BP BHEAD INT S

AN ACT Relating to abolishing the growth management hearings boards; amending RCW 36.70A.110, 36.70A.210, 36.70A.280, 36.70A.300, 36.70A.310, and 36.70A.320; reenacting and amending RCW 36.70A.290; creating a new section; and repealing RCW 36.70A.250, 36.70A.260, and 36.70A.270.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The authority of the three growth management hearings boards to receive and consider petitions pursuant to RCW 36.70A.280 shall terminate as of the effective date of this act and the boards shall be terminated on June 30, 1996. Any matters pending before any of the three boards on June 30, 1996, shall be transferred to the superior court for the county in which the matter arises. If the matter involves more than one county, the matter shall be transferred to the superior court of the county to which the parties stipulate, or if there is no stipulation between the parties by June 30, 1996, to Thurston county superior court.

Sec. 2. RCW 36.70A.110 and 1994 c 249 s 27 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Each county that is required or chooses to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 shall designate an urban growth area or areas within which urban growth shall be encouraged and outside of which growth can occur only if it is not urban in nature. Each city that is located in such a county shall be included within an urban growth area. An urban growth area may include more than a single city. An urban growth area may include territory that is located outside of a city only if such territory already is characterized by urban growth or is adjacent to territory already characterized by urban growth.

(2) Based upon the population growth management planning population projection made for the county by the office of financial management, the urban growth areas in the county shall include areas and densities sufficient to permit the urban growth that is projected to occur in the county for the succeeding twenty-year period. Each urban growth area shall permit urban densities and shall include greenbelt and open space areas. Within one year of July 1, 1990, each county that as of June 1, 1991, was required or chose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040, shall begin consulting with each city located within its boundaries and each city shall propose the location of an urban growth area. Within sixty days of the date the county legislative authority of a county adopts its resolution of intention or of certification by the office of financial management, all other counties that are required or choose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 shall begin this consultation with each city located within its boundaries. The county shall attempt to reach agreement with each city on the location of an urban growth area within which the city is located. If such an agreement is not reached with each city located within the urban growth area, the county shall justify in writing why it so designated the area an urban growth area. A city may object formally with the department over the designation of the urban growth area within which it is located. Where appropriate, the department shall attempt to resolve the conflicts, including the use of mediation services.

(3) Urban growth should be located first in areas already characterized by urban growth that have existing public facility and service capacities to serve such development, and second in areas already characterized by urban growth that will be served by a combination of both existing public facilities and services and any additional needed public facilities and services that are provided by either public or private sources. Further, it is appropriate that urban government services be provided by cities, and urban government services should not be provided in rural areas.

(4) On or before October 1, 1993, each county that was initially required to plan under RCW 36.70A.040(1) shall adopt development regulations designating interim urban growth areas under this chapter. Within three years and three months of the date the county legislative authority of a county adopts its resolution of intention or of certification by the office of financial management, all other counties that are required or choose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 shall adopt development regulations designating interim urban growth areas under this chapter. Adoption of the interim urban growth areas may only occur after public notice; public hearing; and compliance with the state environmental policy act, chapter 43.21C RCW, and RCW 36.70A.110. Such action may be appealed ((~~to the appropriate growth management hearings board~~)) as provided under RCW 36.70A.280. Final urban growth areas shall be adopted at the time of comprehensive plan adoption under this chapter.

(5) Each county shall include designations of urban growth areas in its comprehensive plan.

Sec. 3. RCW 36.70A.210 and 1994 c 249 s 28 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The legislature recognizes that counties are regional governments within their boundaries, and cities are primary providers of urban governmental services within urban growth areas. For the purposes of this section, a "county-wide planning policy" is a written policy statement or statements used solely for establishing a county-wide framework from which county and city comprehensive plans are developed and adopted pursuant to this chapter. This framework shall ensure that city and county comprehensive plans are consistent as required in RCW 36.70A.100. Nothing in this section shall be construed to alter the land-use powers of cities.

(2) The legislative authority of a county that plans under RCW 36.70A.040 shall adopt a county-wide planning policy in cooperation with the cities located in whole or in part within the county as follows:

(a) No later than sixty calendar days from July 16, 1991, the legislative authority of each county that as of June 1, 1991, was required or chose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 shall convene a meeting with representatives of each city located within the county for the purpose of establishing a collaborative process that will provide a framework for the adoption of a county-wide planning policy. In other counties that are required or choose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040, this meeting shall be convened no later than sixty days after the date the county adopts its resolution of intention or was certified by the office of financial management.

