Enforcement

Island County Public Health proposed revisions to the Island County 
Code 8.08B, Solid Waste Handling Regulations, to address the 
recommendations brought by the community in the Illegal Dumping 
Forums.  (The code is accessible online.  See Title VIII: Health, 
Welfare, and Sanitation.)  To address the request for streamlining 
the legislative authority to allow creation of an illegal dumping fund, 
proposed revisions to the code include replacing the civil infraction 
language with administrative penalty language where penalties are 
assessed and collected by the health department rather than the court 
system.  This revision also addresses the request to change the process 
to administrative rather than judicial.  Expenditures of the funds will 
be consistent with limitations under the Washington State Constitution, 
Article 8, Section 7.  To address the request for varying penalties 
dependant upon the severity of the solid waste violation, proposed 
revisions to the code include defining Major Illegal Dumping Offense, 
Minor Illegal Dumping Offense, Litter, and Improper Storage.  Under 
the revised code, the Health Officer may initiate enforcement action 
including an order to correct the solid waste violation and/or assessing an administrative penalty for the solid waste violation.  Failure to correct 
the violation within the time specified can result in the health department 
paying for the abatement and being reimbursed through a lien on the 
property.