By Madysen McLain
Gazette Columnist 

Sen. Murray staffer hears local views on issues

 


Whitman County commissioners discussed affordable housing in the county and new water quality standards with John Culton, Eastern Washington director for U.S. senator Patty Murray during a workshop session Monday morning.

Commissioner Dean Kinzer reported there is $175 million in the Washington state Housing Trust Fund for the next biennium.

He said the fund issues grants and loans to low-income families for home improvement projects.

To qualify, the person needs to own the home, be unable to obtain affordable credit elsewhere and have an income below 50 percent of the area median income.

“One lady pointed out to me that probably three quarters of the legislation passed in Washington state this year will affect affordable housing negatively,” Kinzer said.

Culton asked commissioners if they see housing problems in Whitman County.

Kinzer said about five or six years ago 80 percent of people who worked in Pullman did not live in Pullman because high housing prices. Kinzer said the last he heard was 50 percent of people who work in Pullman don’t live in Pullman.

“It’s not necessarily low income,” Kinzer said. “You get people coming into Schweitzer Engineering, or entry level at W.S.U. and they want to buy a $200,000 house; there’s no such thing.”

Commissioners also discussed changes to water quality regulations at the federal and state level.

Kinzer said he noticed the Environmental Protection Agency put out a notice to all states that they are narrowing the scope and timeline for state certifications for water quality permits and projects under the Clean Water Act.

Kinzer mentioned Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson is filing a lawsuit against the Trump Administration that claims the EPA violated federal law used to protect the environment and human health.

Commissioner Art Swannack said Washington’s water quality standards were much tighter than federal standards, and the federal government decided to change the standard.

Public Works Director Mark Storey said the Almota Phase Four project just received a 401 water quality permit, and it took a long time to get it.

“I think this is probably an attempt to make some of the local operators more responsive,” Storey said.

He said to request permits for wetlands projects, Whitman County is part of the Seattle district now. However, if the county is working on levees then they would work with Walla Walla.

Storey said the county could spend $10,000 for a wetlands specialist to write a report for a project area, but then the Army Corps of Engineers would say they needed to follow their guidelines.

“Then I have to go do it again, or do a new mitigation plan,” Storey said. “That’s real money and real time, which is worse.”

He said the county meets all the set guidelines, but there are several ways the county can complete the project, which is not the cause of money loss. Instead, when projects are delayed a couple of weeks or a month is where the problem is at.

“Everyone’s going to rush to sign that permit,” Culton said. “If something happens in a year and a half, you’re in this really weird spot.”

 

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