|
| Public Act 097-0519
|
| SB1357 Enrolled | LRB097 00021 JDS 40022 b |
|
|
AN ACT concerning safety.
|
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
|
represented in the General Assembly:
|
Section 5. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by |
changing Sections 31 and 42 as follows:
|
(415 ILCS 5/31) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1031)
|
Sec. 31. Notice; complaint; hearing.
|
(a)(1) Within 180 days after of becoming aware of an |
alleged violation of the
Act, or any rule adopted under the |
Act, or of a permit granted by the Agency, or
a condition |
of such a the permit, the Agency shall issue and serve, by |
certified mail,
upon the person complained against a |
written notice informing that person that
the Agency has |
evidence of the alleged violation. At a minimum, the |
written
notice shall contain:
|
(A) a notification to the person complained |
against of the requirement to
submit a written response |
addressing the violations alleged and the option to
|
meet with appropriate agency personnel to resolve any |
alleged violations that
could lead to the filing of a |
formal complaint;
|
(B) a detailed explanation by the Agency of the |
violations alleged;
|
|
(C) an explanation by the Agency of the actions |
that the Agency
believes may resolve the alleged |
violations, including an estimate of a
reasonable time |
period for the person complained against to complete |
the
suggested resolution; and
|
(D) an explanation of any alleged violation that |
the Agency believes
cannot be resolved without the |
involvement of the Office of the Illinois
Attorney |
General or the State's Attorney of the county in which |
the alleged
violation occurred and the basis for the |
Agency's belief.
|
(2) A written response to the violations alleged shall |
be submitted to
the Agency, by certified mail, within 45 |
days after of receipt of notice by the
person complained |
against, unless the Agency agrees to an extension. The
|
written response shall include:
|
(A) information in rebuttal, explanation or |
justification of each
alleged violation;
|
(B) if the person complained against desires to |
enter into a Compliance Commitment Agreement, proposed |
terms for a proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement |
that includes specified
times for achieving each |
commitment and which may consist of a statement
|
indicating that the person complained against believes |
that compliance has
been achieved; and
|
(C) a request for a meeting with appropriate Agency |
|
personnel if a
meeting is desired by the person |
complained against.
|
(3) If the person complained against fails to respond |
in accordance with
the requirements of subdivision (2) of |
this subsection (a), the failure to
respond shall be |
considered a waiver of the requirements of this subsection
|
(a) and nothing in this Section shall preclude the Agency |
from proceeding
pursuant to subsection (b) of this Section.
|
(4) A meeting requested pursuant to subdivision (2) of |
this subsection
(a) shall be held without a representative |
of the Office of the Illinois
Attorney General or the |
State's Attorney of the county in which the alleged
|
violation occurred, within 60 days after of receipt of |
notice by the person
complained against, unless the Agency |
agrees to a postponement. At the
meeting, the Agency shall |
provide an opportunity for the person complained
against to |
respond to each alleged violation, suggested resolution, |
and
suggested implementation time frame, and to suggest |
alternate resolutions.
|
(5) If a meeting requested pursuant to subdivision (2) |
of this subsection
(a) is held, the person complained |
against shall, within 21 days following the
meeting or |
within an extended time period as agreed to by the Agency, |
submit
by certified mail to the Agency a written response |
to the alleged violations.
The written response shall |
include:
|
|
(A) additional information in rebuttal, |
explanation, or justification
of each alleged |
violation;
|
(B) if the person complained against desires to |
enter into a Compliance Commitment Agreement, proposed |
terms for a proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement |
that includes specified
times for achieving each |
commitment and which may consist of a statement
|
indicating that the person complained against believes |
that compliance has
been achieved; and
|
(C) a statement indicating that, should the person |
complained against
so wish, the person complained |
against chooses to rely upon the initial written
|
response submitted pursuant to subdivision (2) of this |
subsection (a).
|
(6) If the person complained against fails to respond |
in accordance with
the requirements of subdivision (5) of |
this subsection (a), the failure to
respond shall be |
considered a waiver of the requirements of this subsection |
(a)
and nothing in this Section shall preclude the Agency |
from proceeding pursuant
to subsection (b) of this Section.
