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Bill would relax satellite management agency requirement for small Group B water systems
Summary
Substitute House Bill 19 47 seeks to exempt simple Group B water systems from mandatory satellite management agency (SMA) ownership or operation unless the system provides fire flow, has atmospheric storage, serves 10 or more connections, or requires treatment; supporters said the change reduces costs and restores local flexibility.
The Senate Agriculture Committee on March 17 heard Substitute House Bill 19 47, which would narrow the state requirement that new public water systems be owned or operated by a satellite management agency (SMA). Under current Department of Health rules, many small Group B systems must be managed by an SMA; the bill would exempt Group B systems unless they meet one of four conditions: provide fire flow, have atmospheric storage, serve 10 or more service connections, or are required to provide treatment to meet water‑quality standards.
Elena Becker, committee staff, said the bill preserves SMA requirements for higher‑risk situations but would remove a blanket SMA mandate for very small, simple Group B systems. Becker noted the bill also allows local boards of health to adopt more stringent requirements.
Rep. Roger Engel, the bill’s sponsor, described his experience as president of a water association and said many rural communities find SMAs difficult or costly to contract with; he said the change would allow families building homes served by shared wells to do so affordably when local health jurisdictions already provide oversight.
Public testimony included Jamie Bowden of the State Association of Local Public Health Officials, who said 22 local health jurisdictions already implement aspects of Group B programs and that many Group B systems have only four connections. Former Stevens County Commissioner West McCart and local public‑health administrator Matt Schuntz urged the committee to defer to local health jurisdictions and described cases where the SMA requirement imposed large, unnecessary costs while providing little operational benefit.
The committee did not act on the bill at the hearing.
