AN
ACT Relating to authorizing cost-reimbursement agreements for leases and
environmental permits; adding a new section to chapter 43.21A RCW; adding a new
section to chapter 43.30 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.70 RCW; adding
a new section to chapter 43.300 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 70.94 RCW;
adding a new section to chapter 90.03 RCW; creating new sections; and declaring
an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 1.
INTENT. It is the intent of the legislature to allow
applicants for environmental permits for complex projects to compensate
permitting agencies for providing environmental review through the voluntary
negotiation of cost-reimbursement agreements with the permitting agency. It is
the further intent of the legislature that cost-reimbursement agreements for
complex projects free permitting agency resources to focus on the review of
small projects permits.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 2. A
new section is added to chapter 43.21A RCW to read as follows:
COST-REIMBURSEMENT
AGREEMENT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY. (1) The department may enter into a
written cost-reimbursement agreement with a permit applicant for a complex
project to recover from the applicant the reasonable costs incurred by the
department in carrying out the requirements of this chapter, as well as the
requirements of other relevant laws, as they relate to permit coordination,
environmental review, application review, technical studies, and permit
processing. The cost-reimbursement agreement shall identify the specific
tasks, costs, and schedule for work to be conducted under the agreement. For
purposes of this section, a complex project is a project for which an
environmental impact statement is required under chapter 43.21C RCW.
(2)
The written cost-reimbursement agreement shall be negotiated with the permit
applicant. Under the provisions of a cost-reimbursement agreement, funds from
the applicant shall be used by the department to contract with an independent
consultant to carry out the work covered by the cost-reimbursement agreement.
The department may also use funds provided under a cost-reimbursement agreement
to assign current staff to review the work of the consultant, to provide
necessary technical assistance when an independent consultant with comparable
technical skills is unavailable, and to recover reasonable and necessary direct
and indirect costs that arise from processing the permit. The department
shall, in developing the agreement, ensure that final decisions that involve
policy matters are made by the agency and not by the consultant. The
department shall make an estimate of the number of permanent staff hours to
process the permits, and shall contract with consultants to replace the time
and functions committed by these permanent staff to the project. The billing
process shall provide for accurate time and cost accounting and may include a
billing cycle that provides for progress payments. Use of cost-reimbursement
agreements shall not reduce the current level of staff available to work on
permits not covered by cost-reimbursement agreements. The department may not
use any funds under a cost-reimbursement agreement to replace or supplant
existing funding. The restrictions of chapter 42.52 RCW apply to any
cost-reimbursement agreement, and to any person hired as a result of a
cost-reimbursement agreement.
(3)
The department may not enter into any new cost-reimbursement agreements on or after
July 1, 2005. The department may continue to administer any cost-reimbursement
agreement which was entered into before July 1, 2005, until the project is
completed.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 3. A
new section is added to chapter 43.30 RCW to read as follows:
COST-REIMBURSEMENT
AGREEMENT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES. (1) The department may enter
into a written cost-reimbursement agreement with a permit or lease applicant
for a complex project to recover from the applicant the reasonable costs
incurred by the department in carrying out the requirements of this chapter, as
well as the requirements of other relevant laws, as they relate to permit
coordination, environmental review, application review, technical studies, and
permit or lease processing. The cost-reimbursement agreement shall identify
the specific tasks, costs, and schedule for work to be conducted under the
agreement. For purposes of this section, a complex project is a project for
which an environmental impact statement is required under chapter 43.21C RCW.
An applicant for a lease issued under chapter 79.90 RCW may not enter into a
cost-reimbursement agreement under this section for projects conducted under
the lease.
