Section 246-290-100. Water system plan.

(1) The purpose of this section is to establish a uniform process for purveyors to:

(a) Demonstrate the system's operational, technical, managerial, and financial capability to achieve and maintain compliance with relevant local, state, and federal plans and regulations;

(b) Demonstrate how the system will address present and future needs in a manner consistent with other relevant plans and local, state, and federal laws, including applicable land use plans;

(c) Establish eligibility for funding under chapter 246-296 WAC.

(2) Purveyors of the following categories of community public water systems shall submit a water system plan for review and approval by the department:

(a) Systems having one thousand or more services;

(b) Systems required to develop water system plans under the Public Water System Coordination Act of 1977 (chapter 70.116 RCW);

(c) Any system experiencing problems related to planning, operation, and/or management as determined by the department;

(d) All new systems;

(e) Any expanding system; and

(f) Any system proposing to use the document submittal exception process in WAC 246-290-125.

(3) The purveyor shall work with the department to establish the level of detail for a water system plan. In general, the scope and detail of the plan will be related to size, complexity, water supply characteristics, forecasted demand characteristics, past performance, and use of the water system. Project reports may be combined with a water system plan.

(4) In order to demonstrate system capacity, the water system plan shall address the following elements, as a minimum, for a period of at least twenty years into the future:

(a) Description of the water system, including:

(i) Ownership and management, including the current names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the owners, operators, and emergency contact persons for the system;

(ii) System history and background;

(iii) Related plans, such as coordinated water system plans, abbreviated coordinated water system plans, local land use plans, groundwater management plans, and basin plans;

(iv) Service area maps, characteristics, agreements, and policies. Water systems must include their existing service area and future service area. Municipal water suppliers must define their retail service area and meet the requirements under WAC 246-290-106. Municipal water suppliers must identify where their water rights place of use will be expanded to their service area if the requirements under WAC 246-290-107 have been met; and

(v) Satellite management, if applicable.

(b) Basic planning data, including:

(i) Current population, service connections, water use, and equivalent residential units; and

(ii) Sufficient water production and consumption data to identify trends including the following elements:

(A) Monthly and annual production totals for each source, including water purchased from another public water system;

(B) Annual usage totals for each customer class as determined by the purveyor;

(C) Annual usage totals for water supplied to other public water systems; and

(D) For systems serving one thousand or more total connections, a description of the seasonal variations in consumption patterns of each customer class defined by the purveyor.

(iii) Designated land use, zoning, future population, and water demand for a consecutive six-year and twenty-year planning period within the water system's service area.

(c) Demand forecasts, developed under WAC 246-290-221, for a consecutive six-year and twenty-year planning period. These shall show future use with and without savings expected from the system's water use efficiency program.

(d) For systems serving one thousand or more total connections, a demand forecast projecting demand if the measures deemed cost-effective per WAC 246-290-810 were implemented.

(e) System analysis, including:

(i) System design standards;

(ii) Water quality analysis;

(iii) System inventory description and analysis; and

(iv) Summary of system deficiencies.

(f) Water resource analysis, including:

(i) A water use efficiency program. Municipal water suppliers must meet the requirements in WAC 246-290-810;

(ii) Source of supply analysis, which includes:

(A) An evaluation of water supply alternatives if additional water rights will be pursued within twenty years; and

(B) A narrative description of the system's water supply characteristics and the foreseeable effect from current and future use on the water quantity and quality of any body of water from which its water is diverted or withdrawn based on existing data and studies;

(iii) A water shortage response plan as a component of the reliability and emergency response requirements under WAC 246-290-420;

(iv) Water right self-assessment;

(v) Water supply reliability analysis;

(vi) Interties; and

(vii) For systems serving one thousand or more total connections, an evaluation of opportunities for the use of reclaimed water, where they exist, as defined in RCW 90.46.010(4).

(g) Source water protection under WAC 246-290-135.

(h) Operation and maintenance program under WAC 246-290-415 and 246-290-654(5), as applicable.

(i) Improvement program, including a six-year capital improvement schedule.

(j) Financial program, including demonstration of financial viability by providing:

(i) A summary of past income and expenses;

(ii) A one-year balanced operational budget for systems serving one thousand or more connections or a six-year balanced operational budget for systems serving less than one thousand connections;

(iii) A plan for collecting the revenue necessary to maintain cash flow stability and to fund the capital improvement program and emergency improvements; and

(iv) An evaluation that has considered:

(A) The affordability of water rates; and

(B) The feasibility of adopting and implementing a rate structure that encourages water demand efficiency.