|
(7) Within 30 days after of the Agency's receipt of a |
written response submitted
by the person complained |
against pursuant to subdivision (2) of this
subsection (a), |
if a meeting is not requested, or pursuant to subdivision |
(5) of this
subsection (a), if a meeting is held, or within |
|
a later time period as agreed
to by the Agency and the |
person complained against, the Agency shall issue and
|
serve, by certified mail, upon the person complained |
against (i) a written notice
informing the person of its |
acceptance, rejection, or proposed modification to
the |
proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement or (ii) a notice |
that one or more violations cannot be resolved without the |
involvement of the Office of the Attorney General or the |
State's Attorney of the county in which the alleged |
violation occurred and that no proposed Compliance |
Commitment Agreement will be issued by the Agency for those |
violations. The Agency shall include terms and conditions |
in the proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement that are, |
in its discretion, necessary to bring the person complained |
against into compliance with the Act, any rule adopted |
under the Act, any permit granted by the Agency, or any |
condition of such a permit. The Agency shall take into |
consideration the proposed terms for the proposed |
Compliance Commitment Agreement that were provided under |
subdivision (a)(2)(B) or (a)(5)(B) of this Section by the |
person complained against as contained within the written
|
response.
|
(7.5) Within 30 days after the receipt of the Agency's |
proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement by the person |
complained against, the person shall either (i) agree to |
and sign the proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement |
|
provided by the Agency and submit the signed Compliance |
Commitment Agreement to the Agency by certified mail or |
(ii) notify the Agency in writing by certified mail of the |
person's rejection of the proposed Compliance Commitment |
Agreement. If the person complained against fails to |
respond to the proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement |
within 30 days as required under this paragraph, the |
proposed Compliance Commitment Agreement is deemed |
rejected by operation of law. Any Compliance Commitment |
Agreement entered into under item (i) of this paragraph may |
be amended subsequently in writing by mutual agreement |
between the Agency and the signatory to the Compliance |
Commitment Agreement, the signatory's legal |
representative, or the signatory's agent. |
(7.6) No person shall violate the terms or conditions |
of a Compliance Commitment Agreement entered into under |
subdivision (a)(7.5) of this Section. Successful |
completion of a Compliance Commitment Agreement or an |
amended Compliance Commitment Agreement shall be a factor |
to be weighed, in favor of the person completing the |
Agreement, by the Office of the Illinois Attorney General |
in determining whether to file a complaint for the |
violations that were the subject of the Agreement.
|
(8) Nothing in this subsection (a) is intended to |
require the Agency to
enter into Compliance Commitment |
Agreements for any alleged violation that the
Agency |
|
believes cannot be resolved without the involvement of the |
Office of the
Attorney General or the State's Attorney of |
the county in which the alleged
violation occurred, for, |
among other purposes, the imposition of statutory
|
penalties.
|
(9) The Agency's failure to respond within 30 days to a |
written response submitted
pursuant to subdivision (2) of |
this subsection (a), if a meeting is not
requested, or |
pursuant to subdivision (5) of this subsection (a), if a |
meeting is held,
within 30 days, or within the time period |
otherwise agreed to in writing by
the Agency and the person |
complained against, shall be deemed an acceptance by
the |
Agency of the proposed terms of the Compliance Commitment |
Agreement for the violations
alleged in the written notice |
issued under subdivision (1) of this subsection
(a) as |
contained within the written response.
|
(10) If the person complained against complies with the |
terms of a
Compliance
Commitment Agreement accepted |
pursuant to this subsection (a), the Agency
shall not refer |
the alleged violations which are the subject of the |
Compliance
Commitment Agreement to the Office of the |
Illinois Attorney General or the
State's Attorney of the |
county in which the alleged violation occurred.
However, |
nothing in this subsection is intended to preclude the |
Agency from
continuing negotiations with the person |
complained against or from proceeding
pursuant to the |
|
provisions of subsection (b) of this Section for alleged
|
violations that which remain the subject of disagreement |
between the Agency and the
person complained against |
following fulfillment of the requirements of this
|
subsection (a).
|
(11) Nothing in this subsection (a) is intended to |
preclude the person
complained against from submitting to |
the Agency, by certified mail, at any
time, notification |
that the person complained against consents to waiver of
|
the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this |
Section.
|
(12) The Agency shall have the authority to adopt rules |
for the administration of subsection (a) of this Section. |
The rules shall be adopted in accordance with the |
provisions of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. |
(b) For alleged violations that remain the subject of |
disagreement
between the Agency and the person complained |
against following fulfillment of
the requirements of |
subsection (a) of this Section, and for alleged violations of |
the terms or conditions of a Compliance Commitment Agreement |
entered into under subdivision (a)(7.5) of this Section as well |
as the alleged violations that are the subject of the |
Compliance Commitment Agreement, and as a precondition to
the |
Agency's referral or request to the Office of the Illinois |
Attorney General
or the State's Attorney of the county in which |
the alleged violation occurred
for legal representation |
|
regarding an alleged violation that may be addressed
pursuant |
to subsection (c) or (d) of this Section or pursuant to Section |
42 of
this Act, the Agency shall issue and serve, by certified |
mail, upon the person
complained against a written notice |
informing that person that the Agency
intends to pursue legal |
action. Such notice shall notify the person
complained against |
of the violations to be alleged and offer the person an
|
opportunity to meet with appropriate Agency personnel in an |
effort to resolve
any alleged violations that could lead to the |
filing of a formal complaint.