(2)
The written cost-reimbursement agreement shall be negotiated with the permit or
lease applicant. Under the provisions of a cost-reimbursement agreement, funds
from the applicant shall be used by the department to contract with an
independent consultant to carry out the work covered by the cost-reimbursement
agreement. The department may also use funds provided under a
cost-reimbursement agreement to assign current staff to review the work of the
consultant, to provide necessary technical assistance when an independent
consultant with comparable technical skills is unavailable, and to recover
reasonable and necessary direct and indirect costs that arise from processing
the permit or lease. The department shall, in developing the agreement, ensure
that final decisions that involve policy matters are made by the agency and not
by the consultant. The department shall make an estimate of the number of
permanent staff hours to process the permits or leases, and shall contract with
consultants to replace the time and functions committed by these permanent
staff to the project. The billing process shall provide for accurate time and
cost accounting and may include a billing cycle that provides for progress
payments. Use of cost-reimbursement agreements shall not reduce the current
level of staff available to work on permits or leases not covered by
cost-reimbursement agreements. The department may not use any funds under a
cost-reimbursement agreement to replace or supplant existing funding. The
restrictions of chapter 42.52 RCW apply to any cost-reimbursement agreement,
and to any person hired as a result of a cost-reimbursement agreement.
(3)
The department may not enter into any new cost-reimbursement agreements on or
after July 1, 2005. The department may continue to administer any cost-reimbursement
agreement which was entered into before July 1, 2005, until the project is
completed.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 4. A
new section is added to chapter 43.70 RCW to read as follows:
COST-REIMBURSEMENT
AGREEMENT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. (1) The department may enter into a
written cost-reimbursement agreement with a permit applicant for a complex
project to recover from the applicant the reasonable costs incurred by the
department in carrying out the requirements of this chapter, as well as the
requirements of other relevant laws, as they relate to permit coordination,
environmental review, application review, technical studies, and permit
processing.
The
cost-reimbursement agreement shall identify the specific tasks, costs, and
schedule for work to be conducted under the agreement. For purposes of this
section, a complex project is a project for which an environmental impact
statement is required under chapter 43.21C RCW.
(2)
The written cost-reimbursement agreement shall be negotiated with the permit
applicant. Under the provisions of a cost-reimbursement
agreement, funds from the applicant shall be used by the department to contract
with an independent consultant to carry out the work covered by the
cost-reimbursement agreement. The department may also use funds provided under
a cost-reimbursement agreement to assign current staff to review the work of
the consultant, to provide necessary technical assistance when an independent
consultant with comparable technical skills is unavailable, and to recover
reasonable and necessary direct and indirect costs that arise from processing
the permit. The department shall, in developing the agreement, ensure that
final decisions that involve policy matters are made by the agency and not by
the consultant. The department shall make an estimate of the number of
permanent staff hours to process the permits, and shall contract with
consultants to replace the time and functions committed by these permanent
staff to the project. The billing process shall provide for accurate time and
cost accounting and may include a billing cycle that provides for progress
payments. Use of cost-reimbursement agreements shall not reduce the current
level of staff available to work on permits not covered by cost-reimbursement
agreements. The department may not use any funds under a cost-reimbursement
agreement to replace or supplant existing funding. The restrictions of chapter
42.52 RCW apply to any cost-reimbursement agreement, and to any person hired as
a result of a cost-reimbursement agreement.
(3)
The department may not enter into any new cost-reimbursement agreements on or
after July 1, 2005. The department may continue to administer any
cost-reimbursement agreement which was entered into before July 1, 2005, until
the project is completed.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 5. A
new section is added to chapter 43.300 RCW to read as follows:
COST-REIMBURSEMENT
AGREEMENT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE. (1) The department may enter
into a written cost-reimbursement agreement with a permit applicant for a
complex project to recover from the applicant the reasonable costs incurred by
the department in carrying out the requirements of this chapter, as well as the
requirements of other relevant laws, as they relate to permit coordination,
environmental review, application review, technical studies, and permit
processing. The cost-reimbursement agreement shall identify the specific
tasks, costs, and schedule for work to be conducted under the agreement. For
purposes of this section, a complex project is a project for which an
environmental impact statement is required under chapter 43.21C RCW.
