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Health department to implement updated septic rules April 1; behavioral health outreach expanded
Summary
Jen Rinkowski told Flathead County commissioners the county will implement revised construction standards and septic regulations April 1, and described new behavioral‑health outreach and staffing changes serving several neighboring counties.
Jen Rinkowski, of the Flathead County Health Department, told commissioners the county will implement updated construction standards and septic regulations on April 1 to give staff time to update forms and procedures. "We will be implementing them April 1, so it's giving our staff time to update some forms and to do that," she said.
Rinkowski said the septic rules were a long‑overdue overhaul that aligns local definitions with the state Department of Environmental Quality after more than two decades without a full revision: "it hadn't been overhauled in, I think over 20 years." She described the new documents as living policies that can be revised as technology and conditions change.
On behavioral health, Rinkowski said the county hired an OENDP staff member who will perform regional outreach covering neighboring counties, naming Lake, Lincoln, Sanders, Mineral and Missoula counties as outreach partners. She said behavioral health operations have been relocated to a consolidated space so communicable disease and population‑health staff can coordinate more closely, and that the department is still recruiting a part‑time licensed clinical social worker to fill an open response position.
Rinkowski also briefed commissioners on several operational matters: animal‑shelter capacity challenges amid a high intake of cats and dogs, plans to transfer some animals to other facilities (Great Falls has expressed interest), the hiring of two vets who will provide on‑site services, recent mosquito‑control hires to prepare for vector season, and preparations for an expected busy bat/bite season after several bats tested positive for rabies last year. She said the county covers the cost of bat testing and coordinates follow‑up with animal control officers.
A commissioner praised staff and the environmental health subcommittee for months of work reviewing the regulations. Rinkowski and others said the revisions grew out of extensive weekly staff reviews beginning in 2024 and continuing into 2025 to ensure alignment with DEQ standards.
The health update concluded with no further questions and no formal action required by the commission.
