(1) In order to obtain judicial review of a final decision of the environmental and land use hearings board, a party to the board case as consolidated shall timely file a petition for judicial review in the superior court for Thurston county and timely serve the board and all parties to the proceedings before the board by personal service or by mail. Such petition is timely filed and served only if it is filed and served on all parties within thirty days after the filing of the final decision and order of the board. Service by mail shall be deemed effective on the date of deposit with the United States postal service. Any party may apply for direct review by the court of appeals. An application for direct review must be filed with the superior court within ten days after the filing of the petition for judicial review. In considering an application for direct review under this chapter, it shall be presumed that: (a) The qualifying project presents fundamental and urgent issues affecting the public interest which require a prompt determination, and (b) delay in obtaining a final and prompt determination of such issues would be detrimental to a party and the public interest.

     (2) The presumption set forth in subsection (1) of this section shall require that the superior court certify the direct review not less than ten days, and not more than fifteen days, after the filing of the application therefore, unless, upon motion of a party with supporting excerpts from the record within ten days after the filing of such application, the superior court finds that: (a) The project is not a qualifying project, or (b) the project will not in fact provide new employment within the county in which the project is located. The court may make such findings upon a showing that said record contains clear, cogent, and convincing evidence to support such findings, which evidence has been testified to by at least one witness competent to testify on employment matters.

     (3) A motion as set forth in subsection (2) of this section shall be heard within fourteen days after the filing of the motion and shall be confined to certified excerpts from the record, which any party may produce. It shall not be necessary to certify the entire record to the court for the purpose of hearing such motion.

     (4) The court of appeals shall accept direct review of a case unless it finds that the superior court's certification under the standards contained in this section was clearly erroneous. Review by the court of appeals shall be restricted to the decision record of the permit agency and the board proceedings. All certified appeals shall be provided priority processing by the court of appeals.

[2003 c 393 § 15.]