Briefing presentations have been made to the Board of Health in June, July, and August of this year on proposed changes to the Snohomish Health District code to establish a new Snohomish County Health Department code. 

The code is organized into five titles: general provisions, health and safety, public services, water, and wastewater. These changes represent phase 1 of a code revision effort. This effort focuses on changes that are logistical in nature and improving the organization and readability of the code. More substantive changes will occur in future years in phase 2 of the code revision effort. A work plan for phase 2 will be discussed with the Board of Health in the latter part of 2023 and into early 2024. 

The following are changes proposed by staff that are different than the language that was initially presented to the Board of Health in June, July, and August of this year.

Title 1:

• Chapter 1.05 was renamed to better describe the content and themes of the code written therein.
• Chapter 1.05.050 Fee Schedules was removed and placed at the end of the title to better accommodate the required quantity of enumeration.
• Chapter 1.30 Official Newspaper of Record was updated to identify the Daily Herald as the official newspaper of record.
• Chapter 1.40 Fees was created to allow for room to include the entire suite of fee schedules, and sections were created as placeholders for each fee schedule. These fee schedules will be inserted into the code in a separate ordinance to be presented to the Board of Health in September 2023. Additionally, language around fee administration was moved to this section from Chapter 1.05.050. Fee administration language was updated to better reflect actual procedure.

Title 2:

• No significant changes

Title 3:

• No significant changes

Title 4:

• Chapter 4.15 Water Recreation Facility Enforcement Procedures formerly included a “code reviser’s note” that codified a reference to a state Department of Health guidance document. Though staff continue to use this guidance document for procedure, referencing it in code is redundant because it references State WAC. References to this guidance document have been removed.
• Chapter 4.15.070 Revocation of permit(s) had outdated references to “hearings” rather than administrative reviews. References have been changed to read “administrative review.” As a reminder, the procedure around hearings and the use of the hearing examiner may be further examined and modified as part of phase 2 of the code revision process. This edit also clarified the permit holder’s appeal rights as laid out in Title 1.

Title 5:

• Chapters 5.40.060, 5.50.060 and 5.70.090 Certifications were all reorganized and cleaned up to better communicate the actions that can lead to a suspension or revocation of a certification, and the available appeal procedure as outlined in Title 1. This edit did not include any new code language but rather increases readability and ease of use by the user.
• Chapter 5.70.100 Implementation period outlined an implementation of 12 months for a program that started in 2012. This regulation has been in effect for longer than 12 months, and so references to the implementation period have been removed.

RCW 70.05.060 (3) Enact such local rules and regulations as are necessary in order to preserve, promote and improve the public health and provide for the enforcement thereof.