The meeting with Agency personnel |
shall be held within 30 days after of receipt of
notice served |
pursuant to this subsection upon the person complained against,
|
unless the Agency agrees to a postponement or the person |
notifies the Agency
that he or she will not appear at a meeting |
within the 30-day time period.
Nothing in this subsection is |
intended to preclude the Agency from following
the provisions |
of subsection (c) or (d) of this Section or from requesting the
|
legal representation of the Office of the Illinois Attorney |
General or the
State's Attorney of the county in which the |
alleged violations occurred for
alleged violations which |
remain the subject of disagreement between the Agency
and the |
person complained against after the provisions of this |
subsection are
fulfilled.
|
(c)(1) For alleged violations which remain the subject of |
disagreement
between the Agency and the person complained |
against following waiver, pursuant
to subdivision (10) of |
|
subsection (a) of this Section, or fulfillment of
the |
requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this Section, |
the Office of the
Illinois Attorney General or the State's |
Attorney of the county in which the
alleged violation |
occurred shall issue and serve upon the person complained
|
against a written notice, together with a formal complaint, |
which shall
specify the provision of the Act, or the rule, |
or regulation, or permit, or term
or condition thereof |
under which such person is said to be in violation, and
a |
statement of the manner in, and the extent to which such |
person is said to
violate the Act, or such rule, or |
regulation, or permit, or term or condition
thereof and |
shall require the person so complained
against to answer |
the charges of such formal complaint at a hearing before
|
the Board at a time not less than 21 days after the date of |
notice by the
Board, except as provided in Section 34 of |
this Act. Such complaint shall
be accompanied by a |
notification to the defendant that financing may be
|
available, through the Illinois Environmental Facilities |
Financing Act, to
correct such violation. A copy of such |
notice of such
hearings shall also be sent to any person |
that has complained to the
Agency respecting the respondent |
within the six months preceding the
date of the complaint, |
and to any person in the county in which the
offending |
activity occurred that has requested notice of enforcement
|
proceedings; 21 days notice of such hearings shall also be |
|
published in
a newspaper of general circulation in such |
county. The respondent may
file a written answer, and at |
such hearing the rules prescribed in
Sections 32 and 33 of |
this Act shall apply. In the case of actual or
threatened |
acts outside Illinois contributing to environmental damage |
in
Illinois, the extraterritorial service-of-process |
provisions of Sections
2-208 and 2-209 of the Code of Civil |
Procedure shall apply.
|
With respect to notices served pursuant to this |
subsection (c)(1) that which
involve hazardous material or |
wastes in any manner, the Agency shall
annually publish a |
list of all such notices served. The list shall include
the |
date the investigation commenced, the date notice was sent, |
the date
the matter was referred to the Attorney General, |
if applicable, and the
current status of the matter.
|
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) |
of this subsection
(c), whenever a complaint has been filed |
on behalf of the Agency or by the
People of the State of |
Illinois, the parties may file with the Board a
stipulation |
and proposal for settlement accompanied by a request for |
relief
from the requirement of a hearing pursuant to |
subdivision (1). Unless the
Board, in its discretion, |
concludes that a hearing will be held, the Board
shall |
cause notice of the stipulation, proposal and request for |
relief to
be published and sent in the same manner as is |
required for hearing
pursuant to subdivision (1) of this |
|
subsection. The notice shall include a
statement that any |
person may file a written demand for hearing within 21
days |
after receiving the notice. If any person files a timely |
written
demand for hearing, the Board shall deny the |
request for relief from a
hearing and shall hold a hearing |
in accordance with the provisions of
subdivision (1).
|
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) |
of this subsection
(c), if the Agency becomes aware of a |
violation of this Act arising from, or
as a result of, |
voluntary pollution prevention activities, the Agency |
shall not
proceed with the written notice required by |
subsection (a) of this Section
unless:
|
(A) the person fails to take corrective action or |
eliminate the reported
violation within a reasonable |
time; or
|
(B) the Agency believes that the violation poses a |
substantial and
imminent danger to the public health or |
welfare or the environment. For the
purposes of this |
item (B), "substantial and imminent danger" means a |
danger
with a likelihood of serious or irreversible |
harm.
