February 1, 2007, Introduced by Senators McMANUS, PAPPAGEORGE, CROPSEY, KAHN and KUIPERS and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs.
A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
(MCL 324.101 to 324.90106) by adding part 27.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
PART 27 ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE
Sec. 2701. As used in this part:
(a) "Advisory panel" means the small business environmental
compliance advisory panel created in section 2707.
(b) "Department" means the department of environmental
quality.
(c) "Environmental requirement" means a requirement of a part
of this act administered by the department or a rule promulgated or
order or permit issued thereunder.
(d) "Small business" means a business that meets all of the
following requirements:
(i) Is independently owned and operated.
(ii) Is not dominant in its field of operation as described in
13 CFR 121.102.
(iii) Meets the small business size standards set forth in 13
CFR 121.201.
(e) "Small business environmental compliance assistance
program" or "assistance program" means a program of the department
implementing this part.
(f) "Violation" means a violation of an environmental
requirement.
Sec. 2703. (1) The department shall assist small businesses in
determining both of the following:
(a) Applicable environmental requirements.
(b) The procedures for obtaining permits in an efficient and
timely manner.
(2) The department shall publish 1 or more guides to assist
small businesses in complying with environmental requirements. The
department shall designate the publications as small business
compliance guides. The department shall cooperate with associations
of small businesses to develop and distribute the guides. Each
guide shall do all of the following:
(a) Cover a group or class of similarly affected small
businesses. By April 30, 2008, the department shall develop a plan
to develop and a schedule to complete small business compliance
guides. A guide shall be completed for the fruit and vegetable
processing sector by September 30, 2008.
(b) Explain the actions a small business in that group or
class is required to take to comply with environmental
requirements.
(c) Use plain language likely to be understood by affected
small businesses.
(3) Beginning in 2008, the department shall publish at least 2
guides annually until all the guides necessary to satisfy the
requirements of subsection (2) are published. The department shall
reevaluate a guide every 5 years after publication and revise the
guide if necessary. Not less than 30 days before publishing a guide
or revised guide, the department shall submit a copy of the
proposed guide to the advisory panel for review and comment.
(4) In any civil or administrative action against a small
business for a violation occurring after the effective date of this
section, the content of a relevant small business compliance guide
may be considered as evidence of the reasonableness or
appropriateness of any proposed sanctions.
Sec. 2705. (1) Subject to subsection (3), the department shall
waive civil fines and other civil sanctions assessed against a
small business for a violation if the small business meets all of
the following requirements:
(a) The small business discloses the violation to the
department within 21 days after the small business discovers the
violation. The small business may request an extension of this
deadline from the director.
(b) The disclosure is voluntary. Voluntary disclosure does not
include either of the following:
(i) Disclosure of a monitoring or sampling result if the
disclosure is required by a law, permit, judicial or administrative
order, or consent agreement.
(ii) Disclosure of a violation discovered through an
information request or inspection or reported by a member of the
public.
(c) The small business corrects the violation promptly and
within 180 days after disclosure or, if the correction includes
pollution prevention changes, within 360 days after disclosure. If
the violation is failure to obtain a permit, the violation is
considered to be corrected when the small business submits an
administratively complete permit application.
(2) Subject to subsection (3), if the requirements of
subsection (1)(a) to (c) are met, but the violation resulted in a
substantial economic benefit giving the small business a clear
advantage over its business competitors, the department shall waive
civil fines and other civil sanctions assessed against the small
business to the extent that the amount of the fines and the likely
costs to the small business of the other civil sanctions exceed the
amount of the economic benefit.
(3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply if any of the
following apply:
(a) The violation caused actual serious harm to public health,
safety, or the environment.
(b) The violation may present an imminent and substantial
endangerment to public health, safety, or the environment.
(c) The facility has received a warning letter or notice of
violation, or has been subject to a citizen suit, for a violation
of the same environmental requirement within the past 3 years.
(d) The facility has been the subject of 2 or more enforcement
actions, for violations in the past 5 years.
Sec. 2707. (1) The small business environmental compliance
advisory panel is created within the department.
(2) The advisory panel shall be broadly representative of
regulated small businesses. The advisory panel shall consist of all
of the following:
(a) The members of the small business clean air compliance
advisory panel created in section 5708.
(b) Four additional members appointed by the governor.
(3) A member of the advisory panel appointed under subsection
(2)(b) shall serve for a term of 4 years, or until a successor is
appointed, whichever is later. However, of the members first
appointed under subsection (2)(b), 1 member shall serve for a term
of 3 years, 1 member for a term of 2 years, and 1 member for a term
of 1 year.
(4) If a vacancy occurs on the advisory panel among the
members appointed under subsection (2)(b), the governor shall make
an appointment for the unexpired term.
(5) The first meeting of the advisory panel shall be called by
the chairperson of the small business clean air compliance advisory
panel within 90 days of the appointment of all advisory panel
members under subsection (2)(b). At the first meeting, the advisory
panel shall elect from among its members a chairperson and other
officers as it considers necessary or appropriate.
(6) A majority of the members of the advisory panel
constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business at a meeting
of the advisory panel. A majority of the members present and
serving are required for official action of the advisory panel.
(7) Members of the advisory panel shall serve without
compensation. However, members of the advisory panel may be
reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the
performance of their official duties as members of the advisory
panel.
Sec. 2709. The advisory panel shall do all of the following:
(a) Consult with the small business clean air ombudsman
appointed under section 5703 and the head of the small business
environmental compliance assistance program to plan the work of the
panel, including the frequency of meetings, agenda items, and
reports to be issued by the panel.
(b) Prepare advisory reports concerning all of the following:
(i) The difficulties encountered by small business in the
enforcement of environmental requirements and the degree and
severity of that enforcement.
(ii) The average costs of different sectors of small businesses
in complying with environmental requirements of this state.
(iii) The effectiveness of the assistance program.
(iv) The costs of operating the assistance program.
(c) Review information prepared by the assistance program for
small businesses to ensure that the information is in plain
language likely to be understood by affected small businesses.
(d) Utilize the assistance program staff to act as staff to
develop and disseminate the work product of the advisory panel.
(e) Provide to the governor, the clerk of the house of
representatives, the secretary of the senate, and the department of
labor and economic growth copies of advisory reports prepared by
the advisory panel. In addition, the reports shall be made
available to any other person upon request and shall be published
on the department's website.
Sec. 2711. (1) Any record or other information prepared,
owned, used, in the possession of, or retained by the assistance
program that concerns assistance program inquiries, disclosures, or
activities and that identifies or describes an individual facility
or operation is confidential and exempt from disclosure under the
freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246,
unless the record or other information is relevant to an existing
clear and immediate danger to the public health or environment.
(2) By July 1 of each year, beginning in 2008, the department
shall report to the governor, the clerk of the house of
representatives, the secretary of the senate, and the chairpersons
of the senate and house of representatives standing committees on
appropriations. The report shall contain, but not be limited to,
all of the following for the immediately preceding calendar year:
(a) The number and types of inquiries the assistance program
received.
(b) The services provided by the assistance program.
(c) The number of small businesses that voluntarily disclosed
violations.
Sec. 2712. This part does not affect the rights, privileges,
and immunities provided by part 148.