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HOUSE BILL 1845

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State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

By Representatives Sehlin and H. Sommers; by request of Department of Natural Resources

Read first time 02/06/2001.  Referred to Committee on Appropriations.

_1      AN ACT Relating to surface mining reclamation permit fees; and

_2  amending RCW 78.44.085.

_3  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

_4      Sec. 1.  RCW 78.44.085 and 1997 c 413 s 1 are each amended to read

_5  as follows:

_6      (1) An applicant for a public or private reclamation permit

_7  shall pay ((an)) a nonrefundable application fee to the department

_8  before being granted a surface mining permit.  The amount of the

_9  application fee shall be ((six)) one thousand two hundred

10  ((fifty)) dollars.

11      (2) After June 30, ((1993)) 2001, each public or private permit

12  holder shall pay an annual permit fee of ((six)) one thousand two

13  hundred ((fifty)) dollars.  The annual permit fee shall be payable

14  to the department on the first anniversary of the permit date and

15  each year thereafter.  Annual fees paid by a county for mines used

16  exclusively for public works projects and having less than seven

17  acres of disturbed area per mine shall not exceed one thousand

18  dollars.  Annual fees are waived for all mines used primarily for

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_1  public works projects if the mines are owned and primarily

_2  operated by counties with 1993 populations of less than twenty

_3  thousand persons, and if each mine has less than seven acres of

_4  disturbed area.

_5      (3) Appeals from any determination of the department shall not

_6  stay the requirement to pay any annual permit fee.  Failure to pay

_7  the annual fee may constitute grounds for an order to suspend

_8  surface mining or cancellation of the reclamation permit as

_9  provided in this chapter.

10      (4) All fees collected by the department shall be deposited

11  into the surface mining reclamation account.

12      (5) If the department delegates enforcement responsibilities to

13  a county, city, or town, the department may allocate funds

14  collected under this section to the county, city, or town.

‑‑‑ END ‑‑‑

HB 1845                        p. 2