|
(d)(1) Any person may file with the Board a complaint, |
meeting
the requirements of subsection (c) of this Section, |
against any person
allegedly violating this Act, any rule |
or regulation adopted under this
Act, any permit or term or |
condition of a permit, or any Board order. The complainant |
|
shall immediately serve a copy of such complaint
upon the |
person or persons named therein. Unless the Board |
determines that
such complaint is duplicative or |
frivolous, it shall schedule a hearing and
serve written |
notice thereof upon the person or persons named therein, in
|
accord with subsection (c) of this Section.
|
(2) Whenever a complaint has been filed by a person |
other than the
Attorney General or the State's Attorney, |
the parties may file with the Board
a stipulation and |
proposal for settlement accompanied by a request for relief
|
from the hearing requirement of subdivision (c)(1) of this |
Section. Unless
the Board, in its discretion, concludes |
that a hearing should be held, no
hearing on the |
stipulation and proposal for settlement is required.
|
(e) In hearings before the Board under this Title the |
burden shall
be on the Agency or other complainant to show |
either that the respondent
has caused or threatened to cause |
air or water pollution or that the
respondent has violated or |
threatens to violate any provision of this
Act or any rule or |
regulation of the Board or permit or term or
condition thereof. |
If such proof has been made, the burden shall be on
the |
respondent to show that compliance with the Board's regulations
|
would impose an arbitrary or unreasonable hardship.
|
(f) The provisions of this Section shall not apply to |
administrative
citation actions commenced under Section 31.1 |
of this Act.
|
|
(Source: P.A. 92-574, eff. 6-26-02; 93-152, eff. 7-10-03.)
|
(415 ILCS 5/42) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1042) |
Sec. 42. Civil penalties. |
(a) Except as provided in this Section, any person that |
violates any
provision of this Act or any regulation adopted by |
the Board, or any permit
or term or condition thereof, or that |
violates any order of the Board pursuant
to this Act, shall be |
liable for a civil penalty of not to exceed
$50,000 for the |
violation and an additional civil penalty of not to exceed
|
$10,000 for each day during which the violation continues; such |
penalties may,
upon order of the Board or a court of competent |
jurisdiction, be made payable
to the Environmental Protection |
Trust Fund, to be used in accordance with the
provisions of the |
Environmental Protection Trust Fund Act. |
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of |
this Section: |
(1) Any person that violates Section 12(f) of this Act |
or any
NPDES permit or term or condition thereof, or any |
filing requirement,
regulation or order relating to the |
NPDES permit program, shall be liable
to a civil penalty of |
not to exceed $10,000 per day of violation. |
(2) Any person that violates Section 12(g) of this Act |
or any UIC permit
or term or condition thereof, or any |
filing requirement, regulation or order
relating to the |
State UIC program for all wells, except Class II wells as
|
|
defined by the Board under this Act, shall be liable to a |
civil penalty
not to exceed $2,500 per day of violation; |
provided, however, that any person
who commits such |
violations relating to the State UIC program for Class
II |
wells, as defined by the Board under this Act, shall be |
liable to a civil
penalty of not to exceed $10,000 for the |
violation and an additional civil
penalty of not to exceed |
$1,000 for each day during which the violation
continues. |
(3) Any person that violates Sections 21(f), 21(g), |
21(h) or 21(i) of
this Act, or any RCRA permit or term or |
condition thereof, or any filing
requirement, regulation |
or order relating to the State RCRA program, shall
be |
liable to a civil penalty of not to exceed $25,000 per day |
of violation. |
(4)
In an administrative citation action under Section |
31.1 of this Act,
any person found to have violated any |
provision of subsection (o) of
Section 21 of this Act shall |
pay a civil penalty of $500 for each
violation of each such |
provision, plus any hearing costs incurred by the Board
and |
the Agency. Such penalties shall be made payable to the |
Environmental
Protection Trust Fund, to be used in |
accordance with the provisions of the
Environmental |
Protection Trust Fund Act; except that if a unit of local
|
government issued the administrative citation, 50% of the |
civil penalty shall
be payable to the unit of local |
government. |
|
(4-5) In an administrative citation action under |
Section 31.1 of this
Act, any person found to have violated |
any
provision of subsection (p) of
Section 21, Section |
22.51, Section 22.51a, or subsection (k) of Section 55 of |
this Act shall pay a civil penalty of $1,500 for each |
violation
of
each such provision, plus any hearing costs |
incurred by the Board and the
Agency, except that the civil |
penalty amount shall be $3,000 for
each violation of any |
provision of subsection (p) of Section 21, Section 22.51, |
