Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
Public Act No. 23-108
AN ACT ESTABLISHING LOCAL REPRESENTATION ON THE
CONNECTICUT SITING COUNCIL FOR LOCAL PROJECTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 16-50j of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023):
(a) There is established a "Connecticut Siting Council", hereinafter
referred to as the "council", which shall be within the Department of
Energy and Environmental Protection for administrative purposes only.
(b) Except for proceedings under chapter 445, this subsection and
subsection (c) of this section, the council shall consist of: (1) The
Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, or his
designee; (2) the chairperson of the Public Utilities Regulatory
Authority, or the chairperson's designee; (3) one designee of the speaker
of the House and one designee of the president pro tempore of the
Senate; and (4) five members of the public, to be appointed by the
Governor, at least two of whom shall be experienced in the field of
ecology, and not more than one of whom shall have affiliation, past or
present, with any utility or governmental utility regulatory agency, or
with any person owning, operating, controlling, or presently
contracting with respect to a facility, a hazardous waste facility, as Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
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defined in section 22a-115, or an ash residue disposal area.
(c) For proceedings under chapter 445, subsection (b) of this section
and this subsection, the council shall consist of (1) the Commissioners of
Public Health and Emergency Services and Public Protection or their
designated representatives; (2) the designees of the speaker of the House
of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate as
provided in subsection (b) of this section; (3) the five members of the
public as provided in subsection (b) of this section; and (4) four ad hoc
members, three of whom shall be electors from the municipality in
which the proposed facility is to be located and one of whom shall be an
elector from a neighboring municipality likely to be most affected by the
proposed facility. The municipality most affected by the proposed
facility shall be determined by the permanent members of the council.
If any one of the five members of the public or of the designees of the
speaker of the House of Representatives or the president pro tempore of
the Senate resides (A) in the municipality in which a hazardous waste
facility is proposed to be located for a proceeding concerning a
hazardous waste facility or in which a low-level radioactive waste
facility is proposed to be located for a proceeding concerning a low-level
radioactive waste facility, or (B) in the neighboring municipality likely
to be most affected by the proposed facility, the appointing authority
shall appoint a substitute member for the proceedings on such proposal.
If any appointee is unable to perform his duties on the council due to
illness, or has a substantial financial or employment interest which is in
conflict with the proper discharge of his duties under this chapter, the
appointing authority shall appoint a substitute member for proceedings
on such proposal. An appointee shall report any substantial financial or
employment interest which might conflict with the proper discharge of
his duties under this chapter to the appointing authority who shall
determine if such conflict exists. If any state agency is the applicant, an
appointee shall not be deemed to have a substantial employment
conflict of interest because of employment with the state unless such Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
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appointee is directly employed by the state agency making the
application. Ad hoc members shall be appointed by the chief elected
official of the municipality they represent and shall continue their
membership until the council issues a letter of completion of the
development and management plan to the applicant.
(d) For any proceeding that occurs on or after the effective date of this
section, in addition to the membership provided for in subsection (b) or
(c) of this section, as applicable, the council shall consist of one elector
from the municipality in which such facility is proposed to be located,
as appointed by the chief elected official of such municipality. In the
event that such facility will be located in two or more municipalities,
one such elector shall be appointed by the applicable regional council of
governments for the affected municipalities. Each such member shall
serve as a nonvoting member for purposes of such proceeding and shall
abide by all applicable rules of confidentiality concerning such
proceeding.
[(d)] (e) The chairman of the council shall be appointed by the
Governor from among the five public members appointed by him, with
the advice and consent of the House or Senate, and shall serve as
chairman at the pleasure of the Governor.
[(e)] (f) The public members of the council, including the chairman,
the members appointed by the speaker of the House and president pro
tempore of the Senate and the four ad hoc members specified in
subsection (c) of this section, shall be compensated for their attendance
at public hearings, executive sessions, or other council business as may
require their attendance at the rate of two hundred dollars, provided in
no case shall the daily compensation exceed two hundred dollars.
[(f)] (g) The council shall, in addition to its other duties prescribed in
this chapter, adopt, amend, or rescind suitable regulations to carry out
the provisions of this chapter and the policies and practices of the Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
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council in connection therewith, and appoint and prescribe the duties of
such staff as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.
