H-4703.1          _______________________________________________

                            SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2750

                  _______________________________________________

State of Washington              52nd Legislature             1992 Regular Session

By House Committee on Local Government (originally sponsored by Representatives Haugen, Ferguson and Brekke)

Read first time 02/07/92.  Allowing a public utility district to fluoridate its water supply system.

     AN ACT Relating to fluoridation by public utility districts; and adding a new section to chapter 54.16 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 54.16 RCW to read as follows:

     A public utility district by a majority vote of its board of commissioners may fluoridate the water supply system of the public utility district.  The commissioners may cause the proposition of fluoridation of the water supply to be submitted to the voters of the public utility district at any general election or special election to be called for the purpose of voting on the proposition.  The proposition must be approved by a majority of the voters voting on the proposition to become effective.

     In lieu of submitting a proposition to the voters of the public utility district authorizing the fluoridation of the water system, the board of commissioners may mail ballots to each water customer having a separate water account with the district to authorize the fluoridation of its water supply.  A mailed ballot must be signed by the customer in whose name the water account is maintained and must be filed with the public utility district at its headquarters within twenty days of being mailed to the customer or must be postmarked within twenty days of being mailed to the customer and received by the public utility district within twenty-five days of being mailed to the customer.  A simple majority vote on the mailed ballots shall control.

     Mailed ballots may be mailed to every water customer and if the customers approve the fluoridation of the water, the district may fluoridate all of its water system or systems.  As an alternative, mailed ballots may be mailed to every water customer on a separate portion of the district's water system and if these customers approve the fluoridation of water, the public utility district may fluoridate that portion of its water system.