Petition Method for Water-Sewer Districts in Spokane County

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RCW 57.24.070 is the Washington State Law which describes the process for the petition method of annexation for water-sewer districts This process is outlined below for water-sewer districts in Spokane County including the SEPA (RCW 43.21C) and Boundary Review Board (RCW 36.93) steps.

  1. A petition is filed with the Board of Directors of the Water-Sewer District containing:
    • signatures of owners of not less than sixty percent of the land area, and
    • a legal description and plat outlining the boundaries of the property to be annexed.
  2. If the Board of Directors accepts the petition, it then fixes a date for a public hearing, publishes a hearing notice in a newspaper, and posts three notices in the proposed annexation area.
  3. The Board of Directors or staff of the Water-Sewer District prepare an environmental checklist and issue a Determination of Nonsignificance. Copies are sent to the Department of Ecology and affected agencies.
  4. After receiving comments on the environmental checklist, the Board of Directors holds the public hearing, accepts testimony, closes the public hearing and then determines whether to accept the area for annexation. An Intent to Annex resolution is signed by the Board of Directors.
  5. A Notice of Intention is then filed with the Boundary Review Board. A copy is sent to the County Commissioners for review. The County Commissioners through its designee, Spokane County Long Range Planning, then send to the Boundary Review Board a report of its approval or disapproval with its findings.
  6. An affected entity has 45 days to request a public hearing before the Boundary Review Board. If there is a hearing, the Boundary Review Board may approve, modify and approve or deny the petition. If there is no hearing before the Boundary Review Board, the Notice of Intention is approved after the 45-day period elapses.
  7. The Boundary Review Board then sends to the Water-Sewer District, either its written Hearing Decision or a Certification of the Expiration of the 45-Day Period or the Waiver of the 45-Day Period.
  8. The Board of Directors then adopts a resolution officially annexing the area, including any modifications that the Boundary Review Board has made.
  9. This Final Resolution and the County Auditor recording fee are sent to the Boundary Review Board Office.
  10. The Boundary Review Board Planner will verify that the legal description is the same as approved by the Boundary Review Board and will record one copy with the Spokane County Auditor and file two copies with the Spokane County Assessor and one with the Spokane County Board of Commissioners.
  11. The Boundary Review Board then changes official maps and sends the resolution with a legal description and map of the changed boundaries to the various county departments and affected agencies.