterial program eligibility it deems appropriate: Provided however, that it may continue to grant reasonable extensions in the event the affected county can give adequate proof or demonstrate at the next regularly scheduled board meeting that a diligent effort has been made to secure the services of a qualified professional civil engineer.

When the county legislative authority chooses to employ a county engineer on a part-time basis the terms of such employment shall be set forth in a contract adopted by resolution of the legislative authority. Such contract shall specify, but need not be limited to: Statement of legal responsibility, salary or wage arrangements, meetings with the legislative authority, travel expenses and relationship with regular employees. A copy of such resolution and contract shall be forwarded to the office of the county road administration board within five business days of adoption.

When the legislative authority chooses to contract with another county for services such contract shall be approved by resolution of both legislative authorities. Such contract shall specify, but need not be limited to: Statement of legal responsibility, salary or wage arrangements, meetings with the legislative authority, travel expenses and relationship with regular employees. A copy of the contract and both resolutions shall be forwarded to the office of the county road administration board within five business days of adoption by both counties. Any such contract shall be in accordance with the procedures of the Interlocal Cooperation Act, chapter 39.34 RCW.

When a legislative authority of a county chooses to employ a ((licensed professional civil))county engineer on a part-time basis or contract with another county for the services of its ((licensed professional civil))county engineer, it shall designate by resolution a full-time employee ((as assistant county engineer. In such cases, the designated assistant county engineer shall))to perform the day-to-day supervision of the ((road department under the)) county engineer duties not requiring a professional civil engineering license in accordance with policies established by the legislative authority.

The requirement to develop and adopt both long range and short range programs as a prerequisite to road construction is established in RCW 36.79.080, 36.81.121 and 36.81.130. Numerous studies have shown that road construction needs far exceed available revenue. Priority programming is the development and application of techniques designed to rank any array of potential projects in order of importance to serve as a guide in assisting a county legislative authority in the formulation of road programs and distribution of limited resources. Priority programming procedures for counties must be adaptable to a wide variety of situations.

Priority programming techniques shall be applied in the ranking of all potential projects on the ((arterial)) road system of each county. They may be applied to all ((arterial))road and bridge projects combined in a single group, or may be applied to individual functional classes of ((arterials))roads and further subdivided into rural and urban systems if desired. Priority programming will not be required, but is recommended, for the local access road system. However, bridges on the local access road system must be included in priority programming.

Each county engineer will be required to develop a priority programming process tailored to meet the overall roadway system development policy determined by his or her county legislative authority. Items to be included and considered in the technique for roads shall include, but need not be limited to the following:

(1) Traffic volumes;

(2) Roadway condition;

(3) Geometrics;

(4) Safety and accident history; and

(5) Matters of significant local importance.

The manner in which these various items are treated may vary from county to county.

Bridge priorities shall be established in accordance with WAC 136-20-060. ((Accident records may be considered where their use will make a legitimate contribution.)) A description of the priority programming technique to be used shall be submitted by each county engineer to the county road administration board.

The county road administration board, upon request, will provide assistance to counties in the development, evaluation or modification of their priority programming process in order to meet the requirements of this rule.

The priority programming process for roads shall be applied by the county engineer to all potential arterial, collector and bridge projects in the county, and to local access road projects if directed by the legislative authority. The resulting priority array shall be updated not later than ((June 1st of each odd-numbered year))the first Monday in October and shall be consulted together with bridge priorities by the county legislative authority and county engineer during the preparation of the proposed six-year transportation program as described in chapter 136-15 WAC.

The adopted six-year program may not be revised except by a majority vote of the members of the legislative authority who are present when the vote is taken. Such revisions shall be by resolution of the legislative authority and only after a public hearing thereon. A copy of such adopting resolution shall be forwarded to the county road administration board as part of the annual certification for that calendar year.