BILL REQ. #:  H-1801.2 

Read first time 02/13/09.   Referred to Committee on Agriculture & Natural Resources.

     AN ACT Relating to the economic impact of department of ecology draft general permits; and adding a new section to chapter 90.48 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 90.48 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The department shall prepare an economic impact analysis on all draft general permits that are intended to directly cover small businesses. The economic impact analysis must be prepared on the draft general permit for which public notice is being provided pursuant to WAC 173-226-130(3) and published with the draft general permit.
     (2) The purpose of the economic impact analysis is to reduce the economic impact of the general permit on small businesses by doing one or more of the following when it is legal and feasible in meeting the stated objectives of the federal water pollution control act, as amended (33 U.S.C. Sec. 1751 et seq.) and this chapter:
     (a) Establishing differing compliance or reporting requirements or timetables for small businesses;
     (b) Simplifying, reducing, or eliminating the compliance, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements under the general permit for small businesses;
     (c) Establishing performance rather than design standards; and
     (d) Exempting small businesses from parts of the general permit.
     (3) The contents of an economic impact analysis of a proposed general permit must include, at a minimum, the following:
     (a) A brief description of the compliance requirements of the general permit, including:
     (i) The minimum technology-based treatment requirements identified as necessary under WAC 173-226-070;
     (ii) The monitoring requirements contained in the general permit;
     (iii) The reporting and recordkeeping requirements; and
     (iv) Any plan submittal requirements;
     (b) The estimated costs of compliance for facilities intended to be covered under the general permit. Costs include, consistent with subsection (2) of this section, the following:
     (i) The costs associated with (a) of this subsection;
     (ii) The costs of equipment, supplies, labor, and any increased administrative costs; and
     (iii) The costs of professional services likely needed to comply with the general permit; and
     (c) A comparison, to the greatest extent possible, of the cost of compliance for small businesses with the cost of compliance for the largest ten percent of the facilities intended to be covered under the general permit. The economic impact analysis must use one or more of the following as a basis for comparing costs:
     (i) Cost per employee;
     (ii) Cost per hour of labor;
     (iii) Cost per one hundred dollars of sales.
     (4) To obtain information for purposes of this section, the department should survey a representative sample of affected businesses or trade associations to assist in the accurate assessment of the costs of the proposed general permit, and the means to reduce the costs imposed on small businesses.