(b) The process and framework for adoption of a county-wide planning policy specified in (a) of this subsection shall determine the manner in which the county and the cities agree to all procedures and provisions including but not limited to desired planning policies, deadlines, ratification of final agreements and demonstration thereof, and financing, if any, of all activities associated therewith.

(c) If a county fails for any reason to convene a meeting with representatives of cities as required in (a) of this subsection, the governor may immediately impose any appropriate sanction or sanctions on the county from those specified under RCW 36.70A.340.

(d) If there is no agreement by October 1, 1991, in a county that was required or chose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 as of June 1, 1991, or if there is no agreement within one hundred twenty days of the date the county adopted its resolution of intention or was certified by the office of financial management in any other county that is required or chooses to plan under RCW 36.70A.040, the governor shall first inquire of the jurisdictions as to the reason or reasons for failure to reach an agreement. If the governor deems it appropriate, the governor may immediately request the assistance of the department of community, trade, and economic development to mediate any disputes that preclude agreement. If mediation is unsuccessful in resolving all disputes that will lead to agreement, the governor may impose appropriate sanctions from those specified under RCW 36.70A.340 on the county, city, or cities for failure to reach an agreement as provided in this section. The governor shall specify the reason or reasons for the imposition of any sanction.

(e) No later than July 1, 1992, the legislative authority of each county that was required or chose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 as of June 1, 1991, or no later than fourteen months after the date the county adopted its resolution of intention or was certified by the office of financial management the county legislative authority of any other county that is required or chooses to plan under RCW 36.70A.040, shall adopt a county-wide planning policy according to the process provided under this section and that is consistent with the agreement pursuant to (b) of this subsection, and after holding a public hearing or hearings on the proposed county-wide planning policy.

(3) A county-wide planning policy shall at a minimum, address the following:

(a) Policies to implement RCW 36.70A.110;

(b) Policies for promotion of contiguous and orderly development and provision of urban services to such development;

(d) Policies for county-wide transportation facilities and strategies;

(e) Policies that consider the need for affordable housing, such as housing for all economic segments of the population and parameters for its distribution;

(f) Policies for joint county and city planning within urban growth areas;

(g) Policies for county-wide economic development and employment; and

(h) An analysis of the fiscal impact.

(4) Federal agencies and Indian tribes may participate in and cooperate with the county-wide planning policy adoption process. Adopted county-wide planning policies shall be adhered to by state agencies.

(5) Failure to adopt a county-wide planning policy that meets the requirements of this section may result in the imposition of a sanction or sanctions on a county or city within the county, as specified in RCW 36.70A.340. In imposing a sanction or sanctions, the governor shall specify the reasons for failure to adopt a county-wide planning policy in order that any imposed sanction or sanctions are fairly and equitably related to the failure to adopt a county-wide planning policy.

(6) Cities and the governor may appeal an adopted county-wide planning policy to the ((~~growth management hearings board~~)) superior court within sixty days of the adoption of the county-wide planning policy.

(7) Multicounty planning policies shall be adopted by two or more counties, each with a population of four hundred fifty thousand or more, with contiguous urban areas and may be adopted by other counties, according to the process established under this section or other processes agreed to among the counties and cities within the affected counties throughout the multicounty region.

Sec. 4. RCW 36.70A.280 and 1994 c 249 s 31 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) ((~~A growth management hearings board~~)) In addition to and without any limitation on the jurisdiction otherwise granted, a superior court shall hear and determine ((~~only~~)) those petitions alleging either:

(a) That a state agency, county, or city is not in compliance with the requirements of this chapter, or chapter 43.21C RCW as it relates to plans, regulations, or amendments, adopted under RCW 36.70A.040; or

(b) That the twenty-year growth management planning population projections adopted by the office of financial management pursuant to RCW 43.62.035 should be adjusted.

(2) A petition may be filed only by the state, a county or city that plans under this chapter, a person who has either appeared before the county or city regarding the matter on which a review is being requested or is certified by the governor within sixty days of filing the request with the ((~~board~~)) court, or a person qualified pursuant to RCW 34.05.530.

(3) For purposes of this section "person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental subdivision or unit thereof, or public or private organization or entity of any character.

(4) ((When considering a possible adjustment to a growth management planning population projection prepared by the office of financial management, a board shall consider the implications of any such adjustment to the population forecast for the entire state.

~~The rationale for any adjustment that is adopted by a board must be documented and filed with the office of financial management within ten working days after adoption.~~)) If a county growth management planning population projection is adjusted by a ((~~board, a county growth management planning population~~)) court, the adjusted projection shall only be used for the planning purposes set forth in this chapter and shall be known as a "((~~board~~)) court adjusted population projection". None of these changes shall affect the official state and county population forecasts prepared by the office of financial management, which shall continue to be used for state budget and planning purposes.

