Virginia Regulatory Town Hall View Comments

Virginia Department of Health

State Board of Health

Regulations Governing Application Fees for Construction Permits for Onsite Sewage Disposal Systems and Private Wells [12 VAC 5 ‑ 620]

Action	Update regulations to reflect changes in the Code of VA
Stage	Proposed
Comment Period	Ended on 2/14/2014

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2/14/14 9:38 pm

Commenter: bob marshall / cloverleaf env. cnslt., inc.

Proposed Amendments to 12 VAC 5 ? 620

As others have already expressed their concerns about the direction of any such amendments, please consider the following points:

(i) New amendments should reflect Virginia's decade long transition to a performance-based regulatory program in onsite sewage. The regulatory framework is currently overdue for synthesizing this transition into the policies of the Onsite Sewage Program "with the least possible intrusion in the lives of citizens".

(ii) Regulatory alternatives were established in 2007 for VA licensed individuals to provide supporting documents necessary for approval of certification letters and construction permits. This opportunity has been under utilized in several Health Districts across the State.

(iii) The Regulations Governing Application Fees for Construction Permits for Onsite Sewage Disposal Systems & Private Wells (12VAC5-620 et seq.) remained unchanged until the 2010-2012 Biennium Appropriations Act. As result, specific limits were set on a variety of application fees with amounts "not to be exceeded". These amounts effective July 1, 2010 have become problematic on a variety of levels. Several counties and health districts have add-on fees that, in some cases, increase the cost of all applications (with/without supporting documentation) by several hundred dollars or more.

(iv) Looking over the revenues recently collected from the source codes for onsite sewage fees under REVENUE CLASS: 02 RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES, as of 12/31/2010, it could be argued that the present fee-structure and policy are not operating in the most efficient, cost-effective manner. The Health Department is essentially giving away services and setting the stage for costly hiring to keep pace with the potential demand and workload.

(v) There's a certain sense of confusion in some Health Districts that the AUTHORIZED ONSITE SOIL EVALUATOR REGULATIONS (12 VAC 5-615) obligates these District to pursue "bare applications" as long as no 15-day backlog exists for processing applications submitted without supporting documentation from an AOSE/PE.

(vi) Small businesses providing documentation with client applications are required to pay fees only slightly lower than the Health District charges for performing the work themselves.

CommentID: 31045