November 9, 2017, Introduced by Senators BOOHER, ROBERTSON and CASPERSON and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources.
A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
by amending section 1301 (MCL 324.1301), as amended by 2014 PA 215,
and by adding sections 1313 and 1315.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 1301. As used in this part:
(a) "Appeal board" means a committee of the appeal panel,
appointed under section 1315(2).
(b) "Appeal panel" or "panel" means the permit appeal panel
established under section 1313(1).
(c)
(a) "Application period" means the period
beginning when
an application for a permit is received by the state and ending
when the application is considered to be administratively complete
under section 1305 and any applicable fee has been paid.
(d) (b)
"Department" means the
department, agency, or officer
authorized by this act to approve or deny an application for a
particular permit.
(e) (c)
"Director" means the
director of the state department
authorized under this act to approve or deny an application for a
particular permit or the director's designee. However, as used in
sections 1313 and 1315, "director" means the director of the
department of environmental quality or the director's designee.
(f) (d)
"Permit", except as provided in subdivision (g), means
a permit or operating license required by any of the following
sections or by rules promulgated thereunder, or, in the case of
section
9112, by an ordinance adopted thereunder:referred to in
that section:
(i) Section 3104, floodplain alteration permit.
(ii) Section 3503, permit for use of water in mining iron ore.
(iii) Section 4105, sewerage system construction permit.
(iv) Section 6516, vehicle testing license.
(v) Section 6521, motor vehicle fleet testing permit.
(vi) Section 8310, restricted use pesticide dealer license.
(vii) Section 8310a, agricultural pesticide dealer license.
(viii) Section 8504, license to manufacture or distribute
fertilizer.
(ix) Section 9112, local soil erosion and sedimentation
control permit.
(x) Section 11509, solid waste disposal area construction
permit.
(xi) Section 11512, solid waste disposal area operating
license.
(xii) Section 11542, municipal solid waste incinerator ash
landfill operating license amendment.
(xiii) Section 11702, septage waste servicing license or
septage waste vehicle license.
(xiv) Section 11709, septage waste site permit.
(xv) Section 30104, inland lakes and streams project permit.
(xvi) Section 30304, state permit for dredging, filling, or
other activity in wetland. Permit includes an authorization for a
specific project to proceed under a general permit issued under
section 30312.
(xvii) Section 31509, dam construction, repair, or removal
permit.
(xviii) Section 32312, flood risk, high risk, or environmental
area permit.
(xix) Section 32512, permit for dredging and filling
bottomland.
(xx) Section 32603, permit for submerged log removal from
Great Lakes bottomlands.
(xxi) Section 35304, department permit for critical dune area
use.
(xxii) Section 36505, endangered species permit.
(xxiii) Section 41702, game bird hunting preserve license.
(xxiv) Section 42101, dog training area permit.
(xxv) Section 42501, fur dealer's license.
(xxvi) Section 42702, game dealer's license.
(xxvii) Section 44513, charter boat operating permit under
reciprocal agreement.
(xxviii) Section 44516, boat livery operating permit.
(xxix) Section 45503, permit to take frogs for scientific use.
(xxx) Section 45902, game fish propagation license.
(xxxi) Section 45906, game fish import license.
(xxxii) Section 61525, oil or gas well drilling permit.
(xxxiii) Section 62509, brine, storage, or waste disposal well
drilling or conversion permit or test well drilling permit.
(xxxiv) Section 63103a, ferrous mineral mining permit.
(xxxv) Section 63514 or 63525, surface coal mining and
reclamation permit or revision of the permit, respectively.
(xxxvi) Section 63704, sand dune mining permit.
(xxxvii) Section 72108, use permits for a Pure Michigan Trail.
(xxxviii) Section 76109, sunken aircraft or watercraft
abandoned property recovery permit.
(xxxix) Section 76504, Mackinac Island motor vehicle and land
use permits.
(xxxx) Section 80159, buoy or beacon permit.
(g) "Permit", as used in sections 1313 and 1315, means a
permit or operating license issued by the department of
environmental quality under this act.
(h) (e)
"Processing deadline"
means the last day of the
processing period.
(i) (f)
"Processing period" means
the following time period
after the close of the application period, for the following
permit, as applicable:
(i) Twenty days for a permit under section 61525 or 62509.
(ii) Thirty days for a permit under section 9112 or 44516.
(iii) Thirty days after the department consults with the
underwater salvage and preserve committee created under section
76103, for a permit under section 76109.
(iv) Sixty days, for a permit under section 30104 for a minor
project established under section 30105(7) or 32512a(1), or an
authorization for a specific project to proceed under a general
permit issued under section 30105(8) or 32512a(2), or for a permit
under section 32312.
(v) Sixty days or, if a hearing is held, 90 days for a permit
under section 35304.
(vi) Sixty days or, if a hearing is held, 120 days for a
permit under section 30104, other than a permit or authorization
described in subparagraph (ii) or (iv), or for a permit under
section 31509.
(vii) Ninety days for a permit under section 11512, a revision
of a surface coal mining and reclamation permit under section
63525, or a permit under section 72108.
(viii) Ninety days or, if a hearing is held, 150 days for a
permit under section 3104 or 30304, or a permit under section 32512
other than a permit described in subparagraph (iv).
(ix) Ninety days after the close of the review or comment
period under section 32604, or if a public hearing is held, 90 days
after the date of the public hearing for a permit under section
32603.
(x) One hundred twenty days for a permit under section 11509,
11542, 63103a, 63514, or 63704.
