Utilities Technical Review Committee
King County, Washington

Welcome to the King County Utilities and Technical Review Committee (UTRC) page. The King County UTRC has existed since 1973 and has multiple purposes and responsibilities identified in Chapter 13 and elsewhere in the King County Code (KCC). Its principal purpose is to provide technical review of water and sewer utility comprehensive plans to assure the plans are consistent with adopted County plans, policies, and land use controls; and then recommend plan approval, or not, to the King County Executive and King County Council.

The Committee is also charged with providing the notification to tribal governments for actions that fall within the authority of the committee; reviewing requests for annexations and franchise applications; requests for utility right-of-way construction permits; reviewing and making required findings regarding site-specific development issues (e.g., proposals to extend sewer lines into rural areas); hearing appeals on water utility service proposals (i.e., "timely and reasonable" water service); and generally fulfilling the County's responsibilities under a variety of other water and sewer planning and management provisions of state law (e.g., Public Water System Coordination Act, Growth Management Act (GMA)). In short, the UTRC protects King County's interests in all aspects of utility development to ensure that county plans and policies are implemented.

The UTRC members are appointed by the director of each respective department:

• two representatives from the Department of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP), one of which is the director;
• one representative from the Department of Transportation;
• one representative from the Department of Development and Environmental Services;
• one representative from Public Health-Seattle and King County;
• one representative from the Facilities Management Division of the Department of Executive Services;
• one representative from King County Council staff; and
• the King County demographer.

The UTRC receives support from the DNRP Director's Office and the Prosecuting Attorney's Office. The DNRP has major responsibility for coordination and support for the UTRC. King County's role in local governance and utility oversight has evolved, and will continue to evolve, for a number of reasons. For instance, the large number of incorporations and annexations within King County over the past ten years has significantly reduced the geographic area over which the County has direct land use permitting responsibility. The development and maturity of local government planning under the GMA has also reduced the magnitude of uncoordinated planning for utility service delivery.

Water and sewer plan process

Utilities submit comprehensive plans to the King County UTRC. The UTRC reviews utility comprehensive plans for consistency with the KCC and Comprehensive Plan, and makes a recommendation on plan consistency to the King County Council. King County’s authority for water system plan review is based on KCC 13.24 for those utilities that desire to obtain and/or distribute water in unincorporated King County and/or Title 57 RCW for special purpose districts.

The King County UTRC Water System Plan Review Guidance Document (see link below) is to assist utility service providers and the UTRC in verifying that the plan is consistent with the KCC. The issues in the guidance document are where the County will focus its plan review.

• Guidance Document for King County Review of Water System Plans

The process for approval of a water system plan includes three phases, the UTRC working with the utility, Executive transmittal of an ordinance recommending approval of a plan and King County Council legislative review and approval. In partnership with utilities the UTRC strives to be timely and predictable with the review and recommendations made on plans. To that end, King County will attend Washington State Department of Health pre-planning meetings to ensure the County’s interests in water plan review are conveyed to the public water system early in plan development and to gain a current understanding of issues facing the public water system.

• Coordinated Water System Plans

KCC 13.24 and the King County Comprehensive Plan provide the criteria for plan approval. The King County UTRC Guidance Document outlines the code or comprehensive plan subject and/or issues that members of the UTRC look for in a water system plan. Once the plan is received, it is reviewed by the UTRC. Within 90 days of plan receipt, a letter will be sent to the utility outlining the UTRC's comments and/or questions regarding the plan.

After the utility has had an opportunity to consider the UTRC comment letter, they will be invited to the next UTRC meeting where the plan will be discussed and recommended for approval to the King County Council. The UTRC meets the third Wednesday of each month. After the UTRC discusses and recommends that Council approve the plan, we then prepare a legislation package containing an ordinance for the King County Council to consider. Once the Council approves and the Executive signs the final ordinance, a copy of it will be sent to the utility.

King County, Washington State Department of Health, and water utility discussions

Several years ago King County and approximately a dozen water utility representatives began having a dialog about potential refinements to the County’s review of utility comprehensive plans. Some utility representatives had been expressing concern that the County’s review of plans was lengthy and inefficient, and that it wasn’t always clear what the County was looking for in its review of water plans. In addition, some utility representatives expressed concern around underlying legal authority issues. The County and utility representatives agreed to work together on refinements to the process that would streamline and clarify the review process while still addressing County interests. The group agreed to not include the underlying legal authority issues in the current dialog. Below is a brief summary of the progress resulting from the dialog between King County and utility representatives. The initial goals of the process were to:

1. Streamline the water system plan review process while still addressing County interests;
2. Resolve water system plan review process issues despite differing opinions on the authority issue; and
3. Clarify the purpose of County water system plan review process questions and their related use by the County.

AREAS OF PROGRESS

Number of questions reduced

• Previous checklist contained approximately 40 – 45 questions
• New checklist contains approximately 32 questions, a more than 20 percent reduction in overall questions

Questions are more focused

• New questions are intended by the County to be clearer and more focused
• Previous checklist: All 40 – 45 questions were treated as “S” questions ("S" means King County wants an answer and the answer will be substantively evaluated).  There has now been a 65 percent reduction in the number of "S" questions.
• New Checklist:
• 14 “S” questions
• 16 “Sn” questions (“Sn” means King County wants an answer, but won’t grade/judge)
• 2 “I” questions (“I” means it is an information only request)

Number of copies utilities submit to the UTRC
Reduced the number of hard copies utilities need to submit to the County from seven down to three

Timeline
Average timelines for UTRC work (not including Executive/Council action)

• 2005 – 2008:
  • 234 days for County to review plan
  • 241 days for utility to respond
  • 196 days for County to get ordinance to Executive
• 2008 – 2009:
  • 102 days for County to review plan (56 percent reduction in time)
  • 117 days for utility to respond (51 percent reduction in time)
  • 108 days for County to get ordinance to Executive (53 percent reduction in time)
• 2010 - 2011
• 87 days for County to review plan (15 percent reduction in time from 2008-2009)
• 137 days for utility to respond (17 percent increase in time from 2008-2009)
• 141 days for County to get ordinance to Executive (24 percent increase in time from 2008-2009)
  
  
• 2009 proposed timeline goals:
  • 90 days or less for County review
  • 74 days for County to get ordinance to Executive

In summary, what used to take the County 430 days, has more recently taken 228 days. The County is committing to reduce the review time further, to no more than 164 days. The overall result will be a 60 percent reduction in review time.

For questions or more information about King County Utilities Technical Review Committee or UTRC, please contact Steve Hirschey, Water Quality Planner/Project Manager, WTD Comprehensive Planning and Asset Management Program Development Unit.