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ECOLOGY OVERSTEPS
from Building Insight May 2019
by BIAW
PRELIMINARY PROPOSALS ECOLOGY OVERSTEPS
ECOLOGY’S PROPOSED WITHDRAWAL STANDARDS CURTAIL EXEMPT-WELL USAGE BY MORE THAN 80%
The Washington state Department of Ecology (Ecology) will be accepting preliminary public comments on its Water Resource Inventory Areas (WRIA) 1 Nooksack rule until May 10, us// JOSIE CUMMINGS ing them to shape their REGULATORY AND proposed GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS MANAGER rulemaking scheduled to start late fall. WRIA 1 includes the Nooksack River basin and several adjoining smaller watersheds, such as the coastal drainages of Dakota and California creeks, as well as Lake Whatcom. As the now infamous Hirst decision originated out of this area, landowners will want to ensure their properties and future homes will have access to water.
After the Hirst fix bill was approved by the legislature in early 2018, lawmakers required the Nooksack rule watershed planning be updated and meet standards such as net ecological benefit, estimates for future uses of wells, and identify shovel-ready projects that could be created to help with potential offsets.
When the WRIA 1 watershed planning committee was unable to adopt a plan through consensus and their recommendations were forwarded to Ecology for preliminary proposed rulemaking. Ecology incorporated some of these suggestions into their recommendations. However, Ecology’s preliminary language for the proposed rule drastically limits water use and will have a huge impact on new residential construction and the way of life for landowners who want to build homes for themselves and their families.
Currently, homes on domestic permit-exempt wells (household wells or anything not on a water system) in open basins are allowed to use up to 3,000 gallons of water per day, up to a total of one-half acre of land. Ecology proposed new withdrawal standards state: n Withdrawals shall not exceed 500 gallons per day, up to a total of 1/12th of an acre n Upon the issuance of a drought emergency order, withdrawals shall be curtailed (but just how much is not mentioned) n Ecology reserves the right to require metering n Under all circumstances, water use limits shall not be exceeded
These limits do not take into consideration that the average person uses between 80-100 gallons of water per day. Imagine a family of five building a home and being restricted to limited shower use, laundry duties, etc.
Domestic wells equate for just 1 percent of the state’s water use and this WRIA 1 aggregated subbasins within Whatcom and Skagit counties. type of extreme regulation will hurt our rural communities and families who dream of building a single-family homes.
BIAW is working with Building Industry Association of Whatcom County staff on drafting comments and will submit them to Ecology. We will continue to keep you updated on the preliminary proposed rulemaking process.
If you are interested in submitting your comments to Ecology, please contact me at (360) 352-7800 or josiec@biaw.com.
IT’S NOT TOO LATE THE NUMBERS ARE IN MEMBER PARTICIPANTS COMMITMENT TO SAFETY, INJURY PREVENTION = CONSISTENT REFUNDS
BIAW is proud to announce its retrospective rating group, R.O.I.I.® Select, earned a 43% first adjustment refund for the 2017-18 plan year!
In addition, R.O.I.I.® Select earned a 41% refund for the second adjustment for the 2016-17 plan year. And, we finished the 2015-2016 plan year with a 36% refund.
BIAW and R.O.I.I.® Select will be receiving a check for $39,364,247—the largest refund check in R.O.I.I.® Select’s history.
We know we couldn’t achieve these consistent and dependable results without the hard work, commitment to safety, injury prevention, and controlling costs from YOU our member participants.
On behalf of the entire BIAW staff, thank you for your support of R.O.I.I.® Select and our association. It’s not too late to enroll! If you’d like to start earning refunds for your company and see if R.O.I.I.® Select is right for your company visit BIAW.com/ROII or contact us at (360) 352-7800 or enroll@biaw.com.
THE RESULTS ARE IN !
Based on $40,000 standard L&I premiums with no losses
2017-2018* REFUND
GROUP %
“ACME” $
2016-2017* REFUND
GROUP %
“ACME” $
2015-2016 REFUND
GROUP %
“ACME” $
R.O.I.I.® SELECT
Other retro programs
43% $17,200 41% $16,400 36% $14,400
Find your group and compare at: https://bit.ly/2ZVqKpu
*Plan year not complete. Individual company refunds will vary. Source: L&I Summary of Results - 4/25/2019 Adjustment.
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TAKE THE NEXT STEP AND GET STARTED WITH R.O.I.I.® SELECT
n Go to ROIISelect.com and complete the online inquiry form n We’ll review your premium and loss information and let you know if you’re a good fit for R.O.I.I.® Select n You’ll also receive a refund calculation showing you how much you could have (360) 352-7800earned if you were enrolled Enroll@BIAW.com BIAW.com/roii It’s that easy!
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Since enrolling in R.O.I.I.® Select, your staff has helped me implement new safety systems that will not only help to prevent injuries but also save time and money in the event that an injury does happen. I’ve learned things that will help me make my business more successful in the future.
— Kirk Koskiniemi, Ibex Roof, Vancouver
R.O.I.I.® SELECT GROUP REFUND
36% 2015
31%
Competitors’ Averages*
37%
2014 34%
Competitors’ Averages
42%
2013
36%
Competitors’ Averages
40%
2012
25% Competitors’ Averages
As the oldest and largest construction retro group in the state, BIAW’s R.O.I.I.® Select program has returned over $500 million in refunds to participating members since 1982.
FEE TRANSPARENCY
Other retro programs bury additional fees to pad profits and aid their bottom line. Our program fee is 10% of the group’s overall refund from L&I and an additional 10% divided between BIAWaffiliated local associations. These fees support continuing education, government affairs, and the building industry as a whole.
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Your annual enrollment fee is 1.5% of total premiums paid to L&I, or $150, whichever is greater. We do not charge a Group Administrative Fee.
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R.O.I.I.® Select’s strict enrollment criteria and innovative approach to workers’ comp ensures maximum group performance. In our 36-year history, not one R.O.I.I.® Select participant has ever
