King County Audit | Stormwater

View the full report: https://kingcounty.gov/en/independent... "Stormwater: Advancing Fee Structure, Oversight, and Spending Strategy Could Improve Results" Presented by Justin Anderson and Luc Poon Summary: King County’s surface water management (SWM) fee and discount structure is dated and does not consistently align a parcel owner’s fees with the parcel’s contribution to King County’s stormwater burden. In addition, some mining parcels receive significant discounts but do not demonstrate compliance with discount requirements for stormwater mitigation. The Water and Land Resources Division (WLRD) uses SWM fees to fund efforts that mitigate the impacts of stormwater runoff and reduce pollution of local waterways and Puget Sound. However, the division has not implemented essential governance elements for the Surface Water Management Program, limiting the division’s ability to direct SWM funds to achieve the surface and stormwater mitigation objectives set in King County Code. Finally, data gaps and planning deficiencies in the Stormwater Services Section hinder division-level decision-making, which is important in the context of potentially high costs to maintain the County’s aging stormwater infrastructure.