Local governments want to influence the development of new wildfire protection rules in Washington • Washington State Standard

The last time the state Building Code Board developed rules to protect homes from wildfire threats, city and county officials criticized them as confusing, expensive and excessive.

These rules are gone. As the state considers drawing new wildfire risk maps and implementing new codes, local governments want to have more of a say in hopes of developing regulations that are understandable, affordable and help the communities most at risk.

“The public, subject matter experts and local officials should have the opportunity to comment on this process,” said Brad Medrud, planning manager for the city of Tumwater. “It shouldn’t just be up to the county and (Department of Natural Resources) to decide next steps.”

Lawmakers on the House Local Government Committee heard this week from officials from state and local government agencies, including Medrud, on what needs to be done to implement the new Wildland Urban Interface, or WUI, building codes and what the new law will mean for cities and counties.

A 2018 law directed the state Building Code Board to write new regulations requiring homes on forest edges and other fire-prone areas to be built with specified fire-resistant materials, with less surrounding vegetation and more accessible driveways.

Under this law, the Department of Natural Resources was tasked with mapping the state’s urban wilderness area. The final map required most of the state to follow at least some of the new code, prompting criticism from counties and cities that it exaggerated the risk of wildfires in some places and could make homes less affordable at a time when shortages are growing in the state.

Lawmakers passed a law this year requiring the department to draw up a new map and limiting which parts of the code, already approved by the state Building Code Board, can go into effect. On the date of entry into force of this Act, the council for abolished the new rules entirely.

Now everyone is wondering where to go from here.

New maps, more information

This new map is the main quest. It must be based on statewide wildfire risk, taking into account terrain, climate and vegetation.

Loren Torgerson of the Department of Natural Resources told lawmakers Monday that they are considering using an existing risk assessment from the U.S. Forest Service as a basis, although the exact criteria for at-risk communities are still being determined. The DNR is on track to finalize map elements by Dec. 1 and award the map contract by March 1, 2025, Torgerson said.

Medrud urged the department to look at what other states have done to create their risk maps and talk to local communities who may have a better understanding of the risks.

“Tumwater is nothing like Richland,” he said.

Paul Jewell of the Washington State Association of Counties said many counties have risk maps that are likely much more accurate than a state-level map could be.

He urged state officials to talk to leaders in these communities about putting some of the findings on a state map or allowing them to determine which codes make the most sense for their communities. For example, some counties already have more stringent wildfire protection regulations.

“Districts just need to know the rules and understand them,” Jewell said.

A “significant departure” from other processes

Once the map is completed, the state will implement the new codes. But under a law passed earlier this year, only certain regulations can go into effect, essentially forgoing the work the Building Code Board has done in recent years to write new regulations.

The council is trying to figure out where they fit into the new process.

On Monday, Todd Beyreuther, vice chairman of the Building Code Board, reiterated the Council’s criticism that the bill takes away their power and represents a “significant departure” from previous rulemaking processes for writing nation-building codes.

Because of the way the law is written, the council can only adopt part of it International WUI Code or nothing at all, said Dustin Curb, managing director of the Building Code Council. The state board does not have the ability to change these codes to meet Washington’s specific needs.

“This dramatically limits the state Building Code Board’s ability to engage in a public process where subject matter experts can make changes,” Beyreuther said.

Curb said lawmakers should consider adopting an amendment next session that would adopt some portions of the codes but still give the council some authority to amend them.

However, Jewell said the current policy is the best future, given its flexibility for local governments.