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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2-24-09 BOHMASON COUNTY BOARD OF HEALTH PROCEEDINGS February 24, 2009 Attendance: Mason County Board Members: Lynda Ring-Erickson; Ross Gallagher; Tim Sheldon - absent Ex-Officio Board Members: Scott Hilburn, Hospital District #1; Peggy VanBuskirk, Hospital District #2; Frank Philips, Fire Commissioner; Tim LeClair, Skokomish Tribe - absent 1. Commissioner Ross Gallagher called the meeting to order at 3:40 p.m. 2. Cmmr. Ring Erickson/Gallagher moved and seconded to adopt the agenda as published. Motion carried unanimously. RE-aye; G-aye; S-absent 3. Correspondence - National Association of Local Boards of Health (NALBOH) Certificate of Membership. 4. Cmmr. Ring Erickson/Gallagher moved and seconded to adopt the regular meeting minutes of January 27, 2009 as presented. Motion carried unanimously. RE-aye; G-aye; S-absent 5. Administrative Issues 5.1 Mason County Public Health Budget Discussion – Vicki Kirkpatrick presented a history of local public health funding. Cmmr. Ring Erickson asked if there is still a list that shows the amount of Current Expense Funds per capita that each county is putting forward. Ms. Kirkpatrick stated the list still does exist and she will provide a copy. Cmmr. Gallagher asked for the funding history report to be posted on the County website. 5.2 Health Officer’s Report – Dr. Yu announced she would be serving as President Elect of the Medical Society. She will not be at the next Board of Health meeting due to training. She also gave an update on the peanut butter recall and mentioned that it has not been a bad flu season. 5.3 Director’s Report – Ms. Kirkpatrick stated the new stimulus funds contain money for public health, but they do not know how much will come to Washington. Debbie Riley has been working with Utilities to explore funding sources for water quality in Mason County. She discussed a new bill that would make health districts junior taxing districts. She also gave an update of the Health Department’s strategic plan. 6. Community and Family Health Issues – Lydia Buchheit stated they are working on statistics and reporting for the Department of Health and Social and Health Services. 7. Environmental Health Issues 7.1 On-Site Sewage Regulations – Vicki Kirkpatrick gave an overview of the public process for the review of the On-Site Sewage Regulations. Cmmr. Gallagher asked who sits on the Certified Contractor Review Board and how are they selected. Cindy Waite, Environmental Health, stated the Review Board has only been needed once in the last 11 years. There is a designer, installer, O&M person and someone from the County. The Board reviews complaints about contractors. Cmmr. Ring Erickson asked about the transfer of ownership of property. She is concerned people use a transfer of ownership without an official sale to bypass the on-site sewage inspections. BOARD OF HEALTH PROCEEDINGS August 4, 2005 - PAGE 2 Ms. Waite stated she doesn’t know how they would catch a transfer of ownership that was done without an official sale. Ms. Kirkpatrick stated the title companies might be able to catch the transfers. Cmmr. Ring Erickson stated the Assessor and Auditors offices might be able to track it as well. Rob Drexler, Realtors, stated he is concerned that the Association does not want to be the cops on this. It is part of their duty when taking care of their client, but they don’t want to be responsible for ensuring these inspections are done. John Konovsky, Squaxin Island Tribe, recommends the Board of Health approve the regulations. It is an important step for the County to take. It encourages operation and maintenance on a regular basis. He wanted to point out that the Mason County On Site Sewer System Management Plan will be adopted by reference. It is a good plan, but he is concerned that with recent staff cuts it will be hard to make the plan happen. Cmmr. Gallagher asked if that has been taken into consideration. Ms. Kirkpatrick stated when business is slow they do more work with the management plan, but unfortunately right now they do not have a lot of money. They will do their very best to implement the plan with the staff that they have and will not use staffing as an excuse. An audience member stated he supports the plan but some areas are not working because they are trying to work on grants. You can’t depend on grants coming through in a timely manner. It is important that some other funding for Environmental Health be found. Mr. Drexler stated that timelines are of the essence. He is concerned about staffing as well. Ms. Waite stated the inspections will be done by certified maintenance providers and pumpers. They are private inspections so staffing shouldn’t be an issue. Ms. Kirkpatrick stated she recognizes the real estate industry is always working on timelines. The bottom line is that whoever does the inspections needs to have the right skills. She appreciates the comments regarding having adequate staff. The Commissioners have encouraged them to find other means of funding. They are working with public utilities and others to find opportunities. Everyone recognizes that going from grant to grant or area to area doesn’t sustain quality improvement. Ideas are welcome. Constance Ibsen noted on 7.05 it talks about transfer of resident ownership, but it doesn’t say who is responsible. Cindy Waite stated in the State W.A.C. it states the owner of the property is responsible. Scott Hillburn stated that he doesn’t have any expertise on sewage regulations, but wanted to note that the transparency and openness on this project was excellent. Cmmr. Ring Erickson/Gallagher moved and seconded to forward the On-Site Sewage Regulations to the Board of County Commissioners meeting for a public hearing. Motion carried unanimously. RE-aye; G-aye; S-absent. Ms. Kirkpatrick stated the public hearing will be on April 7, 2009. BOARD OF HEALTH PROCEEDINGS August 4, 2005 - PAGE 3 There was further discussion on health funding. 7.2 Waivers – no waivers were presented. 8. Public Comment – none. 9. Adjourn - The meeting adjourned at 4:43 p.m. ATTEST: _______________________________ Shannon Goudy Clerk of the Board BOARD OF HEALTH MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON _______________________________ Ross Gallagher, Chair _______________________________ Tim Sheldon, Commissioner _______________________________ Lynda Ring Erickson, Commissioner