Connecticut 2010 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB05477 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5477
2	2	February Session, 2010 LCO No. 2080
3	3	02080_______PH_
4	4	Referred to Committee on Public Health
5	5	Introduced by:
6	6	(PH )
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8	8	General Assembly
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10	10	Raised Bill No. 5477
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12	12	February Session, 2010
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14	14	LCO No. 2080
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16	16	02080_______PH_
17	17
18	18	Referred to Committee on Public Health
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20	20	Introduced by:
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22	22	(PH )
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24	24	AN ACT CONCERNING THE CLEAN WATER ACT AND STREAM FLOW REGULATIONS.
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26	26	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
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28	28	Section 1. Subsection (g) of section 22a-430 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
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30	30	(g) (1) The commissioner shall, by regulation adopted prior to October 1, 1977, establish and define categories of discharges which constitute household and small commercial subsurface disposal systems for which he shall delegate to the Commissioner of Public Health the authority to issue permits or approvals and to hold public hearings in accordance with this section, on and after said date. The Commissioner of Public Health shall, pursuant to section 19a-36, establish minimum requirements for household and small commercial subsurface disposal systems and procedures for the issuance of such permits or approvals by the local director of health or a sanitarian registered pursuant to chapter 395. As used in this subsection, small commercial disposal systems shall include those subsurface disposal systems with a capacity of five thousand gallons per day or less. Any permit denied by the Commissioner of Public Health, or a director of health or registered sanitarian shall be subject to hearing and appeal in the manner provided in section 19a-229. Any permit granted by said Commissioner of Public Health, or a director of health or registered sanitarian on or after October 1, 1977, shall be deemed equivalent to a permit issued under subsection (b) of this section.
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32	32	(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section and any regulations adopted thereunder, the Commissioner of Public Health shall not require the periodic inspection or pumping of septic tanks or subsurface sewage disposal systems with a capacity of five thousand gallons per day or less, provided such septic tanks or subsurface sewage disposal systems are owned or operated by persons possessing valid permits to discharge. Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent said commissioner from investigating, inspecting or requiring the pumping of such septic tanks or subsurface sewage disposal systems in order to address a specific public health concern or in response to a complaint about a specific septic tank or subsurface sewage disposal system.
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34	34	Sec. 2. (Effective from passage) (a) Not later than January 1, 2011, the Department of Environmental Protection, in consultation with the Department of Public Health, shall complete a study of all basins in the state using the methodology developed by the Institute of Water Resources at The University of Connecticut. The study shall: (1) Review anticipated changes in such basins as a result of flow regulations adopted pursuant to section 26-141a or 26-141b of the general statutes; (2) identify rivers and streams that may incur impaired flows as a result of such flow regulations; and (3) assess the impact of such flow regulations on public water supply systems. Upon completion of the study, the Department of Environmental Protection shall conduct a public hearing for the purposes of considering input from stakeholders in communities that would be affected by changes in such basins and establishing priorities for compliance with such regulations. Such public hearing shall be conducted not later than May 1, 2011.
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36	36	(b) Not later than March 1, 2011, the Commissioner of Public Health shall review the study conducted pursuant to subsection (a) of this section to determine if the enforcement of flow regulations adopted pursuant to section 26-141a or 26-141b of the general statutes would jeopardize any public water supply system's ability to meet its public health obligations. If the commissioner determines that a public water supply system's ability to meet its public health obligations would be jeopardized by the enforcement of such regulations, such system's water supplier shall not be required to comply with such flow regulations until the commissioner, in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, has developed a plan to preserve the yield level of the public water supply system. Such plan shall consider: (1) The water supplier's plans for conservation programs; (2) the available options and time required to obtain approvals for additional water supply sources or interconnections; and (3) whether a modified release requirement would be appropriate for the water supplier to allow such water supplier to meet the flow regulations adopted pursuant to section 26-141a or 26-141b of the general statutes. Such plan shall be developed not later than September 1, 2011.
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38	38	(c) The Department of Environmental Protection shall, prior to submitting proposed regulations concerning flow of river and stream systems to the standing legislative regulation review committee, submit such proposed regulations to the Department of Public Utility Control. Not later than sixty days after the receipt of such proposed regulations, the Department of Public Utility Control shall initiate a docket to examine the potential impact of such flow regulations on water company ratepayers. Such an examination shall include, but not be limited to, an assessment of: (1) The ability of public service companies to comply with the regulations; (2) appropriate ratemaking mechanisms to recover costs incurred for compliance with such flow regulations; (3) the impact on the initiation or completion of other infrastructure projects; (4) the impact on compliance with state and federal water quality regulations; (5) how ratemaking can be modified to encourage conservation; and (6) mechanisms for funding or assisting in funding compliance with such flow regulations in a manner equitable to all water users in the state. Upon initiation of the docket, the department shall provide public notice for interested parties to submit recommendations on the report contents and criteria, with a deadline for submissions not later than ninety days after initiation of such docket. The department may hold a hearing on the docket but shall issue a decision on the docket not later than one hundred eighty days after the deadline for interested parties to submit their recommendations on the report contents and criteria.
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43	43	This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
44	44	Section 1 from passage 22a-430(g)
45	45	Sec. 2 from passage New section
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47	47	This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
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49	49	Section 1
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51	51	from passage
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53	53	22a-430(g)
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55	55	Sec. 2
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57	57	from passage
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59	59	New section
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61	61	Statement of Purpose:
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63	63	To prohibit the Department of Public Health from requiring septic tanks and subsurface sewage disposal systems to be inspected or pumped at regular intervals, to require the Department of Environmental Protection to conduct a study of basins in the state to assess the impact by proposed stream flow regulations, to require the Commissioner of Public Health to examine the impact of stream flow regulations on public water supplies, and to require the Department of Public Utility Control to initiate a docket to examine the potential impact of stream flow regulations on water company ratepayers.
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65	65	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]