WAC 136-750-070

To encourage timely development and construction of approved projects, all projects for which LRP funds have been allocated must meet certain project development milestones. Failure to meet the milestones will result in action by the county road administration board to withdraw LRP funds from the project.

(1) For the purposes of this section, a project will be subject to lapsing and withdrawal of its LRP allocation if:

(a) The project has not begun the preliminary engineering within one year of project approval by the county road administration board; or

(b) During the preliminary engineering or right-of-way phase, if the county has not documented progress through the reimbursement process within a six-month period, the county will be notified that the project will lapse within six months from notification, unless the county can document progress through the reimbursement process within that six-month period;

(c) The project has not begun construction within four years of the date of project approval by the county road administration board;

(d) For construction only project awards, a project shall be considered lapsing if construction does not commence within two years from the date of project approval by the county road administration board.

(2) A project shall be considered in preliminary engineering if a minimum of $5,000 of LRP funds have been expended or evidence that a minimum of post CRAB/county funds of $5,000 of non-LRP funds have been expended for preliminary engineering as provided for in RCW 36.75.050.

(3) Documented progress shall be considered satisfied if a minimum of $5,000 of LRP funds have been expended in the previously six-month period.

(4) A project shall be considered in construction if:

(a) The construction contract for the work has been advertised for bids as provided for in RCW 36.77.020;

(b) A contract has been awarded under the provisions of the small works roster contract award process; or

(c) If done by county forces, the work has commenced.

(5) If an approved project does not meet a required project lapsing date development milestone, the county road administration board will, at its next regular meeting, withdraw LRP funds from the project.

(6) At any time up to 10 days before such meeting, the county may, in writing, request an extension of the lapse date. The county road administration board may grant such an extension if it finds that the delay in project development was for reasons that were both unanticipated and beyond the control of the county, and subject to the following:

(a) A project extension will be granted one time only and will be no more than two years in length; and

(b) The county can demonstrate that the project was actively pursued for completion within the original CRAB/county contract terms and can be completed within a two-year extension; and

(c) The request for an extension is based on unforeseeable circumstances that the county could not have anticipated at the time the project was submitted for LRP funding; and

(d) An approved time extension will not be grounds for the county to request an increase in the LRP funding of the project; and

(e) The executive director will determine a new lapse date, and all of the requirements listed under subsections (1) and (2) of this section will apply except that further extensions will not be granted.

(7) CRAB may in its discretion determine that for the public safety, health, or general welfare, an additional extension is necessary. If such a determination is made, CRAB may grant an additional extension and set the duration thereof.

(8) CRAB may at any time place a moratorium on lapsing of projects that are delayed due to CRAB initiated rescheduling and establish a new lapsing date to fit CRAB's programming needs. For those projects given a lapsing moratorium, subsection (4) of this section shall be held in abeyance until the new lapsing date.