Growth Management Act
Update Information
Overview
For a community’s plan to be effective, it must continue to evolve. Local comprehensive plans and development regulations that remains relevant will allow the community to address and benefit from new information and trends. This is why the Growth Management Act (GMA) requires that comprehensive plans and development regulations be subject to periodic review. (RCW 36.70A.130).
Many communities adopt amendments to their comprehensive plan annually and regularly adopt changes to their development regulations. In addition, the GMA requires counties and cities to conduct a complete review, and if needed, revision, to their comprehensive plans and development regulations at least once every 7 years. This periodic review and update provides an opportunity for local communities to review assumptions and patterns of development and bring plans up to date with any relevant changes in the GMA. The 7-year review and update process must be completed based on the statutory schedule adopted by the Legislature. The map and paragraph below provide a summary of the periodic update schedule by county, as well as related extension adopted in recent years.
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Enlarge GMA Update Map
The 7-Year Update: Comprehensive Plan, Development Regulations, and Critical Areas Ordinance:
Every 7 years, counties and cities are required to "review, and if needed, revise" their comprehensive plan and development regulations under the schedule established in RCW 36.70A.130(4). The 7-year review and evaluations deadlines established by the Legislature for comprehensive plans and development regulations (including critical areas ordinances) are as follows:
(a) On or before December 1, 2004, and every seven years thereafter, for Clallam, Clark, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Snohomish, Thurston, and Whatcom counties and the cities within those counties;
(b) On or before December 1, 2005, and every seven years thereafter, for Cowlitz, Island, Lewis, Mason, San Juan, Skagit, and Skamania counties and the cities within those counties;
(c) On or before December 1, 2006, and every seven years thereafter, for Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Grant, Kittitas, Spokane, and Yakima counties and the cities within those counties; and
(d) On or before December 1, 2007, and every seven years thereafter, for Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grays Harbor, Klickitat, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Wahkiakum, Walla Walla, and Whitman counties and the cities within those counties.
One-year Extension for Critical Areas Ordinances (NO LONGER APPLICABLE):
Critical areas ordinances are considered part of the development regulations. Under RCW 36.70A.130(8), the Legislature established a temporary, one-year (12-month) extension for certain jurisdictions to complete the periodic review and update of "development regulations that protect critical areas" (i.e., critical areas ordinances).
The statute limits this one-year extension to the first round of updates. Therefore this extension applied only to counties and cities with scheduled deadlines in years 2005, 2006, and 2007, and is no longer applicable. This one-year extension is not considered an ongoing extension every 7 years. Under the provisions of RCW 36.70A.130(8)(c), this last extension deadline occurred on December 1, 2008 (i.e., the extension due date for 2007 jurisdictions).
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Checklists - Updated through 2008
Checklist for Comprehensive Plans (rev. 2008)
Checklist for Development Regulations (rev. 2008)
Resource List for the update of Comprehensive Plans and Development Regulations (rev. 2008)
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The 3-year Extension
Certain small and slow-growing counties and cities have been granted a three-year extension (thirty-six months) by the legislature to complete the update. The following table outlines those qualifying factors under RCW 36.70A.130(5).
|
Small and Slow-Growing Counties with updates due in
2005, 2006, 2007 |
Small and Slow-Growing Cities with updates due 2005, 2006, 2007 |
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Population of less than 50,000; and
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A growth rate of no more than 17% for the ten years prior to the update deadline. |
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Population of no more than 5,000; and either
-
(1) A growth rate of no more than 17% for the ten years prior to the update deadline; or
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A total population growth of 100 people or less. |
Click here for more information on the three-year extension, including a list of eligible counties and cities.
The Washington State Office of Financial Management (OFM) maintains the Washington State County Growth Management Population Projections: 2000 to 2025.
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State Funding Eligibility
The Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED) is tracking progress toward update completion based on the draft and adopted comprehensive plans and development regulations that it receives.
Local governments must complete the required update by the due dates specified under RCW 36.70A.130 in order to be eligible to apply for grants and loans from the Public Works Board (RCW 43.155.070), the Centennial Clean Water Fund (RCW 70.146.070), the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, the Recreation and Conservation Office (RCW 43.17.250), and the state administered FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Because these agencies rely on CTED to track GMA compliance for eligibility purposes, it is critical that those local governments contemplating applications complete the GMA update and notify CTED in writing that the update has been completed.
As counties and cities plan the schedule for completing the update, local government planners should check with their parks department, public works department, and related officials to verify if these local departments are planning to apply for funds from these state programs. If so, local planners should advise both their elected officials and the respective departments that the update must be completed before they can participate in these state grant and loan programs.
CTED does not make an independent determination if a jurisdiction has completed the GMA update. A jurisdiction is considered to have completed the process when they have taken legislative action, by adopting an ordinance or resolution, and declaring the update process to be complete.
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Upate Completion Status
To date, the number of jurisdictions that have completed, or partially completed, the GMA update are as follows:
|
2004 Update |
Comprehensive
Plan Updated |
Development
Regulations Updated |
Critical Areas
Ordinance Updated |
Update Process
Complete |
|
Number |
117 |
107 |
108 |
103 |
|
Percentage* |
100% |
91% |
92% |
88% |
*This is a percentage of all jurisdictions with a 2004 due date.
|
2005 Update |
Comprehensive
Plan Updated |
Development
Regulations Updated |
Critical Areas
Ordinance Updated |
Update Process
Complete |
|
Number |
23 |
19 |
21 |
20 |
|
Percentage* |
85% |
70% |
60% |
57% |
*This is a percentage of all jurisdictions with a 2005 due date.
|
2006 Update |
Comprehensive
Plan Updated |
Development
Regulations Updated |
Critical Areas
Ordinance Updated
(Due in 2007) |
Update Process
Complete |
|
Number |
39 |
31 |
26 |
17 |
|
Percentage* |
57% |
45% |
38% |
25% |
*This is a percentage of all jurisdictions with a 2006 due date.
|
2007 Update |
Comprehensive
Plan Updated |
Development
Regulations Updated |
Critical Areas
Ordinance Updated
(Due in 2008) |
Update Process
Complete |
|
Number |
10 |
7 |
20 |
13 |
|
Percentage* |
29% |
20% |
57% |
37% |
*This is a percentage of all jurisdictions with a 2007 due date.
If you are interested in the status of a specific jurisdiction, please contact it directly.
Updated April 2009
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