27.01.090 Use of exemptions.
(1) The responsible official shall determine whether the license and/or the proposal is exempt. The responsible official’s determination that a license and/or proposal is exempt shall be final and not subject to administrative review. If a proposal is exempt, none of the procedural requirements of this chapter apply to the proposal. The County shall not require completion of an environmental checklist for an exempt proposal.
(2) In determining whether or not a proposal is exempt, the responsible official shall make certain the proposal is properly defined and shall identify the governmental licenses required (WAC 197-11-060). If a proposal includes exempt and nonexempt actions, the responsible official shall determine the lead agency, even if the license application that triggers the responsible official’s consideration is exempt.
(3) If a proposal includes both exempt and nonexempt actions, the responsible official may authorize exempt actions prior to compliance with the procedural requirements of this chapter, except that:
(a) The responsible official shall not give authorization for:
(i) Any nonexempt action;
(ii) Any action that would have an adverse environmental impact; or
(iii) Any action that would limit the choice of alternatives;
(b) A County department or the responsible official may withhold approval of an exempt action that would lead to modification of the physical environment, when such modification would serve no purpose, if the nonexempt action(s) associated thereto were not approved; and
(c) A department or the responsible official may withhold approval of exempt actions that would lead to substantial financial expenditures by a private applicant when the expenditures would serve no purpose if the associated nonexempt action(s) were not approved.