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OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 6744
AN ACT CONCERNING COMPENSATORY REFORESTATION
PLANS, THE CONSTRUCTION OF NOISE BARRIERS, DECIBEL
TESTING FOR MOTOR VEHICLES AND IDLING MOTOR VEHICLES.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes various initiatives to address transportation-
related noise and the loss of trees along state highways.
Beginning July 1, 2024, the bill requires the Department of
Transportation (DOT) to annually develop and submit to the
Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) for
approval, a plan for compensatory (“no net less”) reforestation for all
DOT-owned and -maintained areas of at least half an acre that are
scheduled for deforestation. It also requires DOT to develop and
implement a program to provide for building noise barriers along
existing highways under federal law.
The bill requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to
establish a one-year pilot program to test a vehicle’s maximum decibel
level during an emissions inspection. And it extends two related
deadlines for the DMV commissioner to:
1. submit to the General Assembly an implementation plan, as well
as legislation and funding recommendations, for a statewide
decibel level testing program at official emissions inspection
stations, from January 1, 2023, to October 1, 2023 (§ 4); and
2. with the advice of DEEP, amend current regulations setting
maximum vehicle decibel levels and related testing procedures
and submit them to the Regulation Review Committee, from
January 1, 2024, to October 1, 2024 (§ 5). 2023HB-06744-R000456-BA.DOCX
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The bill authorizes a municipality, by ordinance, to establish a fine of
up to $90 for violating the vehicle idling ban. It also makes minor and
technical changes, including adding a missing statutory reference on
unregistered vehicle citations (§ 7).
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2023, except the provisions on
submitting the results of the (1) priority ranking system and list (§ 3)
and (2) plan for a statewide decibel level testing program (§ 4) are
effective upon passage, and the provision on amending vehicle decibel
level regulations (§ 5) is effective July 1, 2023.
§ 1 — COMPENSATORY REFORES TATION (“NO NET LOSS”)
DOT’s reforestation plan must set a goal of no net loss of existing
forested areas based on a reasonable and practical tree replacement
factor developed under regulations that the bill requires DEEP to adopt.
Once submitted, the plan must be approved by DEEP before DOT can
begin deforestation projects.
The bill requires each reforestation plan to include appropriate and
approved methods for planting, protecting, caring for, and managing
trees and other related natural resources. They also must provide a
specified order of priority for planting locations, where DEEP and DOT
proceed through the list until a suitable site is found, as described below.
Required Reforestation Plan Regulations
Under the bill, DEEP must adopt regulations to develop plan
requirements that specify the order of priority for planting, use of native
species, the shape and configuration of reforested areas, tree density,
and planting distance. More specifically, if DEEP and DOT determine
that it is unfeasible to conduct the required tree-planting efforts on the
deforested site, then the departments must determine the feasibility of
planting according to the following specified order of priority, until a
suitable location is found:
1. on state property within the municipality where the
deforestation occurred;
2. on municipally owned property (including parks, streets, 2023HB-06744-R000456-BA.DOCX
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schools, municipal facilities, open space, and recreational areas)
where the deforestation occurred, as long as the municipality
agrees;
3. within 5 miles of the deforestation, including on property owned
or maintained by a state agency or another municipality, as long
as the agency or municipality agrees; and
4. on an off-site property owned or maintained by a state agency,
as long as the agency agrees.
The bill defines “state agency” as any office, department, board,
council, commission, institution, constituent unit of higher education,
technical education and career school, or other agency in the three
branches of state government. The regulations must also require:
1. that the reforested area’s shape or configuration be substantially
similar to the deforested area’s shape or configuration;
2. tree replacement to be based on accepted forestry research and
practices that show the average tree density in urban areas is 204
trees per acre of tree cover and determined by the tree
replacement factor (TRF), as follows:
a. 204 nursery-grown trees with a 2”-2 ½” diameter per acre;
b. 408 container-grown trees that are four to six feet tall and
with at least a 1 ½” diameter per acre; or
c. 1,210 tree seedlings per acre;
3. seedlings to be planted six to 10 feet apart, or at a distance
mutually agreed to by DEEP and DOT;
4. use of native species when practicable;
5. planting seedlings that are most suitable for the site;
6. choosing the species of nursery- and container-grown trees based
on the plan and the American Horticulture Industry 2023HB-06744-R000456-BA.DOCX
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Association’s established standards; and
7. that similar tree species are not more than 30% of plantings to
reduce the risk of widespread tree loss to single insect and
disease infestation.
