The laws of the state of Washington make detailed provisions in chapter 36.80 RCW, for the employment of a county engineer in each county. This chapter specifies that the county legislative authority of each county shall employ a county road engineer on either a full-time or part-time basis, or by contracting with another county for the engineering services of a county road engineer; that ((he/she))they shall be a registered and licensed professional civil engineer under the laws of this state; that ((he/she))they shall have supervision, under the direction of the county legislative authority, of all activities related to the county roads of the county, including maintenance; that ((he/she))they shall certify to the county legislative authority all bills with respect to county roads; that ((he/she))they shall keep complete public records of all road department activities; that ((he/she))they shall prepare plans and specifications for all construction work on the county road system; give an official bond to the county conditioned upon faithfully performing all the duties and accounting for county property entrusted to ((him or her))them.

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 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 a legislative authority of a county chooses to employ a county engineer on a part-time basis or contract with another county for the services of its county engineer, it shall designate by resolution a full-time employee to perform the day-to-day supervision of the county engineer duties not requiring a professional civil engineering license in accordance with policies established by the legislative authority.

Priority programming techniques shall be applied in the ranking of all potential projects on the road system of each county. They may be applied to all road and bridge projects combined in a single group, ((or)) may be applied to individual functional classes of roads and further subdivided into rural and urban systems if desired, or by funding source(s). 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))their county legislative authority. Items to be included and considered, which may vary from county to county, 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. A description of the priority programming technique to be used shall be submitted by each county engineer to the county road administration board, upon request.

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(s) shall be updated not later than 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.

This listing shall include projects having an estimated cost approximately equal to the anticipated revenues for projects during the program period, clearly identifying those projects (1) for which funding is reasonably assured; (2) for which funds are not specifically assured but are within expected levels of existing programs for the applicable year; and (3), if desired, those which are unfunded within currently anticipated resources. Because of the possibility of unforeseen future circumstances at the time of approval of the six-year program, the above construction funding classification for any project shall not be considered final, but only an indication of the relative certainty of the various proposed projects.

It is recommended that provision be made in the program for one or more generic projects each year for improvements such as miscellaneous safety projects, new culvert and small bridge construction and other minor improvements.

STANDARDS OF GOOD PRACTICE—((STATUTORY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COUNTY ENGINEER AND COUNTY LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY—ADOPTION OF WRITTEN POLICIES))COUNTY ROAD DEPARTMENT ADMINISTRATION

The powers and duties of the county legislative authority in relation to roads and bridges, and the qualifications and duties of the county engineer are detailed in Title 36 RCW. This chapter ((reiterates the formal relationship between the legislative authority and its county engineer and requires that certain written policies be adopted to insure the efficient and productive operation of the road department.

In this chapter and throughout Title 136 WAC, the term "county engineer" shall mean both "county road engineer" and "county engineer," as those terms are used in Title 36 RCW))specifies policies and notifications to be coordinated between the county engineer, county legislative authority, and the county road administration board.

The various duties and responsibilities of the county engineer are set forth in chapter 36.80 RCW. In addition to these specifically defined duties, the county engineer shall be guided by written policies regarding county road department operation as promulgated by the county legislative authority.

In counties that have adopted a home rule charter, as provided for in Article 11 subsection 4 of the state Constitution, the duties and responsibilities of the county engineer set forth in chapter 36.80 RCW may be modified by the county legislative authority as allowed by existing constitutional law, statutory law, and the county's charter.

In order to implement the requirements of this chapter, the county legislative authority shall develop and by resolution or ordinance adopt written policies, within the limits of existing state law, that cover any matters relating to county road department ((operation))administration, maintenance, and construction as they may see fit. At a minimum, the following written policies must be adopted ((to cover the issues listed in WAC 136-50-051 through 136-50-055))by the legislative authority:

(5) Survey monument preservation: A policy regarding preservation, maintenance, and restoration of survey monuments within the county road right-of-way.

Each county legislative authority shall submit to ((the office of)) the county road administration board one copy of each adopted policy required in WAC ((136-50-051 through 136-50-055,))136-50-050 and any subsequent revisions thereto, ((adopted pursuant to this regulation))within 10 business days of adoption. The county road administration board shall maintain a current file of all such adopted policies for each county.

To ensure that the standards of good practice are followed and, to facilitate county road administration board assistance and support to the counties, the county engineer shall notify the county legislative authority and the county road administration board within five business days regarding any of the following:

(1) The county engineer's professional civil engineering license expires or is suspended by the board of registration for professional engineers and land surveyors;

(2) The county, the county road department, or the county engineer is cited by any state or federal agency for violating state or federal law regarding county road administration, operation, maintenance, or construction;

(3) The county's certified agency certification is placed on probation or is revoked by the Washington state department of transportation;

(4) A finding or management letter from the state auditor's office directly or indirectly involving or effecting county road or equipment rental and revolving funds or policies;

(5) Judgments or verdicts involving the county road department.

If a county fails to comply with any portion of this chapter, the matter will be considered at the next regular meeting of the county road administration board. The county road administration board may take any action deemed necessary to ensure a county's compliance with this chapter.