HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 1799

BYRepresentatives Cooper and Ferguson

Modifying the requirements and procedures for platting real property.

House Committe on Local Government

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (14)

      Signed by Representatives Haugen, Chair; Cooper, Vice Chair; Ferguson, Ranking Republican Member; Horn, Nealey, Nelson, Nutley, Phillips, Raiter, Rayburn, Todd, Wolfe, Wood and Zellinsky.

House Staff:Steve Lundin (786-7127)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT MARCH 1, 1989

BACKGROUND:

A division of property for purposes of sale, lease, or transfer of ownership must be reviewed and approved by the county, city or town within which the land is located, where the smallest resulting lot is less than five acres.  Certain divisions of property are exempted from the review and approval, including the creation of cemetery lots.  Counties, cities and towns may increase the size of the smallest resulting lot in a division of land that requires such review and approval.

A short subdivision is a division of land that results in four or fewer lots.  A subdivision is a division of land that results in five or more lots.  Cities and towns are allowed to increase the maximum number of lots in a short subdivision up to nine lots.

Review of a proposed subdivision is a two-step process, involving notice being published and mailed, and the holding of public hearings.  The first step involves approval of a preliminary plat, or map, of the proposed subdivision that shows the improvements to be made and lots to be created.  The second step involves approval of the final plat, or map, of the subdivision that shows the completed improvements and lots.  The plat is filed with the county auditor.

No public notice is provided for proposed short subdivisions.  No public hearing is held on proposed short subdivisions.  A proposed short subdivision is reviewed and approved by an administrative officer without input from the governing body.

A proposed subdivision is reviewed to see if it is in the public interest, and if adequate provision has been made for a variety of public improvements, such as roads, sewers, water facilities, and drainage facilities.  A subdivision is required to be surveyed.

Requirements for proposed short subdivisions may be wholly different than for proposed subdivisions.  A county, city, or town may, or may not, require that a proposed short subdivision be surveyed.

Following the preliminary approval of a plat for a subdivision, a lot that would be created by the subdivision may be sold on the condition that final plat approval is obtained creating the lot. The conditional sale of a lot that is yet to be created by approval of a short subdivision is not allowed.

Any discrepancy that is found in a survey of a proposed subdivision or short subdivision must be disclosed in a title report after this discrepancy is noted on the face of the final plat or short plat of the subdivision or short subdivision.

SUMMARY:

SUBSTITUTE BILL:  The sale of a yet to be created lot is allowed, after filing an application for a short subdivision, if the sale is conditioned upon final approval of a short subdivision creating the lot.

Divisions of land resulting from a conveyance of land to the United States, State of Washington, or any county, city or town are not subject to the Subdivision and Platting Act if such a government requires the conveyance for public roadway or utility corridor purposes, and the ability of the government to resell the lot is limited to selling it back to the owners of the land from which the lot was taken.

The requirement for title reports to disclose boundary discrepancies is altered to require disclosure of the noted discrepancies.  Failure to so disclose is not a criminal violation of the Subdivision Act.

SUBSTITUTE BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL:  (1) Language was deleted permitting local governments to exempt short subdivisions from review under the short subdivision laws; (2) A lot created for roadway or utility corridor purposes and given to a public entity, that is exempted from review under the Subdivision Act, may be sold by the government only to the owner of the land from which the lot was taken; and (3) A title report need show only the discrepancies that are noted on the plat, and failure to note such discrepancies is not a crime.

Fiscal Note:      Not Requested.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Ellen Dial, Executive Committee, Real Property Section, Washington State Bar Association; Gary Lowe, Washington State Association of Counties.

House Committee - Testified Against:      None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    Many people do not know what the subdivision laws are, so we should change them to reflect current practices.  These changes are merely technical in nature.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      None Presented.