HB 12-1126: On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems

• Renames the "Individual Sewage Disposal Systems Act" to the "On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems Act" and updates terminology throughout Colorado law to use "OWTS" instead of "ISDS"

• Transfers authority for adopting minimum standards and rules from the Water Quality Control Commission to local boards of health, with the Commission developing baseline guidelines that local boards must follow

• Adds new definitions including "cesspool," "septic tank," "soil evaluation," and "soil treatment area" to provide clearer regulatory language

• Prohibits construction of new cesspools and requires compliance with groundwater separation standards for existing systems, with prohibition on multiple dwelling units connecting to a single system unless specified in permit

• Appropriates $8,530 and 0.1 FTE to the Department of Public Health and Environment for implementation, with a $23 fee on new or upgraded OWTS permits ($3 to counties, $20 to state water quality control fund)