File No. 127

Senate, March 25, 2008

The Committee on Energy and Technology reported through SEN. FONFARA, J. of the 1st Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2008) (a) As used in this section:

(1) "Environmental justice" means the equal protection and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race, ethnicity or income, in the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies;

(2) "Environmental justice community" means a United States census tract, as determined in accordance with the most recent United States census (A) for which fifty per cent or more of the population consists of low income persons who are not institutionalized and have an income below two hundred per cent of the federal poverty level, or (B) an environmentally stressed community, as defined in subdivision (3) of this subsection;

(3) "Environmentally stressed community" means a United States census tract in which three or more affecting facilities are located within a one-mile radius or in which a limited access highway and two or more affecting facilities are located within one-half mile; and

(4) "Affecting facilities" means electric generating facilities, sludge or solid waste incinerators or combustors, sewage treatment plants with a capacity of more than fifty gallons per day, intermediate processing centers, volume reduction facilities, multitown recycling facilities, active landfills, asphalt and concrete batching facilities, major sources of air pollution, as defined by the federal Clean Air Act, and sources with air emissions that exceed the federal Toxic Release Inventory reporting threshold pursuant to the federal Emergency Planning, Community Right-to-Know and Pollution Prevention Act, as defined on January 1, 2007.

(b) (1) Not later than January 1, 2010, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Public Utility Control and the Connecticut Siting Council shall each adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, that describe the departments' or council's procedures concerning the consideration of environmental and health effects of all affecting facilities located within one mile of a proposed new or expanded affecting facility in an environmental justice community or an environmentally stressed community, when granting licenses, permits or authorizations or in other decision-making processes that relate to the proposed new or expanded affecting facility. Such procedures shall include, but not be limited to, enhanced public notification and outreach to increase public participation, requirements for negotiated environmental benefits to environmental justice community residents and enhanced enforcement of environmental laws and regulations for new and existing facilities in environmental justice communities and environmentally stressed communities.

(2) Not later than January 1, 2010, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Public Utility Control, and the Department of Transportation shall each adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 of the general statutes, describing actions each department shall take to identify opportunities and take appropriate action to encourage investments, remediation and redevelopment in environmental justice communities and environmentally stressed communities, provided such communities have adopted a local plan of development that is consistent with the state plan of conservation and development. Any inconsistency between a local plan of development and the state plan of conservation and development shall not render a municipality or project ineligible to receive state funds for the purposes of encouraging investments, remediation and redevelopment.

The following fiscal impact statement and bill analysis are prepared for the benefit of members of the General Assembly, solely for the purpose of information, summarization, and explanation, and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose:

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact:

Note: CC&PUCF=Consumer Counsel and Public Utility Control Fund

Municipal Impact: None

Explanation

This bill requires the Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC) to adopt two types of regulations: 1) regulations and procedures for considering the environmental and health effects in the construction of new or expansion of existing specific facilities located in environmental justice communities and environmentally stressed communities; 2) regulations that require DPUC to describe what actions they will take to encourage redevelopment in the specified areas.

These types of regulations are outside the subject matter expertise of the agency. DPUC would need to hire an Environmental Analyst II, at a salary of approximately $61,000¹, to research and write the regulations.

The Out Years

The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to inflation.



OLR Bill Analysis

SB 118

AN ACT CONCERNING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.

SUMMARY:

This bill requires that the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC), and Siting Council each adopt regulations that describe its procedures for considering the environmental and health effects of its permitting and other decision-making processes for construction or expansion of certain facilities located in areas with concentrated poverty or that already have several of these facilities.

The bill also requires DEP, DPUC, and the Department of Transportation to adopt regulations describing actions they will take to identify opportunities and take appropriate action to encourage investments, remediation, and redevelopment in these areas, provided these communities (presumably the municipalities in which they are located) have adopted local plans of development consistent with the state Plan of Conservation and Development. But, an inconsistency among the plans does not make a municipality or project ineligible to receive state funds for encouraging investments, remediation, or redevelopment. All of the agencies the bill requires to adopt regulations must do so by January 1, 2010.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2008

CONSIDERING ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH EFFECTS IN DECISION MAKING

The bill requires DEP, DPUC, and the Siting Council to adopt regulations that describe their procedures for considering the environmental and health effects of all existing facilities located within one mile of a proposed new or expanded facility in a covered area when they make a licensing, permitting, authorizing, or other decision about the facility. The bill applies to decisions made about the following types of facilities:

1. power plants;

2. sludge and solid waste incinerators or combustors;

3. sewage treatment plants with a capacity over 50 gallons per day;

4. four types of solid waste facilities (intermediate processing centers, volume reduction facilities, multi-town recycling facilities, and active landfills);

5. asphalt and concrete batching facilities;

6. major sources of pollution under the Clean Air Act (e. g., large factories); and

7. sources emitting toxic substances in an amount subject to reporting requirements under the federal Community Right to Know Act.

The bill applies to two types of areas. The first type is “environmentally stressed communities” defined as census tracts that have (1) three or more of these facilities in a one-mile radius or (2) two of these facilities and a limited access highway within one-half mile. The second type of area is “environmental justice communities,” which include (1) environmentally stressed communities and (2) other census tracts where half or more of the people not in institutions have incomes below 200% of the federal poverty level.

The regulations must describe how the agency addresses the environmental and health effects of all existing facilities located within one mile of a proposed new or expanded facility located in one of these areas. The procedures contained in the regulations must at least provide for (1) enhanced public notification and outreach to increase public participation, (2) requirements for negotiated environmental benefits to residents of the affected areas, and (3) enhanced enforcement of environmental laws and regulations for new and existing facilities in these areas.

BACKGROUND

Related Bill

HB 5145, reported favorably by the Environment Committee, is nearly identical to this bill.

COMMITTEE ACTION

Energy and Technology Committee

Joint Favorable

¹ The total fiscal impact of $102,000 for FY09 includes the base salary, fringe benefits and other expenses associated with a new hire.