S-0636.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6612

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington   57th Legislature        2002 Regular Session

By Senators Gardner, Swecker, Keiser, Hale, Fairley, Kline and Fraser

Read first time 01/23/2002.  Referred to Committee on State & Local Government.

Considering population projections in determining adequacy of water supply.

    AN ACT Relating to using population projections in determining adequacy of water supply; and amending RCW 43.62.035.

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

    Sec. 1.  RCW 43.62.035 and 1997 c 429 s 26 are each amended to read as follows:

    The office of financial management shall determine the population of each county of the state annually as of April 1st of each year and on or before July 1st of each year shall file a certificate with the secretary of state showing its determination of the population for each county.  The office of financial management also shall determine the percentage increase in population for each county over the preceding ten-year period, as of April 1st, and shall file a certificate with the secretary of state by July 1st showing its determination.  At least once every five years or upon the availability of decennial census data, whichever is later, the office of financial management shall prepare twenty-year growth management planning population projections required by RCW 36.70A.110 for each county that adopts a comprehensive plan under RCW 36.70A.040 and shall review these projections with such counties and the cities in those counties before final adoption.  The population projections must be accompanied by a statement from the director of financial management, in consultation with appropriate state agencies and officials, stating that adequate water supplies exist or will be available to serve the projected population.  The county and its cities may provide to the office such information as they deem relevant to the office's projection, and the office shall consider and comment on such information before adoption.  Each projection shall be expressed as a reasonable range developed within the standard state high and low projection.  The middle range shall represent the office's estimate of the most likely population projection for the county.  If any city or county believes that a projection will not accurately reflect actual population growth in a county, it may petition the office to revise the projection accordingly.  The office shall complete the first set of ranges for every county by December 31, 1995.

    A comprehensive plan adopted or amended before December 31, 1995, shall not be considered to be in noncompliance with the twenty-year growth management planning population projection if the projection used in the comprehensive plan is in compliance with the range later adopted under this section.

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