BILL REQ. #:  S-1988.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/27/03.   

     AN ACT Relating to an integrated permit system; creating new sections; and making an appropriation.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that environmental review and permitting, especially as applied to complex or controversial projects, can be characterized by multiple overlapping agency authorities, as a result of multiple governing statutes, generally adopted in isolation from one another, whose purposes and requirements are not integrated and cause correspondingly uncoordinated implementation by administrative agencies. As a result, numerous and differing project descriptions, inconsistent administrative records, unproductive and redundant requirements, delays, and disproportionate costs caused by all of these may impede the making of sound and expeditious decisions by agencies and appropriate project changes by permit applicants, contrary to the intent and purpose of environmental review and permitting and the interests of permit applicants and the public.
     A single project may be governed by local, state, federal, and tribal laws. A single project may be subject to all of the following requirements and others not listed here: (1) Federal section 404 permit, section 7 consultation, essential fish habitat consultation, section 401 water quality certification, section 402 waste discharge permit, section 402 general permit, section 4(f) parks and recreational lands use approval, superfund clean-up requirements, air quality conformity, underground storage tank removal, and coastal zone management program consistency certification; (2) state storm water pollution control plan approval, hydraulic project approval, aquatic lands use approval, historic and archaeological approval, archaeological excavation and removal permit, state model toxics control act clean-up requirements, asbestos removal, and air quality operating permit; (3) local shoreline substantial development permit, conditional use permit or variance, shoreline design review, critical areas ordinance review, historic district approval, street use permit, demolition permit, grading permit, noise variance, storm water and drainage control approval, and utility approval.
     The legislature finds that the public, as well as permit applicants, agencies, and affected parties, will benefit from an environmental review and permitting system that integrates and makes easily accessible the requirements and documentation for agency decision making, facilitating timely and effective participation in the process.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The legislature intends to proceed in steps to develop and adopt an integrated permit system, working through the office of permit assistance, in cooperation with the department of transportation, the transportation permit efficiency and accountability committee, and local, state, federal, and tribal regulatory agencies. When implemented, the integrated permit system would integrate project design, environmental review, permitting, and mitigation elements into a single process. Major components of the integrated permit system are a unified project decision support document and a unified project administrative procedure. A unified project decision support document is intended to be a single document proactively developed to support and satisfy all needs for information, analysis, and evaluation; document and justify incremental project decisions; inform the public and interested parties; and support integration of project design, environmental review, permitting, and mitigation elements. A unified project administrative procedure is intended to harmonize, reduce, or eliminate duplicative or conflicting requirements for environmental analysis, agency decision making, public review and comment, and administrative and judicial review. A unified project decision support document can probably be implemented by intergovernmental agreement under existing law. A unified project administrative procedure will probably require changes to existing law.
     The legislature intends by this act to authorize, through a pilot project, development of a guidance document for implementation of a unified project decision support document and development of recommendations for an integrated permit system and for changes to existing law needed for implementation of a unified project administrative procedure.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   (1) By December 1, 2005, the office of permit assistance shall develop a guidance document for creating a unified project decision support document for state and federal agencies and local governments that will be sufficient to support all regulatory decision making.
     The office shall, in consultation with the department of transportation and the transportation permit efficiency and accountability committee, test and, as necessary, revise and add to the "unified permit binder" currently being developed by the department of transportation to provide a standardized outline, checklists, and templates for preparation of a single master support document for all regulatory decision making concerning a project. The office shall address regulatory decision-making processes under existing substantive authorities and administrative procedures, applicable existing statutory requirements for environmental review and permitting, information necessary for decision making, and existing requirements for public and agency involvement and its documentation. The resulting document shall be designed to be a complete, concise, and logically organized guidance document for creating a unified project decision support document for state and federal agencies and local governments.
     (2) By December 1, 2005, the office shall develop recommendations for an integrated permit system to integrate project design, environmental review, permitting, and mitigation; develop recommendations for legislative changes to statutory authorizations and administrative procedures needed to establish the system; and develop detailed recommendations for full-scale testing of the system through one or more pilot projects.
     The elements of the integrated permit system shall include use of a unified project decision support document available on the internet for purposes of public review and comment and for decision making by agencies and local governments with jurisdiction over the project; a unified project administrative procedure for regulatory decision making that eliminates duplicative, conflicting, or unproductive requirements for environmental analysis, public review and comment, and administrative and judicial review; and such other elements as the office may recommend including, but not limited to, regulation decision-making timelines and dispute resolution protocols.
     (3) The office shall fulfill the requirements of subsections (1) and (2) of this section using a pilot project of economic development significance, after obtaining agreement to participate in the pilot project from the project proponent and the state agencies and local governments with jurisdiction. As needed, the office may also seek agreement to participate from federal and tribal agencies with jurisdiction.
     (4) The office shall submit a report to the standing legislative committees with jurisdiction by December 1, 2003, and December 1, 2004, regarding progress on subsections (1) and (2) of this section and by December 1, 2005, upon completion of subsections (1) and (2) of this section.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   The sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the office of permit assistance for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2004, to carry out the purposes of this act.