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History
- Referred to environmental conservation
- Referred to environmental conservation
Full text
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Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S830
Title of bill
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to environmental benefit projects in lieu of civil penalties
Purpose or general idea of the bill
The bill codifies requirements in the environmental conservation law in relation to requirements for partial settlements in the form of environmental benefit projects. Most of the requirements are currently contained in a draft Departmental guidance document. A number of provisions have been added and modified. Section 71-0520(1) defines terms used in the bill. Section 71-0520(2) establishes conditions which must be met in order for the Department to authorize environmental benefit projects. Section 71-0520 (3) establishes criteria which must be met by environmental projects. Section 71-0520 (4) specifies types of activities which do not qualify as environmental benefit projects. Section 71-0520(5) requires a payable economic benefit portion of the civil penalty which must be paid in full and a gravity portion of the civil penalty which reflects the seriousness of the violation which may be compensated in part by an environmental benefit project. If a respondent intends to deduct the cost of the environmental benefit project from its taxes, an adjustment to the gravity component which reflect the tax benefit must be calculated and included in the penalty. Section 71-0520(6) specifies project completion scheduling requirement s. Section 71-0520(7) requires notice in the environmental notice bulletin and a newspaper in general circulation in the area where the violations occurred at least 45 days before the settlement or order is executed; requires the Attorney General to review and approve the settlement or order; and allows the violator to publicize the environmental benefit project, acknowledging that it was performed in response to an enforcement action brought by the Department.
Read the full memo (654 words)
Justification
There have been instances in the recent past where the Department has approved projects authorized in lieu of monetary penalties which were not appropriate and did not benefit the community where the environmental damage occurred. The Department has proposed guidance which establishes requirements for "environmental benefit projects". This bill establishes many of the guidance elements in law and creates additional or modified requirements. Pollution prevention projects are limited to those which reduce or prevent the generation of pollutants, and do not include actions which improve compliance. This provision will ensure that the pollution prevention project is truly directed at source reduction.
Environmental education projects are directed toward assisting the public in understanding the nature of the industry which caused the violations, how the community was impacted and ways for the community to become more vigilant. This should avoid meaningless public education programs which do little to provide the public with useful information or understanding of the enforcement process.
The settlement must include a fully recoverable economic benefit monetary penalty and a payable portion of the gravity component of the penalty. This provision should assure that a company avoid monetary penalties by creating an environmental benefit project which it claims is equal to the amount of the penalties.
The project should be located in the county where the violation occurred, within twenty-five linear miles of the site of the violation. This should ensure that the communities which suffered the environmental insult will recover some value from the project.
A notice of the proposed settlement must be published in the Environmental Notice Bulletin and in a newspaper in general circulation where the violation occurred at least 45 days before the settlement/order is executed, thereby giving the public an opportunity to review the settlement prior to its adoption. If the violator publicizes the project or project results, the respondent must acknowledge that the project was performed as part of the resolution of an enforcement action brought by the Department.
Prior legislative history
2011-12: S.7558/A.4134 - Died in Environmental Conservation 2009-10: A.1696 Referred to Codes 2007-08: A.877 Referred to Ways and Means 2005-06: A.6258 Reported Referred to Ways and Means
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
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