(2)
The written cost-reimbursement agreement shall be negotiated with the permit
applicant. Under the provisions of a cost-reimbursement
agreement, funds from the applicant shall be used by the department to contract
with an independent consultant to carry out the work covered by the
cost-reimbursement agreement. The department may also use funds provided under
a cost-reimbursement agreement to assign current staff to review the work of
the consultant, to provide necessary technical assistance when an independent
consultant with comparable technical skills is unavailable, and to recover
reasonable and necessary direct and indirect costs that arise from processing
the permit. The department shall, in developing the agreement, ensure that
final decisions that involve policy matters are made by the agency and not by
the consultant. The department shall make an estimate of the number of
permanent staff hours to process the permits, and shall contract with
consultants to replace the time and functions committed by these permanent
staff to the project. The billing process shall provide for accurate time and
cost accounting and may include a billing cycle that provides for progress
payments. Use of cost-reimbursement agreements shall not reduce the current
level of staff available to work on permits not covered by cost-reimbursement
agreements. The department may not use any funds under a cost-reimbursement
agreement to replace or supplant existing funding. The restrictions of chapter
42.52 RCW apply to any cost-reimbursement agreement, and to any person hired as
a result of a cost-reimbursement agreement.
(3)
The department may not enter into any new cost-reimbursement agreements on or
after July 1, 2005. The department may continue to administer any cost-reimbursement
agreement which was entered into before July 1, 2005, until the project is
completed.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 6. A
new section is added to chapter 70.94 RCW to read as follows:
COST-REIMBURSEMENT
AGREEMENT BY AN AIR POLLUTION CONTROL AUTHORITY. (1) An authority may enter
into a written cost-reimbursement agreement with a permit applicant for a
complex project to recover from the applicant the reasonable costs incurred by
the authority in carrying out the requirements of this chapter, as well as the
requirements of other relevant laws, as they relate to permit coordination,
environmental review, application review, technical studies, and permit
processing. The cost-reimbursement agreement shall identify the specific tasks,
costs, and schedule for work to be conducted under the agreement. For purposes
of this section, a complex project is a project for which an environmental
impact statement is required under chapter 43.21C RCW.
(2)
The written cost-reimbursement agreement shall be negotiated with the permit
applicant. Under the provisions of a cost-reimbursement agreement, funds from
the applicant shall be used by the air pollution control authority to contract
with an independent consultant to carry out the work covered by the
cost-reimbursement agreement. The air pollution control authority may also use
funds provided under a cost-reimbursement agreement to assign current staff to
review the work of the consultant, to provide necessary technical assistance
when an independent consultant with comparable technical skills is unavailable,
and to recover reasonable and necessary direct and indirect costs that arise
from processing the permit. The air pollution control authority shall, in
developing the agreement, ensure that final decisions that involve policy
matters are made by the agency and not by the consultant. The air pollution
control authority shall make an estimate of the number of permanent staff hours
to process the permits, and shall contract with consultants to replace the time
and functions committed by these permanent staff to the project. The billing
process shall provide for accurate time and cost accounting and may include a
billing cycle that provides for progress payments. Use of cost-reimbursement
agreements shall not reduce the current level of staff available to work on
permits not covered by cost-reimbursement agreements. The air pollution
control authority may not use any funds under a cost-reimbursement agreement to
replace or supplant existing funding. The provisions of chapter 42.52 RCW
apply to any cost-reimbursement agreement, and to any person hired as a result
of a cost-reimbursement agreement. Members of the air pollution control
authority's board of directors shall be considered as state officers, and
employees of the air pollution control authority shall be considered as state
employees, for the sole purpose of applying the restrictions of chapter 42.52
RCW to this section.
(3)
An air pollution control authority may not enter into any new
cost-reimbursement agreements on or after July 1, 2005. The department may
continue to administer any cost-reimbursement agreement which was entered into
before July 1, 2005, until the project is completed.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 7. A
new section is added to chapter 90.03 RCW to read as follows:
Any
applicant for a new withdrawal or a change, transfer, or amendment of a water
right pending before the department, may initiate a cost-reimbursement
agreement with the department to provide expedited review of the application.
A cost-reimbursement agreement may only be initiated under this section if the
applicant agrees to pay for, or as part of a cooperative effort agrees to pay
for, the cost of processing his or her application and all other applications
from the same source of supply which must be acted upon before the applicant's
request because they were filed prior to the date of when the applicant filed.
The department shall use the process established under section 2 of this act
for entering into cost-reimbursement agreements, except that it is not
necessary for an environmental impact statement to be filed as a prerequisite
for entering into a cost-reimbursement agreement under this section.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 8.
Captions used in this act are not any part of the law.
NEW
SECTION. Sec. 9. This
act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or
safety, or support of the state government and its existing public
institutions, and takes effect immediately.