The chairman of the council, with the consent of five or more other
members of the council, may appoint an executive director, who shall
be the chief administrative officer of the Connecticut Siting Council. The
executive director shall be exempt from classified service.
[(g)] (h) Prior to commencing any hearing pursuant to section 16-50m,
the council shall consult with and solicit written comments from (1) the
Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Department
of Public Health, the Council on Environmental Quality, the
Department of Agriculture, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority,
the Office of Policy and Management, the Department of Economic and
Community Development and the Department of Transportation, and
(2) in a hearing pursuant to section 16-50m, for a facility described in
subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 16-50i, the Department of
Emergency Services and Public Protection, the Department of
Administrative Services and the Labor Department. Copies of such
comments shall be made available to all parties prior to the
commencement of the hearing. Subsequent to the commencement of the
hearing, said departments and council may file additional written
comments with the council within such period of time as the council
designates. All such written comments shall be made part of the record
provided by section 16-50o. Said departments and council shall not
enter any contract or agreement with any party to the proceedings or
hearings described in this section or section 16-50p that requires said
departments or council to withhold or retract comments, refrain from
participating in or withdraw from said proceedings or hearings.
Sec. 2. Subsection (b) of section 16-50l of the general statutes is
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October
1, 2023):
(b) Each application shall be accompanied by proof of service of a Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
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copy of such application on: (1) Each municipality in which any portion
of such facility is to be located, both as primarily proposed and in the
alternative locations listed, and any adjoining municipality having a
boundary not more than two thousand five hundred feet from such
facility, which copy shall be served on the chief executive officer of each
such municipality and shall include notice of the date on or about which
the application is to be filed, and the zoning commissions, planning
commissions, planning and zoning commissions, conservation
commissions and inland wetlands agencies of each such municipality,
and the regional councils of governments which encompass each such
municipality; (2) the Attorney General; (3) each member of the
legislature in whose assembly or senate district the facility or any
alternative location listed in the application is to be located; (4) any
agency, department or instrumentality of the federal government that
has jurisdiction, whether concurrent with the state or otherwise, over
any matter that would be affected by such facility; (5) each state
department, agency and commission named in subsection [(g)] (h) of
section 16-50j, as amended by this act; and (6) such other state and
municipal bodies as the council may by regulation designate. A notice
of such application shall be given to the general public, in municipalities
entitled to receive notice under subdivision (1) of this subsection, by the
publication of a summary of such application and the date on or about
which it will be filed. Such notice shall be published under the
regulations to be promulgated by the council, in such form and in such
newspapers as will serve substantially to inform the public of such
application and to afford interested persons sufficient time to prepare
for and to be heard at the hearing prescribed in section 16-50m. Such
notice shall be published in not less than ten-point type. A notice of such
an application for a certificate for a facility described in subdivision (3),
(4), (5) or (6) of subsection (a) of section 16-50i shall also be sent, by
certified or registered mail, to each person appearing of record as an
owner of property which abuts the proposed primary or alternative sites
on which the facility would be located. Such notice shall be sent at the Substitute Senate Bill No. 73
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same time that notice of such application is given to the general public.
Notice of an application for a certificate for a facility described in
subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 16-50i shall also be provided
to each electric distribution company customer in the municipality
where the facility is proposed to be placed. Such notice shall (A) be
provided on a separate enclosure with each customer's monthly bill for
one or more months, (B) be provided by the electric distribution
company not earlier than sixty days prior to filing the application with
the council, but not later than the date that the application is filed with
the council, and (C) include: A brief description of the project, including
its location relative to the affected municipality and adjacent streets; a
brief technical description of the project including its proposed length,
voltage, and type and range of heights of support structures or
underground configuration; the reason for the project; the address and
a toll-free telephone number of the applicant by which additional
information about the project can be obtained; and a statement in print
no smaller than twenty-four-point type size stating "NOTICE OF
PROPOSED CONSTRUCTION OF A HIGH VOLTAGE ELECTRIC
TRANSMISSION LINE".