WSR 23-07-046

DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY

[Filed March 8, 2023, 12:59 p.m.]

The Washington state department of ecology (ecology) certifies wastewater treatment plant operators to ensure they are able to properly operate and maintain wastewater treatment plants.

By law, ecology must fund the wastewater operator certification (OpCert) program with fees. These fees are subject to change, dependent upon a budget and workload analysis completed every biennium.

Based on the estimated administrative costs of the OpCert program and the projected account balance, ecology intends to raise wastewater operator certification fees beginning July 1, 2023.

Copies of the Draft Fee Schedule: The current and draft fee schedules are available online at https://ecology.wa.gov/opcert. You may request hard copies from Torrie Shaul at 360-789-3831 or opcert@ecy.wa.gov.

Public Notice Process and Comments: Ecology is accepting public comments on the draft fee schedule from March 31, 2023, through 11:59 p.m. on May 15, 2023. Comments must be made in writing. Ecology prefers to receive comments on the draft fee schedule through the e-Comment form. However, we will accept written comments via email and by mail. Ecology will review all comments received by the deadline, and plans to publish the final fee schedule prior to June 30, 2023.

Submit comments:

Ecology Contact: If you have questions about the draft fee schedule or how to comment, please contact our OpCert program staff at opcert@ecy.wa.gov.

Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: To request an Americans with Disabilities Act accommodation, contact ecology, phone 360-407-6600, email opcert@ecy.wa.gov, or visit https://ecology.wa.gov/accessibility. For [telecommunications] relay service or TTY call 711 or 877-833-6341.

Language Assistance: For language assistance, please contact OpCert program staff at 360-485-8906 or email opcert@ecy.wa.gov. You can also visit the following web page for more information https://ecology.wa.gov/About-us/Accessibility-equity/Language-services.