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA)
As part of DOT’s plan, the bill requires the department to enter into
an MOA with DEEP to reimburse DEEP for the actual labor hours
attributable to reviewing and implementing DOT’s compensatory
reforestation plans. In the MOA, DEEP and DOT may agree that, if a
plan’s required reforestation cannot be accomplished for a DOT-
commenced project, then DOT must pay the value of the required trees,
under the regulations and the approved plan, to be deposited in a DEEP-
controlled account for reforestation.
§§ 2 & 3 — NOISE BARRIER PROGRA M
The bill requires DOT to develop and implement a Type II (i.e.,
retrofit; see BACKGROUND ) program under federal law to provide for
building noise barriers along an existing highway by:
1. conducting a state-wide evaluation of the feasibility and
reasonableness of building noise barriers for Type II projects and
identifying the benefits, length, location, and approximate
associated construction costs; and
2. establishing a priority rating system to rank projects and
establish a priority list.
By February 1, 2024, DOT must submit the evaluation’s results, a
description of the priority ranking system, and a copy of the priority list
to the Transportation Committee.
§§ 6 & 7 — MUNICIPAL ENFORCEMEN T OF IDLING VIOLATIONS
The bill authorizes municipal legislative bodies to adopt an ordinance
that sets a fine up to $90 for violating the vehicle idling ban (see
BACKGROUND) . Any police officer or other person authorized by the
municipality’s chief executive may issue a citation to a violator. Under 2023HB-06744-R000456-BA.DOCX
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the bill, a municipality that adopts an idling ordinance must also adopt
a citation hearing procedure for imposing fines. Fines collected by the
municipality must be deposited into its general fund or in any special
fund it designates.
State regulations prohibit “mobile sources,” which includes cars,
buses, trucks, and tractors, from idling for more than three minutes
(except in certain instances). Since there is no specific penalty for this
violation, DEEP must use its general enforcement powers, which call for
a fine of up to $25,000 a day (or up to one year in jail) for first-time
offenders. However, the penalty cannot be imposed unless the offender
violates the law knowingly or with criminal negligence (CGS § 22a-175).
§ 8 — DECIBEL LEVEL TESTING PILOT
From October 1, 2023, until October 1, 2024, the bill requires the DMV
to establish a pilot program at five selected official emission inspection
stations. The program must test different methodologies for inspecting
the maximum decibel level produced by a motor vehicle during an
emission inspection, which may not exceed the levels established in
statute and any adopted regulations (ranging from 72 to 92 decibels
depending on the vehicle’s speed, weight, and the road surface) (Conn.
Agencies Regs., § 14-80a-4a). Under the bill, the different methodologies
used must reflect industry standards and advancements in technology.
By January 1, 2025, the DMV must submit a report to the
Appropriations, Finance, Revenue and Bonding, and Transportation
committees on the pilot’s implementation, the results of the different
methodologies used, and recommendations for a state-wide decibel
level testing program (see also § 4).
BACKGROUND
Use of Noise Barriers
State and federal regulation and policy separate noise barriers into
two types, based on whether they are associated with an existing or new
source of noise. Noise barriers are required under federal regulations to
mitigate increased traffic noise exceeding allowable levels resulting
from new highway or bridge construction or reconstruction (i.e., Type I 2023HB-06744-R000456-BA.DOCX
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projects). The federal government generally pays most of the noise
barrier costs as part of the approved project. Federal regulations allow
federal funds to be used for retrofitting an area with noise barriers (i.e.,
Type II projects) if a state adopts a Type II program that includes a
federally approved priority ranking system. In practice, however,
federal funds are rarely made available for these projects (23 C.F.R.
772.7).
Exceptions to the Idling Ban
A car, truck, or motor bus may idle for more than three consecutive
minutes only when:
1. it must remain motionless because of traffic conditions or
mechanical difficulties over which the operator has no control;
2. it is necessary to operate defrosting, heating, or cooling
equipment to ensure the health or safety of the driver and
passengers;
3. it is necessary to operate auxiliary equipment located in or on the
vehicle to accomplish its intended use;
4. it is necessary to bring the vehicle to the manufacturer’s
recommended operating temperature;
5. the outdoor temperature is below 20 degrees Fahrenheit;
6. maintenance or inspection requires the vehicle to be operated for
more than three consecutive minutes; or
7. it is waiting in line to gain access to a U.S. military installation
(Conn. Agencies Regs., § 22a-174-18(b)(3)(C)).
COMMITTEE ACTION
Transportation Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 31 Nay 5 (03/17/2023)