Rulemaking Activities—Office of Drinking Water

On July 12, 2022, at 1:00PM (PST), the Department of Health (department) will hold a virtual public hearing on the proposed amendments to chapter 246-292 WAC Waterworks Operator Certification.

The Department of Health (department) is proposing to replace the term “grandparented” with the term “legacy” in WAC 246-292-010 and 085. The term “grandparented” and its use in WAC conforms to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final guidelines published in the Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 24 / Friday, February 5, 1999. A “grandparented” certified operator is granted an exemption from the operator in responsible charge requirements for the initial education, experience, and examination requirements for the public water system’s assigned certification classification can continue to operate under the existing set of regulations; however, the term “grandfathered” was coined in the late 1800’s to suppress voting rights.

The ratification of the 15^th Amendment stated that all citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State in the account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Some states enacted amendments, at the state level, to prevent African American citizens from exercising their right to vote, by stating that an illiterate man could vote as long as he or his lineal ancestor (i.e., grandfather) had been a registered voter before 1867—three years before the passage of the 15th Amendment. (Carman.2020).

The Code Revisers 102 Proposed Rulemaking Form (PDF) was filed on May 27, 2022.

If you would like to attend the July 12virtual public hearing or give testimony, register for our Zoom webinar and follow the instructions. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

If you would like to submit a formal comment, send it to nina.helpling@doh.wa.gov by close of business on July 12, 2022.

For more information, contact:

Bill Bernier at william.bernier@doh.wa.gov or call (360) 236-3562

Nina Helpling at nina.helpling@doh.wa.gov or call 360-236-3065.

SHB 2246 Title 70 RCW Updates

On February 22, 2022, the Department of Health (department) held a virtual public hearing and adopted the proposed amendments updating multiple Washington Administrative Code (WAC) chapters per requirements of Substitute House Bill 2246 (SHB 2246), Chapter 20, Laws of 2020.

SHB 2246 reorganized the statutory chapters of Title 70 Revised Code of Washington (RCW) into two titles to better sort the chapters according to public health and safety, and environmental health and safety as follows.

Title 70 RCW, Public Health and Safety, and
Title 70A RCW, Environmental Health and Safety.

The adopted rules corrected the RCW citations that were affected* by the reorganization of Title 70 RCW into two titles and included non-substantive clarifying edits.

The rule will be effective on April 9, 2022

CR-103P Rule-Making Order (PDF)

For more information contact:

Brad Burnham in the Office of Drinking Water or call 360-236-3102.

Nina Helpling in the Office of the Assistant Secretary or call 360-236-3065.

*Complete list of affected WAC chapters.

Office of the Assistant Secretary—EPH

Chapter 246-203 WAC, General Sanitation
Chapter 246-03 WAC, State Environmental Policy Act—Guidelines
Chapter 246-10 WAC, Administrative Procedure—Adjudicative Proceedings

Office of Environmental Public Health Sciences

Chapter 246-205 WAC, Decontamination of Illegal Manufacturing or Storage Sites

Office of Radiation and Protection

Chapter 246-220 WAC, Radiation Protection—General Provisions
Chapter 246-224 WAC, Radiation Protection—Radiation Machine Assembly and Registration
Chapter 246-225A WAC, Radiation Safety and Diagnostic Image Quality Standards for Dental Facilities
Chapter 246-226 WAC, Radiation Protection—Computed Tomography
Chapter 246-229 WAC, Radiation Protection—Particle Accelerators
Chapter 246-236 WAC, Licenses and Radiation Safety Requirements for Irradiators
Chapter 246-247 WAC, Radiation Protection—Air Emissions YES
Chapter 246-252 WAC, Radiation Protection—Uranium or Thorium Milling
Chapter 246-254 WAC, Radiation Protection—Fees

Office of Environmental Health and Safety

Chapter 246-272A WAC, On-Site Sewage Systems In Progress
Chapter 246-272B WAC, Large On-site Sewage System Regulation
Chapter 246-273 WAC, On-site Sewage System Additives
Chapter 246-274 WAC, Greywater Reuse for Subsurface Irrigation

Office of Drinking Water

Chapter 246-290 WAC, Group A Public Water Supplies All but subsection 990
Chapter 246-291 WAC, Group B Public Water Systems
Chapter 246-292 WAC, Waterworks Operator Certification
Chapter 246-293 WAC, Water System Coordination Act
Chapter 246-294 WAC, Drinking Water Operating Permits
Chapter 246-295 WAC, Satellite System Management Agencies
Chapter 246-296 WAC, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Loan Program

PFAS Rule Update

The State Board of Health (board) adopted rule changes to chapter 246-290 WAC, Group A Public Water Supplies and chapter 246-390 WAC, Drinking Water Laboratory Certification and Data Reporting. The newly adopted rules becomes effective on January 1, 2022.

If you have questions about the new rule requirements or about how to comply, see the documents linked below. If you still have questions about the Group A rule changes, please reach out to your regional office of drinking water for assistance. If you have questions about the lab rule, please reach out to our laboratory liaison.

Group A Water Supplies Rulemaking Documents (chapter 246-290 WAC)

For more information about the Group A rule, contact Jocelyn Jones at 360-236-3020.

Lab Certification and Data Reporting Rulemaking Documents

For more information about the lab rule, please contact Nina Helpling at 360-263-3065.

To receive rule notices by email sign up for the rulemaking email list.

SHB 2246 Title 70 RCW Updates

PFAS Rule Update

Group A Water Supplies Rulemaking Documents (chapter 246-290 WAC)

Lab Certification and Data Reporting Rulemaking Documents

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