Sec. 5. RCW 36.70A.290 and 1994 c 257 s 2 and 1994 c 249 s 26 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

(1) All requests for review pursuant to RCW 36.70A.280 to ((~~a growth management hearings board~~)) superior court shall be initiated by filing a petition that includes a detailed statement of issues presented for resolution by the ((~~board~~)) court.

(2) All petitions relating to whether or not an adopted comprehensive plan, development regulation, or permanent amendment thereto, is in compliance with the goals and requirements of this chapter or chapter 43.21C RCW must be filed within sixty days after publication by the legislative bodies of the county or city. The date of publication for a city shall be the date the city publishes the ordinance, or summary of the ordinance, adopting the comprehensive plan or development regulations, or amendment thereto, as is required to be published. Promptly after adoption, a county shall publish a notice that it has adopted the comprehensive plan or development regulations, or amendment thereto. The date of publication for a county shall be the date the county publishes the notice that it has adopted the comprehensive plan or development regulations, or amendment thereto.

(3) Unless the ((~~board~~)) court dismisses the petition as frivolous or finds that the person filing the petition lacks standing, the ((~~board~~)) court shall, within ten days of receipt of the petition, set a time for hearing the matter.

(4) The ((~~board~~)) court shall base its decision on the record developed by the city, county, or the state and supplemented with additional evidence if the ((~~board~~)) court determines that such additional evidence would be necessary or of substantial assistance to the ((~~board~~)) court in reaching its decision.

(5) The ((~~board,~~)) court shall consolidate, when appropriate, all petitions involving the review of the same comprehensive plan or the same development regulation or regulations.

Sec. 6. RCW 36.70A.300 and 1991 sp.s. c 32 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The ((~~board~~)) court shall issue a final order within one hundred eighty days of receipt of the petition for review, or, when multiple petitions are filed, within one hundred eighty days of receipt of the last petition that is consolidated. Such a final order shall be based exclusively on whether or not a state agency, county, or city is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter, or chapter 43.21C RCW as it relates to plans, regulations, and amendments thereto, adopted under RCW 36.70A.040. In the final order, the ((~~board~~)) court shall either: (a) Find that the state agency, county, or city is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter; or (b) find that the state agency, county, or city is not in compliance with the requirements of this chapter, in which case the ((~~board~~)) court shall remand the matter to the affected state agency, county, or city and specify a reasonable time not in excess of one hundred eighty days within which the state agency, county, or city shall comply with the requirements of this chapter.

(2) Any ((~~party aggrieved by a~~)) final decision of ((~~the hearings board may appeal the decision to Thurston county superior court within thirty days of the final order of the board~~)) a court in a matter considered under RCW 36.70A.280 and 36.70A.290 may be appealed in the same manner and subject to the same rules as any other final order or judgment of a superior court.

Sec. 7. RCW 36.70A.310 and 1994 c 249 s 32 are each amended to read as follows:

A request for review by the state to ((~~a growth management hearings board~~)) superior court may be made only by the governor, or with the governor's consent the head of an agency, or by the commissioner of public lands as relating to state trust lands, for the review of whether: (1) A county or city that is required or chooses to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 has failed to adopt a comprehensive plan or development regulations, or county-wide planning policies within the time limits established by this chapter; or (2) a county or city that is required or chooses to plan under this chapter has adopted a comprehensive plan, development regulations, or county-wide planning policies, that are not in compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

Sec. 8. RCW 36.70A.320 and 1991 sp.s. c 32 s 13 are each amended to read as follows:

Comprehensive plans and development regulations, and amendments thereto, adopted under this chapter are presumed valid upon adoption. In any petition under ((~~this chapter, the board~~)) RCW 36.70A.280, the court, after full consideration of the petition, shall determine whether there is compliance with the requirements of this chapter. In making its determination, the ((~~board~~)) court shall consider the criteria adopted by the department under RCW 36.70A.190(4). The ((~~board~~)) court shall find compliance unless it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the state agency, county, or city erroneously interpreted or applied this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. The following acts or parts of acts are each repealed:

(1) RCW 36.70A.250 and 1994 c 249 s 29 & 1991 sp.s. c 32 s 5;

(2) RCW 36.70A.260 and 1994 c 249 s 30 & 1991 sp.s. c 32 s 6; and

(3) RCW 36.70A.270 and 1994 c 257 s 1 & 1991 sp.s. c 32 s 7.