S.B. 48
- *SB48*
SENATE BILL NO. 48–COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
(ON BEHALF OF CLARK COUNTY)
PREFILED NOVEMBER 16, 2022
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Referred to Committee on Natural Resources
SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to air quality.
(BDR 40-395)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: May have Fiscal Impact.
Effect on the State: Yes.
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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to the control of air pollution; revising the
allocation and use of certain proceeds collected from
administrative penalties for violations of certain
provisions relating to air pollution; and providing other
matters properly relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Under existing law, a local air pollution board in a county whose population is 1
700,000 or more (currently Clark County) may delegate its authority to adjudicate 2
violations of air quality laws and levy administrative penalties to an independent 3
hearing officer or hearing board. A local air pollution control board that makes this 4
delegation: (1) is authorized to retain 17.5 percent of the amount of the proceeds from 5
the administrative penalties that it collects up to a maximum of $17,500 per year; and 6
(2) is required to use the money retained to defray administrative expenses incurred 7
by the board in enforcing certain laws relating to air pollution. The remainder of the 8
proceeds are required to be deposited into the county school district fund of the 9
county where the violation occurred to be used for programs of education on topics 10
related to air pollution and projects to improve air quality. (NRS 445B.500) Section 1 11
of this bill eliminates the requirement for the deposit of the remainder of the proceeds 12
in the county school district fund and instead requires the remainder of the proceeds 13
to: (1) remain in the existing account administered by the local air pollution control 14
board to be used to support activities, services and programs related to the 15
improvement of air quality; or (2) be deposited in the county school district fund to be 16
used for the programs for which such proceeds may be used under existing law. 17
Section 2 of this bill makes a conforming change to require that certain money in 18
the county school district fund be used for programs to address air quality only if such 19
money is deposited in the county school district fund. (NRS 387.205) 20
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THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. NRS 445B.500 is hereby amended to read as 1
follows: 2
445B.500 1. Except as otherwise provided in this section and 3
in NRS 445B.310 and 704.7318: 4
(a) The district board of health, county board of health or board 5
of county commissioners in each county whose population is 6
100,000 or more shall establish a program for the control of air 7
pollution and administer the program within its jurisdiction unless 8
superseded. 9
(b) The program: 10
(1) Must include, without limitation, standards for the control 11
of emissions, emergency procedures and variance procedures 12
established by ordinance or local regulation which are equivalent to 13
or stricter than those established by statute or state regulation; 14
(2) May, in a county whose population is 700,000 or more, 15
include requirements for the creation, receipt and exchange for 16
consideration of credits to reduce and control air contaminants in 17
accordance with NRS 445B.508; and 18
(3) Must provide for adequate administration, enforcement, 19
financing and staff. 20
(c) The district board of health, county board of health or board 21
of county commissioners is designated as the air pollution control 22
agency of the county for the purposes of NRS 445B.100 to 23
445B.640, inclusive, and the Federal Act insofar as it pertains to 24
local programs, and that agency is authorized to take all action 25
necessary to secure for the county the benefits of the Federal Act. 26
(d) Powers and responsibilities provided for in NRS 445B.210, 27
445B.240 to 445B.470, inclusive, 445B.560, 445B.570, 445B.580 28
and 445B.640 are binding upon and inure to the benefit of local air 29
pollution control authorities within their jurisdiction. 30
2. The local air pollution control board shall carry out all 31
provisions of NRS 445B.215 with the exception that notices of 32
public hearings must be given in any newspaper, qualified pursuant 33
to the provisions of chapter 238 of NRS, once a week for 3 weeks. 34
The notice must specify with particularity the reasons for the 35
proposed regulations and provide other informative details. NRS 36
445B.215 does not apply to the adoption of existing regulations 37
upon transfer of authority as provided in NRS 445B.610. 38
3. In a county whose population is 700,000 or more, the local 39
air pollution control board may delegate to an independent hearing 40
officer or hearing board its authority to determine violations and 41
levy administrative penalties for violations of the provisions of 42
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NRS 445B.100 to 445B.450, inclusive, and 445B.500 to 445B.640, 1
inclusive, or any regulation adopted pursuant to those sections. If 2
such a delegation is made, [17.5 percent of any penalty] the money 3
