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SUBJECTS › PLANNING › Washington State Concurrency Ordinances
Updated 02/10

Concurrency Provisions

Contents

Introduction

Concurrency is one of the goals of the Growth Management Act and refers to the timely provision of public facilities and services relative to the demand for them. To maintain concurrency means that adequate public facilities are in place to serve new development as it occurs or within a specificed time period. The Growth Management Act (GMA) gives special attention to concurrency for transportation.

The GMA requires that transportation improvements or strategies to accommodate development impacts need to be made concurrently with land development.  RCW 36.70A.070(6)(b). “Concurrent with the development” is defined by the GMA to mean that any needed "improvements or strategies are in place at the time of development, or that a financial commitment is in place to complete the improvements or strategies within six years." RCW 36.70A.070(6)(b).  Local governments have flexibility regarding how to apply concurrency within their plans, regulations, and permit systems.

As part of the requirement to develop a comprehensive plan, jurisdictions are required to establish level-of-service standards (LOS) for arterials, transit service, and other facilities. RCW 36.70A.070(6)(a). Once a jurisdiction sets an LOS, it is used to determine whether the impacts of a proposed development can be met through existing capacity and/or to decide what level of additional facilities will be required. Transportation is the only area of concurrency that specifies denial of development.  However, local jurisdictions must have a program to correct existing deficiencies and bring existing transportation facilities and services up to locally adopted standards. A developer may not be required to pay for improvements to correct existing deficiencies.

Growth management administrative regulations encourage local jurisdictions to define in their comprehensive plans other types of public facilities for which concurrency is required. These may include parks and recreational facilities, sanitary sewer systems, storm water facilities, and schools. WAC 365-195-070(3).

Reference Sources

Statutes and Administrative Regulations

Selected Court and Growth Management Hearings Board Decisions

  • City of Bellevue v. E. Bellevue Cmty. Mun. Corp., 119 Wn. App. 405 (2003), review denied, 152 Wn.2d 1004, 101 P.3d 865 (2004) - Affirms the Growth Management Hearings Board's conclusion that the Bellevue ordinance, which exempted shopping center redevelopment from transportation concurrency requirements, failed to conform to the GMA's concurrency requirements, and is invalid
  • McVittie v. Snohomish County, (Adobe Acrobat Document) CPSGMHB Case No. 01-3-0002, Final Decision and Order, July 25, 2001 - Addresses transportation concurrency 
  • Taxpayers for Responsible Government v. City of Oak Harbor, (Adobe Acrobat Document)WWGMHB No. 96-2-002, Final Decision and Order, July 1996 - Local governments must consider what facilities and services (in addition to transportation) are necessary to support development, but also have discretion about what facilities are subject to concurrency.
  • Wilma v. Stevens County, (Adobe Acrobat Document) EWGMHB Case No. 06-1-0009c, Final Decision and Order, March 12, 2007 - Finding that the county needs a policy in its comprehensive plan to provide for concurrency and providing general discussion on concurrency.

General Concurrency Information

City and County Ordinance Provisions

  • Bellevue City Code Chapter 14.10 - Traffic Standards Code
  • Bellingham Municipal Code Chapter 13.70 - Multimodal Transportation Concurrency Management 
  • Clark County Code Chapter 40.350.020 - Transportation Concurrency Management
  • Gig Harbor Municipal Code Chapters 19.10 - Concurrency Management System and Chapter 19.14 - Concurrency and Impact Fee Program Definitions (Adobe Acrobat Document) 
  • Kent Municipal Code Chapter 12.11 - Concurrency Management
  • King County Code Chapter 21A.28 - Development Standards - Adequacy of Public Facilities and Services
  • Lacey Municipal Code Chapter 14.21 - Transportation Mitigation and Concurrency 
  • Puyallup Municipal Code Chapter 21.18 - Concurrency Management
  • Sammamish Municipal Code Ch. 14A.10 - Concurrency  
  • Seattle Land Use Code Chapter 23.52 - Transportation Concurrency Project Review System
  • Spokane Municipal Code Chapter 17D.010 - Concurrency Certification 
  • Tacoma Municipal Code Chapter 13.16 - Concurrency Management System (in Title 13 Adobe Acrobat Document) 
  • Thurston County Code Chapter 17.10 - Transportation Facilities Concurrency Management System
  • Tumwater Municipal Code Chapter 15.48 - Transportation Concurrency Requirements
  • Yelm Municipal Code Chapter 15.40 - Concurrency Management
  • Zillah Municipal Code Chapter 17.10 - Transportation Concurrency Review (Adobe Acrobat Document).

Local Government Concurrency Information and Documents