(k) Other documents, such as:

(i) Documentation of SEPA compliance;

(ii) Agreements; and

(iii) Comments from each local government with jurisdiction and adjacent utilities.

(5) Purveyors intending to implement the project report and construction document submittal exceptions authorized under WAC 246-290-125 must include:

(a) Standard construction specifications for distribution mains; and/or

(b) Design and construction standards for distribution-related projects, including:

(i) Description of project report and construction document internal review procedures, including engineering design review and construction completion reporting requirements;

(ii) Construction-related policies and requirements for external parties, including consumers and developers;

(iii) Performance and sizing criteria; and

(iv) General reference to construction materials and methods.

(6) The department, at its discretion, may require reports from purveyors identifying the progress in developing their water system plans.

(7) Purveyors shall transmit water system plans to adjacent utilities and each local government with jurisdiction, to assess consistency with ongoing and adopted planning efforts.

(8) Prior to department approval of a water system plan or a water system plan update, the purveyor shall:

(a) Hold an informational meeting for the water system consumers and notify consumers in a way that is appropriate to the size of the water system; and

(b) Obtain the approval of the water system plan from the purveyor's governing body or elected governing board.

(9) Department approval of a water system plan shall be in effect for six years from the date of written approval unless:

(a) Major projects subject to SEPA as defined in WAC 246-03-030 (3)(a) are proposed that are not addressed in the plan;

(b) Changes occur in the basic planning data significantly affecting system improvements identified; or

(c) The department requests an updated plan or plan amendment.

(10) The purveyor shall update the plan and obtain department approval at least every six years. If the system no longer meets the conditions of subsection (2) of this section, the purveyor shall as directed by the department, either:

(a) Submit a water system plan amendment for review and approval with the scope to be determined by the department; or

(b) Meet the requirements under WAC 246-290-105.

[Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050 and 70.119A.080. WSR 10-20-068, § 246-290-100, filed 9/29/10, effective 11/1/10. Statutory Authority: RCW 70.119A.180 and 43.20.050. WSR 08-03-061, § 246-290-100, filed 1/14/08, effective 2/14/08. Statutory Authority: RCW 70.119A.180. WSR 07-02-025B, § 246-290-100, filed 12/22/06, effective 1/22/07. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050 (2) and (3) and 70.119A.080. WSR 03-08-037, § 246-290-100, filed 3/27/03, effective 4/27/03. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.02.050 [43.20.050]. WSR 99-07-021, § 246-290-100, filed 3/9/99, effective 4/9/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050. WSR 94-14-001, § 246-290-100, filed 6/22/94, effective 7/23/94; WSR 93-08-011 (Order 352B), § 246-290-100, filed 3/25/93, effective 4/25/93; WSR 91-02-051 (Order 124B), recodified as § 246-290-100, filed 12/27/90, effective 1/31/91. Statutory Authority: RCW 34.04.045. WSR 88-05-057 (Order 307), § 248-54-065, filed 2/17/88. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050. WSR 83-19-002 (Order 266), § 248-54-065, filed 9/8/83.]

RCW 43.20.050 and 70.119A.080. WSR 10-20-068, § 246-290-100, filed 9/29/10, effective 11/1/10. Statutory Authority: RCW 70.119A.180 and 43.20.050. WSR 08-03-061, § 246-290-100, filed 1/14/08, effective 2/14/08. Statutory Authority: RCW 70.119A.180. WSR 07-02-025B, § 246-290-100, filed 12/22/06, effective 1/22/07. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050 (2) and (3) and 70.119A.080. WSR 03-08-037, § 246-290-100, filed 3/27/03, effective 4/27/03. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.02.050 [43.20.050]. WSR 99-07-021, § 246-290-100, filed 3/9/99, effective 4/9/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050. WSR 94-14-001, § 246-290-100, filed 6/22/94, effective 7/23/94; WSR 93-08-011 (Order 352B), § 246-290-100, filed 3/25/93, effective 4/25/93; WSR 91-02-051 (Order 124B), recodified as § 246-290-100, filed 12/27/90, effective 1/31/91. Statutory Authority: RCW 34.04.045. WSR 88-05-057 (Order 307), § 248-54-065, filed 2/17/88. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.20.050. WSR 83-19-002 (Order 266), § 248-54-065, filed 9/8/83.

Rules

246-296,246-290-125,246-290-106,246-290-107,246-290-221,246-290-810,246-290-810,246-290-420,246-290-135,246-290-415,246-290-654,246-290-125,246-03-030,246-290-105,