collected must be deposited in the county treasury in an account to 4
be administered by the local air pollution control board . [to a 5
maximum of] Not more than $17,500 [per year. The] of money in 6
the account may [only] be used per year to defray the administrative 7
expenses incurred by the local air pollution control board in 8
enforcing the provisions of NRS 445B.100 to 445B.640, inclusive. 9
The remainder of the [penalty must be] money in the account 10
may only be used to support activities, services and programs 11
related to the improvement of air quality which are consistent 12
with the state implementation plan adopted by this State pursuant 13
to 42 U.S.C. §§ 7410 and 7502 or deposited in the county school 14
district fund of the county [where the violation occurred and 15
must] to be accounted for separately in the fund. [A] If money is 16
deposited in the county school district fund pursuant to this 17
section, the school district may spend the money [received 18
pursuant to this section] only in accordance with an annual 19
spending plan that is approved by the local air pollution control 20
board and shall submit an annual report to that board detailing the 21
expenditures of the school district under the plan. A local air 22
pollution control board shall approve an annual spending plan if the 23
proposed expenditures set forth in the plan are reasonable and 24
limited to: 25
(a) Programs of education on topics relating to air quality; and 26
(b) Projects to improve air quality, including, without limitation, 27
the purchase and installation of equipment to retrofit school buses of 28
the school district to use biodiesel, compressed natural gas or a 29
similar fuel formulated to reduce emissions from the amount of 30
emissions produced by the use of traditional fuels such as gasoline 31
and diesel fuel, 32
which are consistent with the state implementation plan adopted 33
by this State pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 7410 and 7502. 34
4. Any county whose population is less than 100,000 or any 35
city may meet the requirements of this section for administration 36
and enforcement through cooperative or interlocal agreement with 37
one or more other counties, or through agreement with the State, or 38
may establish its own program for the control of air pollution. If the 39
county establishes such a program, it is subject to the approval of 40
the Commission. 41
5. No district board of health, county board of health or board 42
of county commissioners may adopt any regulation or establish a 43
compliance schedule, variance order or other enforcement action 44
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relating to the control of emissions from plants which generate 1
electricity by using steam produced by the burning of fossil fuel. 2
6. As used in this section, “plants which generate electricity by 3
using steam produced by the burning of fossil fuel” means plants 4
that burn fossil fuels in a boiler to produce steam for the production 5
of electricity. The term does not include any plant which uses 6
technology for a simple or combined cycle combustion turbine, 7
regardless of whether the plant includes duct burners. 8
Sec. 2. NRS 387.205 is hereby amended to read as follows: 9
387.205 1. Subject to the provisions of subsection 3, money 10
on deposit in the county school district fund or in a separate account, 11
if the board of trustees of a school district has elected to establish 12
such an account pursuant to the provisions of NRS 354.603, must be 13
used for: 14
(a) Maintenance and operation of the public schools controlled 15
by the county school district. 16
(b) Payment of premiums for Nevada industrial insurance. 17
(c) Rent of schoolhouses. 18
(d) Construction, furnishing or rental of teacherages, when 19
approved by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. 20
(e) Transportation of pupils, including the purchase of new 21
buses. 22
(f) Programs of nutrition, if such expenditures do not curtail the 23
established school program or make it necessary to shorten the 24
school term, and each pupil furnished lunch whose parent or 25
guardian is financially able so to do pays at least the actual cost of 26
the lunch. 27
(g) Membership fees, dues and contributions to an 28
interscholastic activities association. 29
(h) Repayment of a loan made from the State Permanent School 30
Fund pursuant to NRS 387.526. 31
(i) [Programs] If money is deposited in the county school 32
district fund pursuant to subsection 3 of NRS 445B.500, programs 33
of education and projects relating to air quality pursuant to 34
NRS 445B.500. 35
2. Money on deposit in the county school district fund, or in a 36
separate account, if the board of trustees of a school district has 37
elected to establish such an account pursuant to the provisions of 38
NRS 354.603, when available, may be used for: 39
(a) Purchase of sites for school facilities. 40
(b) Purchase of buildings for school use. 41
(c) Repair and construction of buildings for school use. 42
3. The board of trustees of a school district, in allocating the 43
use of money pursuant to this section, shall prioritize expenditures 44
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in a manner which ensures that the budgetary priorities determined 1
pursuant to NRS 387.301 are carried out. 2
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