Tag members find WAC/IRC numbering error, seek clearer adult-family-home and daycare language

At a Washington IRC tag meeting, members flagged what staff called a placement error in the draft rulemaking report that mixes exception language for daycare facilities and adult family homes across numbered subsections of the code. Mariko Blessing, Committee member, urged moving the inserted blue text from exception 5 to exception 6 to match the model code structure (“I don't think the insertion belongs in number 5. I believe the insertion of the blue text belongs in number 6.”). Staff (Staff member) acknowledged a staff error in the published report and said the numbering should be corrected before the proposal goes to rulemaking (“...that was a staff error on this report. It was put into the wrong exception.”).

The tag discussed that the state amendment must preserve the intended regulatory effect while matching the model code’s numbering and exceptions so jurisdictions do not enforce conflicting requirements. Committee members said the item ties into a recent interpretation distinguishing adult family homes from other care facilities; the group agreed the draft proposal should incorporate the missing blue text and the adult-family-home clarification. Angela Haupt, Committee member, said she will circulate the proposal and requested volunteers for a small working group to refine wording; Jen Luke, Committee member, and others volunteered.

Members also debated whether some terms (for example, “dwelling unit” versus “single-family dwelling”) should be revised for consistency across chapters; tag members asked that the final proposal clearly say where daycare language applies, how “units” are counted, and that adult family homes remain treated according to the interpretation issued earlier in the year. The group agreed to draft an amendment that moves the daycare wording into the correct numbered exception, add clarifying text on where adult family homes are excepted, and circulate it to a volunteer subgroup for editing.

Next steps: staff will correct the numbering in the draft report, circulate a proposed amendment incorporating the blue text into the correct exception, and the small volunteer group (including Jen Luke and Mariko Blessing) will refine language before the executive committee meeting.