PROPOSED RULES
HEARINGS BOARD
Original Notice.
Exempt from preproposal statement of inquiry under RCW 34.05.310(4).
Title of Rule: Amend WAC 371-08-320 Environmental Hearings Office hours, telephone number and address.
Purpose: To change the regular meetings of the Pollution Control Hearings Board from 10:00 a.m. on the second Monday of each month to 10:00 a.m. on the second Tuesday of each month. To clarify that the Pollution Control Hearings Board meetings include matters other than rule making.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 43.21B.170, 42.30.070.
Statute Being Implemented: Chapter 43.21B RCW.
Summary: To change the monthly meeting of the Pollution Control Hearings Board from 10:00 a.m. on the second Monday of each month to 10:00 a.m. on the second Tuesday of each month. To clarify that the Pollution Control Hearings Board meetings include matters other than rule making.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: To facilitate more efficiency within the Environmental Hearings Office.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Deborah L. Mull, Environmental Hearings Office, (360) 459-6327; Implementation and Enforcement: Robert V. Jensen, Environmental Hearings Office, (360) 459-6327.
Name of Proponent: Pollution Control Hearings Board, governmental.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Explanation of Rule, its Purpose, and Anticipated Effects: The amendments would change the Pollution Control Hearings Board's monthly meeting from 10:00 a.m. of the second Monday of every month to 10:00 a.m. of the second Tuesday of every month. This change would facilitate efficiency, as some of the staff within the Environmental Hearings Office is currently unable to attend all of the meetings due to their flex schedules. This change would also coordinate the meeting schedules between the various boards within the Environmental Hearings Office. See, WAC 223-08-010 (regular meeting of the Forest Practice Appeals Board is the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 a.m.); WAC 461-08-320 (regular meeting of the Shorelines Hearings Board is at 9:00 a.m. of the second Monday of each month.)* There are no anticipated negative effects. The amendment would also clarify that the Pollution Control Hearings Board meetings include matters other than rule making.
*Simultaneously with this proposed amendment, the Shorelines Hearings Board is also seeking an amendment of its rule so that the meeting of that board can be coordinated with the meeting of the Forest Practice Appeals Board.
Proposal Changes the Following Existing Rules: The amendments would change WAC 371-08-320 to modify the monthly meeting time of the Pollution Control Hearings Board from 10:00 a.m. of the second Monday of every month to 10:00 a.m. of the second Tuesday of every month. The amendment would also clarify that the Pollution Control Hearings Board meetings include matters other than rule making.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. The preparation of a small economic impact statement is not required for adoptions of rules described in RCW 34.05.310(4). The proposed amendment is a rule that is described in RCW 34.05.310(4). Specifically, the proposed amendment is an amendment of a rule "relating only to internal governmental operations that are not subject to violation by nongovernment party." RCW 34.05.310 (4)(b).
RCW 34.05.328 does not apply to this rule adoption. The Pollution Control Hearings Board is not an agency specifically listed in RCW 34.05.328.
Hearing Location: Environmental Hearings Office, 4224 6th Avenue S.E., Lacey, WA, on November 30, 2001, at 10:00 a.m.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Deborah L. Mull by November 16, 2001.
Submit Written Comments to: Deborah L. Mull, Environmental Hearings Office, P.O. Box 40903, Lacey, WA 98504-0903, fax (360) 438-7699, by December 21, 2001.
Date of Intended Adoption: January 14, 2002.
September 24, 2001
Deborah L. Mull
Administrative Appeals Judge
(2) The board is housed at the Environmental Hearings Office, 4224 6th Avenue S.E., Building 2, Rowe Six, Lacey, Washington. The principal hearing room used by the board is located at the same address, although many hearings are held near the site of the dispute at issue.
(3) The mailing address of the board is:
Pollution Control Hearings Board
4224 6th Avenue S.E., Building 2, Rowe Six
PO Box 40903
Lacey, WA 98504-0903
(4) The telephone number of the board is (360) 459-6327. The telefacsimile number is (360) 438-7699.
(5) The office hours of the environmental hearings office are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for legal holidays.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 43.21B.170. 96-15-003, § 371-08-320, filed 7/3/96, effective 8/3/96.]
Reviser's note: The typographical error in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.