BILL REQ. #:  H-3691.2 

Prefiled 01/07/08. Read first time 01/14/08.   Referred to Committee on Select Committee on Environmental Health.

     AN ACT Relating to clarifying the civil penalty provisions for on- site sewage disposal systems administered by local health jurisdictions; amending RCW 70.118.130; and prescribing penalties.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 70.118.130 and 2007 c 343 s 9 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) A local health officer who is responsible for administering and enforcing regulations regarding on-site sewage disposal systems is authorized to issue civil penalties for violations of those regulations ((under the same limitations and requirements imposed on the department under RCW 70.118B.050, except that the amount of a penalty shall not exceed one thousand dollars per day for every violation, and judgments shall be entered in the name of the local health jurisdiction and penalties shall be placed into the general fund or funds of the entity or entities operating the local health jurisdiction)).
     (2) A person who violates a law or rule regulating on-site sewage disposal systems administered by the local health jurisdiction is subject to a penalty of not more than one thousand dollars per day for every violation. Every violation is a separate and distinct offense. In case of a continuing violation, each day's continuing violation is a separate and distinct violation. The penalty assessed must reflect the significance of the violation and the previous record of compliance on the part of the person responsible for compliance with on-site sewage disposal system requirements.
     (3) Every person who, through an act of commission or omission, procures, aids, or abets a violation is considered to have violated the provisions of this section and is subject to the penalty provided in this section.
     (4) The penalty provided for in this section must be imposed by a notice in writing to the person against whom the civil penalty is assessed and must describe the violation. The notice must be personally served in the manner of service of a summons in a civil action or in a manner that shows proof of receipt. A penalty imposed by this section is due twenty-eight days after receipt of notice unless application for an appeal is filed as provided in subsection (5) of this section.
     (5) Within twenty-eight days after notice is received, the person incurring the penalty has the right to appeal as governed by the local health jurisdiction's administrative appeals process. Notice must be provided by the local health jurisdiction consistent with its due process requirements.
     (6) A penalty imposed by a final administrative order is due upon service of the final administrative order. A person who fails to pay a penalty assessed by a final administrative order within thirty days of service of the final administrative order shall pay, in addition to the amount of the penalty, interest at the rate of one percent of the unpaid balance of the assessed penalty for each month or part of a month that the penalty remains unpaid, commencing with the month in which the notice of penalty was served, and reasonable attorneys' fees as are incurred if civil enforcement of the final administrative order is required to collect the penalty.
     (7) A person who institutes proceedings for judicial review of a final administrative order assessing a civil penalty under this chapter shall place the full amount of the penalty in an interest-bearing account in the registry of the reviewing court. At the conclusion of the proceeding the court shall, as appropriate, enter a judgment on behalf of the department and order that the judgment be satisfied to the extent possible from moneys paid into the registry of the court or shall enter a judgment in favor of the person appealing the penalty assessment and order return of the moneys paid into the registry of the court together with accrued interest to the person appealing. The judgment may award reasonable attorneys' fees for the cost of the attorney general's office in representing the department.
     (8) If no appeal is taken from a final administrative order assessing a civil penalty under this chapter, the local health jurisdiction may file a certified copy of the final administrative order with the clerk of the superior court in which the on-site sewage disposal system is located and the clerk shall enter judgment in the name of the local health jurisdiction and in the amount of the penalty assessed in the final administrative order.
     (9) A judgment entered under subsection (7) or (8) of this section has the same force and effect as, and is subject to all of the provisions of law relating to, a judgment in a civil action, and may be enforced in the same manner as any other judgment of the court in which it is entered.
     (10) All receipts from penalties imposed under this section shall be deposited into the general fund or funds of the entity or entities operating the local health jurisdiction.