Okanogan County planning staff on Aug. 6 introduced a draft amendment to Title 19 that would change enforcement practices for land-use and compliance violations.
The proposal would allow the county to use voluntary compliance agreements, civil penalties and administrative hearings (before the hearings examiner) rather than immediately pursuing misdemeanor charges for many code violations. The code draft includes a staged penalty-waiver schedule intended to encourage timely remediation: full waivers for compliance achieved within an initial period, reduced waivers for later remediation and escalating remedies such as recording liens for unpaid penalties.
Planning staff stressed the draftocuses on giving property owners a path to comply while preserving the county
bility to issue stop-work orders, record liens or pursue misdemeanor prosecution for serious or persistent health-and-safety violations. The draft calls for clear timelines tied to service of a notice of violation and outlines an appeal process that pauses compliance timelines while an appeal is pending.
Commissioners asked staff to tighten language around days and appeal effects, to ensure the code makes clear when clocks pause and when the county can record a lien. Commissioner feedback included suggestions to simplify the staged-percentage waivers into a smaller number of clear time bands and to define time periods as calendar days rather than business days. Staff will return with revisions and legal counsel input.
Ending: Planning staff will refine the draft enforcement code, clarify appeal and lien timelines, and return with a revised ordinance for further work sessions and legal review.