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The department must streamline the permitting process by developing and maintaining positive relationships with the regulatory agencies and the Indian tribes. The department can reduce the time it takes to obtain permits by incorporating impact avoidance and minimization measures into project design and by developing complete permit applications. To streamline the permitting process, the department must:
Implement a multiagency permit program, commensurate with program funding levels, consisting of appropriate regulatory agency staff with oversight and management from the department.
The multiagency permit program must provide early project coordination, expedited project review, project status updates, technical and regulatory guidance, and construction support to ensure compliance.
The multiagency permit program staff must assist department project teams with developing complete biological assessments and permit applications, provide suggestions for how the project can avoid and minimize impacts, and provide input regarding mitigation for unavoidable impacts.
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i.(A) Once a determination has been made that a project will need to receive a particular permit and the relevant parameters of the permit have been sufficiently established, the multiagency permit program staff must ensure, to the maximum extent possible, that a meeting with the appropriate federal or state agency or agencies responsible for the issuance of the permit occurs within 30 days. In addition to any other discussion regarding the permit, such a meeting must develop methods by which the issuance of the permit may be expedited. The multiagency permit program staff is responsible for the implementation of any such methods, to the extent possible.
(B) Within 30 days of determining that a project will need to receive a particular permit and the relevant parameters of the permit being sufficiently established, the multiagency permit program staff must begin soliciting community input regarding the permit, including from impacted cities, counties, and federally recognized tribes. Cities, counties, and federally recognized tribes must also be included in any outreach and meetings regarding the permit, to the extent possible.
ii. The multiagency permit program staff must, to the maximum extent possible, ensure that within 90 days of the occurrence of a meeting pursuant to (c)(i) of this subsection, that a decision is reached regarding the issuance of the permit.
iii.(A) If no comments regarding a permit are made, by the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, within 60 days of the submission of the permit application, the permit is deemed approved.
(B) If comments regarding a permit are made, by the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, the multiagency permit program staff may resubmit the permit with such modifications as are necessary to resolve the comment or comments. If no further comments are received, from the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, within 30 days of the resubmission of the permit application, the permit is deemed approved.
(C) If all comments regarding a permit made pursuant to (c)(iii)(A) and (B) of this subsection, by the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, have been addressed according to the objective written standards of that agency and no permit has been issued, the multiagency permit program staff may make a finding that:
(I) All comments regarding a permit based on objective written standards, by the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, have been addressed; and
(II) A reasonable person would find that any comments that have not been addressed are extraneous or irrelevant to the objective written standards of the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection, and the permit is deemed approved.
(D) The following types of permits may be used:
(I) Hydraulic project approvals required under chapter 77.55 RCW;
(II) Shoreline permits required under chapter 90.58 RCW;
(III) State environmental policy act permits required under chapter 43.21C RCW; and
(IV) Wastewater discharge permits required under chapter 90.48 RCW;
(E) Comments by the agency responsible for the issuance of a permit listed in (c)(iii)(D) of this subsection must be based on objective written standards.
vi. As part of their efforts to streamline permitting, multiagency permit program staff must collaborate with and ensure input from impacted federally recognized tribes. Such collaboration and input must be solicited as early as is feasible and continue throughout the process of obtaining permits;
Establish, implement, and maintain programmatic agreements and permits with federal and state agencies to expedite the process of ensuring compliance with the endangered species act, section 106 of the national historic preservation act, hydraulic project approvals, the clean water act, and other federal acts as appropriate;
Collaborate with permitting staff from the United States army corps of engineers, Seattle district, department of ecology, and department of fish and wildlife to develop, implement, and maintain complete permit application guidance. The guidance must identify the information that is required for agencies to consider a permit application complete;
Perform internal quality assurance and quality control to ensure that permit applications are complete before submitting them to the regulatory agencies; and
Implement a multiagency effort, in coordination with the department of ecology and the department of fish and wildlife, and work with the relevant federal environmental permitting agencies to streamline the acquisition of commonly needed environmental permits and approvals for department of transportation fish passage barrier correction projects. Expected results include developing programmatic permit options that simplify the application process, reduce paperwork, and reduce the amount of time and cost it takes to acquire these permits and approvals.
The department of transportation, in order to streamline the process of issuing permits for transportation projects, shall:
Develop templates for permit approval based upon each permitting agencies' policies, for use by state agencies and local governments;
Identify all emergency provisions that allow for expedited processing of project construction at times of emergency that may be implemented during periods of nonemergency, and incorporate that work into ongoing permitting processes;
Identify opportunities to simplify funding sources and best distribute federal resources to maximize timely project delivery;
Create a plan for centralizing communication and current information on the progress of issuing any permit, in a user friendly way;
Create processes for identifying points of contact within each permitting agency for a given permit and the individual responsible for communicating any staff changes;
Develop recommendations for changing the process allowing permit exemptions; and
Develop plans for programmatic permits based upon project type and identify tools available to maximize efficiency in permit approval for projects.
The department of transportation must provide a report to the transportation committees of the legislature detailing its work pursuant to this section and any recommendations, including any recommendations for legislation, by December 1, 2027.
This section expires December 31, 2027.
This act takes effect October 1, 2026.