[atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to functions and certification of certified water rights examiners; amending RCW 90.03.330; and adding a new section to chapter 90.03 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 90.03 RCW to read as follows:

(1) By June 30, 2002, the department must adopt rules to establish certification procedures, qualifications, fees, and other requirements for certified water rights examiners.

(2) Certified water rights examiners must be certified by the department to perform the following functions:

(a) To carry out the proof examination of a permitted water right development as a prerequisite to the issuance of a final water right certificate. The examiner must provide a report and detailed map to the department as to that examination;

(b) To carry out the proof examination for a change or transfer of an existing water right or water right claim and to provide a report and detailed map to the department as to that examination as a prerequisite to the issuance of a superseding certificate or certificate of change;

(c) To provide advice and assistance or to act as an agent for a person applying or considering whether to apply for a new water right or for a water right change or transfer; and

(d) To evaluate water rights and provide an opinion to a person seeking such an opinion as to the validity and quantification of an existing water right. The opinion is not subject to disclosure under chapter 42.17 RCW, nor may the department request a copy of the opinion.

(3) The department must develop and administer a written examination for purposes of certifying water rights examiners. An examination fee in an amount established by the department's rule required by subsection (1) of this section must be paid in advance of testing. The certification is valid for one year, renewable upon payment of a renewal fee prior to the expiration of the one-year period. Examiners in good standing are not required to retest to receive a certification renewal. Former examiners whose certifications have lapsed for more than one year are required to retake the examination to be recertified. The department's denial of certification or a renewal may be appealed to the pollution control hearings board under RCW 43.21B.230.

(4) The department shall establish and from time to time update by rule the amount of fees charged for the examination, certification, certificate renewal, and training of water right examiners. The department shall set the fees at a sufficient level to defray all costs of administering the program to license and regulate water right examiners. Fees collected under this section shall be credited by the state treasurer to the state reclamation revolving account established in RCW 89.16.020. The fees must be allocated and expended by the director for the administration of the licensed water rights examiner program.

(5) The department may issue an order suspending or revoking the certificate of any certified water right examiner for good cause, including illegal acts, misrepresentation of the facts associated with a proof examination and report, or gross incompetence. The department's order may be appealed to the pollution control hearings board under RCW 43.21B.230.

(6) The department must keep a record of any complaints it receives or irregularities it observes regarding individual certified water rights examiners. The department must inform the examiner if a complaint is received or an irregularity is observed and permit the examiner to provide a written explanation to the department. The records must be made available to any person who requests them. The department must investigate complaints that allege or irregularities that indicate a breach of law.

(7) Each examiner may set his or her own fees for services offered.

(8) The department must retain a list of all active certified water rights examiners and the geographic areas of the state in which each has indicated a willingness to work. The list must be provided to any person who requests it and must be posted electronically by the department.

(9) The department must provide at least one day of continuing education training per year for water rights examiners. Examiners are required to attend the department's training session or attend an alternative training opportunity of at least one day's duration provided by a third party and approved by the department. The department must provide timely information to licensed examiners regarding changes in water resource laws, rules, policies, court decisions, and procedures.

(10) Proof examinations, opinions, or other actions taken by certified water rights examiners are not binding on the department, nor are they prima facie evidence in any legal proceeding.

(11) The department and officers or employees of the department may not be found liable for damages alleged to have arisen from the actions or inactions of the department, its officers, or employees under this section.

Sec. 2. RCW 90.03.330 and 1987 c 109 s 89 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) After a permit holder has completed the project as provided in the permit and has put water to beneficial use, the permit holder must submit to the department a statement to that effect. The statement must be made on a form provided by the department and signed before a notary public.

(2) The department must review the following information before it issues a water right certificate under this section:

(a) A description and the location of any constructed works and other equipment or methods used for acquiring, storing, conveying, and making beneficial use of water, including the sizes and capacities of the facilities;

(b) An accurate and legible site map suitable for permanent recordkeeping that illustrates the location of facilities and the lands upon which water has been beneficially used;

(d) The source or sources from which water is withdrawn or diverted;

(e) The beneficial uses of water that are served by the works;

(f) The date water was first beneficially used under the permit;

(g) The maximum instantaneous and annual quantity of water that has been put to beneficial use based on measurements of flow through the system during operation;

(h) A legal description of the lands on which water has been beneficially used;

(i) For irrigation, the acreage that has been irrigated, the crops grown, and the type of irrigation system employed;

(j) For domestic or municipal water supply, the number and type of housing units, businesses, or other end uses that have received and beneficially used water from the system;

(k) For hydroelectric power, the head, the maximum flow used during generation, the capacity of turbines, and the maximum electrical output;

(l) Evidence that the conditions of the permit have been complied with including, but not limited to, the proper installation and operation of any required measuring devices, fish screens, well inspection ports, well identification tags, and well surface seals; and

(m) Any other information the department determines is necessary to confirm that the permit holder has completed the project and has put water to beneficial use.

(3) The permit holder may choose at his or her expense to use a water rights examiner, certified by the department under section 1 of this act, to conduct the proof examination in subsection (2) of this section. If the person elects to use a certified water rights examiner, the examiner must prepare a report of the proof examination and submit it to the department. The first page of the report and the first page of any attachments to the report, including any map or maps, must have the written certification and signature of the water rights examiner and the permit holder attesting to the truth and accuracy of the contents. The form of the written certification must be specified by the department.

(4) Upon a showing satisfactory to the department that any appropriation or change of water right has been perfected in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, it shall be the duty of the department to issue to the applicant a certificate stating such facts in a form to be prescribed by ((~~him~~)) the department, and such certificate shall thereupon be recorded with the department. Any original water right certificate issued, as provided by this chapter, shall be recorded with the department and thereafter, at the expense of the party receiving the same, be transmitted by the department ((~~transmitted~~)) to the county auditor of the county or counties where the distributing system or any part thereof is located, and be recorded in the office of such county auditor, and thereafter be transmitted to the owner thereof.

(5) The department shall make its decision whether to issue a certificate within one hundred twenty days of receiving the report of a certified water rights examiner provided to the department under this section.