(xi) One hundred fifty days for a permit under section 36505.
However, if a site inspection or federal approval is required, the
150-day period is tolled pending completion of the inspection or
receipt of the federal approval.
(xii) For any other permit, 150 days or, if a hearing is held,
90 days after the hearing, whichever is later.
Sec. 1313. (1) A permit appeal panel is established in the
department of environmental quality.
(2) The appeal panel shall consist of 15 individuals,
appointed by the governor. The governor shall appoint the first
panel within 60 days after the effective date of the amendatory act
that added this section. Each member of the panel shall meet all of
the following requirements:
(a) Meet 1 or more of the following:
(i) Hold a current professional engineering, geologist,
hydrologist, or hydrogeologist license or registration from a
state, tribe, or United States territory, or the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, and have the equivalent of 6 years of full-time
relevant experience.
(ii) Have a master's degree from an accredited institution of
higher education in a discipline of engineering or science related
to air or water and the equivalent of 8 years of full-time relevant
experience.
(b) Remain current in his or her field through participation
in continuing education or other activities.
(3) An individual is not eligible to be a member of the panel
if any of the following apply:
(a) The individual is a current employee of any office,
department, or agency of this state.
(b) The individual is a party to 1 or more contracts with the
department of environmental quality and the compensation paid under
those contracts represented more than 5% of the individual's annual
gross income in any of the preceding 3 years.
(c) The individual is employed by an entity that is a party to
1 or more contracts with the department of environmental quality
and the compensation paid to the individual's employer under those
contracts represented more than 5% of the employer's annual gross
revenue in any of the preceding 3 years.
(d) The individual was employed by the department of
environmental quality within the preceding 3 years.
(4) An individual appointed to the appeal panel shall serve
for a term of 4 years, except as provided in this subsection, and
may be reappointed. However, after serving 2 consecutive terms on
the panel, the individual is not eligible to serve on the panel for
2 years. The terms for members first appointed shall be staggered
so that 3 expire in 1 year, 4 expire in 2 years, and 4 expire in 3
years. A vacancy on the panel shall be filled in the same manner as
the original appointment.
(5) The governor may remove a member of the appeal panel for
incompetence, dereliction of duty, malfeasance, misfeasance, or
nonfeasance in office, or any other good cause.
(6) Individuals appointed to the appeal panel shall serve
without compensation. However, members of the panel may be
reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the
performance of their official duties as members of the panel.
(7) The business that the appeal panel may perform shall be
conducted at a public meeting of the panel held in compliance with
the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275.
Sec. 1315. (1) A permit applicant who is aggrieved by the
decision of the department of environmental quality regarding the
approval or denial of a permit application or the content of a
permit may appeal to an appeal board by submitting a petition to
the director. The petition shall include the issues in dispute, the
relevant facts, and any data, analysis, opinion, and supporting
documentation for the petitioner's position. If the director
believes that the dispute may be resolved without convening an
appeal board, the director may contact the petitioner regarding the
issues in dispute and may negotiate a resolution of the dispute.
(2) Unless the dispute is resolved pursuant to subsection (1),
the director shall convene a meeting of an appeal board. The
meeting shall be held within 45 days after the director received
the petition. The appeal board shall consist of 5 members of the
appeal panel selected by the director on the basis of their
relevant expertise. The director may select an alternate member to
replace a member who is unable to participate in the appeal
process. To serve as an appeal board member, an appeal panel member
must submit to the director on a form provided by the department an
agreement not to accept employment from the appellant before 1 year
after a decision is rendered on the matter if gross income from the
employment would exceed 5% of the member's gross income from all
sources in any of the preceding 3 years. The attorney general may
bring an action to enforce the agreement.
(3) The members of the appeal board shall elect a chairperson.
Three members of the appeal board constitute a quorum. A majority
of the votes cast are required for official action of the appeal
board. The business that the appeal board may perform shall be
conducted at a public meeting of the panel held in compliance with
the open meetings act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275.
(4) The director shall provide the appeal board with a copy of
the petition and its supporting documentation and a copy of all
supporting documentation from the department. At the meeting of the
appeal board, representatives of the appellant and the department
shall each be given an opportunity to present their positions.
(5) Within 45 days after hearing the appeal, the appeal board
shall make a decision regarding the petition and provide written
notice of the decision to the director of the department and the
petitioner. The written decision shall include the specific
scientific or technical rationale for the decision. The appeal
board may adopt, modify, or reverse, in whole or in part, the
department's decision that is the subject of the appeal.
(6) Within 60 days after receiving written notice of the
appeal board's decision, the director shall issue a final decision,
in writing, incorporating as necessary the appeal board's decision
into the terms of the permit. If the director fails to issue a
final decision within the time period provided for in this
subsection, the decision of the appeal board shall be considered
the final decision of the director. The final decision of the
director under this subsection is subject to review in the manner
provided in section 631 of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961
PA 236, MCL 600.631.
(7) A member of the appeal panel shall not participate in an
appeal in which that member has a conflict of interest. The
director shall select a member of the appeal panel to replace a
member who has a conflict of interest. For purposes of this
subsection, a member has a conflict of interest if the appellant
has hired that member or the member's employer on any environmental
matter within the preceding 3 years.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.
Enacting section 2. This amendatory act does not take effect
unless all of the following bills of the 99th Legislature are
enacted into law:
(a) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No.____ (request no.
00927'17).
(b) Senate Bill No._654.