| Summary |
Section 1 of the bill increases the percent of appropriated funds
that the department of public health and environment (department) may
use for the administration and management of the public water systems
and domestic wastewater treatment works grant program from 5% to
10%.
Section 3 modifies the composition of the water quality control
commission (commission) by requiring that:
•
No more than 5 members of the commission be affiliated
with the same political party; and
•
The commission include members with specific types of
expertise, including expertise in areas of science and
environmental law or policy or areas such as municipal
water or wastewater treatment, industry, or labor.
Section 4 requires the commission, on or before October 31, 2025,
and after engaging in stakeholder outreach, to set the following fees by
rule:
•
Drinking water fees assessed on public water systems;
•
Commerce and industry sector permitting fees;
•
Construction sector permitting fees;
•
Pesticide sector permitting fees;
•
Public and private utilities sector permitting fees;
•
Municipal separate storm sewer systems sector permit fees;
•
Review fees for requests for certification under section 401
of the federal Clean Water Act;
•
Preliminary effluent limitation determination fees;
•
Wastewater site application and design review fees;
•
On-site wastewater treatment system fees; and
•
Biosolids management program fees.
The commission's fee-setting rules must become effective on or
before January 1, 2026, and the commission may by rule authorize the
division to phase in the fee-setting rules.
Section 4 also creates the clean water cash fund into which the
fees collected under the commission's rules, other than the drinking water
fees assessed on public water systems, are credited.
The statutory fee provisions in sections 2, 5, 6, and 8 repeal on
July 1, 2026. Before the repeal, the state treasurer is required to transfer
any money remaining in the various funds into which the statutory fees
are credited to the clean water cash fund; except that section 2 specifies
that drinking water fees will continue to be credited to the drinking water
cash fund and that any money in the drinking water cash fund will remain
in that cash fund.
Section 7 repeals the division's regulatory authority concerning
nuclear and radioactive wastes.
Section 9 requires the division to include, in its annual reporting
to the commission and the general assembly, information on:
•
The division's implementation and enforcement of the
discharge permitting program (program);
•
For reports submitted before October 1, 2025, the division's
fee revenue and direct and indirect costs associated with
the program; and
•
For the report submitted in 2025, the fee structure set forth
in the commission's proposed or adopted fee-setting rules.
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