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1995 SESSION


CHAPTER 158
An Act to amend and reenact § 10.1-1322 of the Code of Virginia, relating to air pollution permit fees.
[S 931]
Approved March 10, 1995

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 10.1-1322 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 10.1-1322. Permits.

A. Pursuant to regulations adopted by the Board, permits may be issued, amended, revoked or terminated and reissued by the Department and may be enforced under the provisions of this chapter in the same manner as regulations and orders. Failure to comply with any condition of a permit shall be considered a violation of this chapter and investigations and enforcement actions may be pursued in the same manner as is done with regulations and orders of the Board under the provisions of this chapter.

B. The Board by regulation may prescribe and provide for the payment and collection of annual permit program fees for air pollution sources. Annual permit program fees shall not be collected until (i) the federal Environmental Protection Agency approves the Board's operating permit program established pursuant to Title V of the federal Clean Air Act or (ii) the governor determines that such fees are needed earlier to maintain primacy over the program. The annual fees shall be based on the actual emissions (as calculated or estimated) of each regulated pollutant, as defined in § 502 of the federal Clean Air Act, in tons per year, not to exceed 4,000 tons per year of each pollutant for each source. The annual permit program fees shall not exceed a base year amount of twenty-five dollars per ton using 1990 as the base year, and shall be adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index as described in § 502 of the federal Clean Air Act. Permit program fees for air pollution sources who receive state operating permits in lieu of Title V operating permits shall be paid in the first year and thereafter shall be paid biennially. The fees shall approximate the direct and indirect costs of administering and enforcing the permit program, and of administering the small business stationary source technical and environmental compliance assistance program as required by the federal Clean Air Act. The fees shall be exempt from statewide indirect costs charged and collected by the Department of Accounts.

C. When adopting regulations for permit program fees for air pollution sources, the Board shall take into account the permit fees charged in neighboring states and the importance of not placing existing or prospective industry in the Commonwealth at a competitive disadvantage.

D. On January 1, 1993, and December 1 of every even-numbered year thereafter, the Department shall make an evaluation of the implementation of the permit fee program and provide this evaluation in writing to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources, the Senate Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Appropriations, the House Committee on Conservation and Natural Resources and the House Committee on Finance. This evaluation shall include a report on the total fees collected, the amount of general funds allocated to the Department, the Department's use of the fees and the general funds, the number of permit applications received, the number of permits issued, the progress in eliminating permit backlogs, and the timeliness of permit processing.

E. To the extent allowed by federal law and regulations, priority for utilization of permit fees shall be given to cover the costs of processing permit applications in order to more efficiently issue permits.

F. Fees collected pursuant to this section shall not supplant or reduce in any way the general fund appropriation to the Department.

G. The permit fees shall apply to permit programs in existence on July 1, 1992, any additional permit programs which may be required by the federal government and administered by the Board, or any new permit program required by the Code of Virginia.

H. The permit program fee regulations promulgated pursuant to this section shall not become effective until July 1, 1993.

I. (Effective until July 1, 1996) Beginning December 1, 1994, prior to the beginning of each fiscal year, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources, the Senate Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Conservation and Natural Resources and the House Committee on Finance shall review the amount the Department recommends be collected with annual permit program fees and the charge to be levied on each ton of applicable pollutant. The provisions of this subsection shall expire on July 1, 1996.