Section 22.51a, or subsection (k) of Section 55 that is the
|
person's second or subsequent adjudication violation of |
that
provision. The penalties shall be deposited into the
|
Environmental Protection Trust Fund, to be used in |
accordance with the
provisions of the Environmental |
Protection Trust Fund Act; except that if a
unit of local |
government issued the administrative citation, 50% of the |
civil
penalty shall be payable to the unit of local |
government. |
(5) Any person who violates subsection 6 of Section |
39.5 of this Act
or any CAAPP permit, or term or condition |
thereof, or any fee or filing
requirement, or any duty to |
allow or carry out inspection, entry or
monitoring |
activities, or any regulation or order relating to the |
CAAPP
shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed |
$10,000 per day of violation. |
(6) Any owner or operator of a community water system |
|
that violates subsection (b) of Section 18.1 or subsection |
(a) of Section 25d-3 of this Act shall, for each day of |
violation, be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $5 |
for each of the premises connected to the affected |
community water system. |
(b.5) In lieu of the penalties set forth in subsections (a) |
and (b) of
this Section, any person who fails to file, in a |
timely manner, toxic
chemical release forms with the Agency |
pursuant to Section 25b-2
of this Act
shall be liable for a |
civil penalty of $100 per day for
each day the forms are
late, |
not to exceed a maximum total penalty of $6,000. This daily |
penalty
shall begin accruing on the thirty-first day after the
|
date that the person receives the warning notice issued by the |
Agency pursuant
to Section 25b-6 of this Act; and the penalty |
shall be paid to the Agency. The
daily accrual of penalties |
shall cease as of January 1 of the following year.
All |
penalties collected by the Agency pursuant to this subsection |
shall be
deposited into the Environmental Protection Permit and |
Inspection Fund. |
(c) Any person that violates this Act, any rule or |
regulation adopted under
this Act, any permit or term or |
condition of a permit, or any Board order and
causes the death |
of fish
or aquatic life shall, in addition to the other |
penalties provided by
this Act, be liable to pay to the State |
an additional sum for the
reasonable value of the fish or |
aquatic life destroyed. Any money so
recovered shall be placed |
|
in the Wildlife and Fish Fund in the State
Treasury. |
(d) The penalties provided for in this Section may be |
recovered in a
civil action. |
(e) The State's Attorney of the county in which the |
violation
occurred, or the Attorney General, may, at the |
request of the Agency or
on his own motion, institute a civil |
action for an injunction, prohibitory or mandatory, to
restrain |
violations of this Act, any rule or regulation adopted under |
this Act,
any permit or term or condition of a permit, or any |
Board order, or to require such other actions as may be |
necessary to address violations of this Act, any rule or |
regulation adopted under this Act, any permit or term or |
condition of a permit, or any Board order. |
(f) The State's Attorney of the county in which the |
violation
occurred, or the Attorney General, shall bring such |
actions in the name
of the people of the State of Illinois.
|
Without limiting any other authority which may exist for the |
awarding
of attorney's fees and costs, the Board or a court of |
competent
jurisdiction may award costs and reasonable |
attorney's fees, including the
reasonable costs of expert |
witnesses and consultants, to the State's
Attorney or the |
Attorney General in a case where he has prevailed against a
|
person who has committed a wilful, knowing or repeated |
violation of this Act,
any rule or regulation adopted under |
this Act, any permit or term or condition
of a permit, or any |
Board order. |
|
Any funds collected under this subsection (f) in which the |
Attorney
General has prevailed shall be deposited in the
|
Hazardous Waste Fund created in Section 22.2 of this Act. Any |
funds
collected under this subsection (f) in which a State's |
Attorney has
prevailed shall be retained by the county in which |
he serves. |
(g) All final orders imposing civil penalties pursuant to |
this Section
shall prescribe the time for payment of such |
penalties. If any such
penalty is not paid within the time |
prescribed, interest on such penalty
at the rate set forth in |
subsection (a) of Section 1003 of the Illinois Income
Tax Act, |
shall be paid for the period from the date payment is due until |
the
date payment is received. However, if the time for payment |
is stayed during
the pendency of an appeal, interest shall not |
accrue during such stay. |
(h) In determining the appropriate civil penalty to be |
imposed under
subdivisions (a), (b)(1), (b)(2), (b)(3), or |
(b)(5) of this
Section, the Board is authorized to consider any |
matters of record in
mitigation or aggravation of penalty, |
including but not limited to the
following factors: |
(1) the duration and gravity of the violation; |
(2) the presence or absence of due diligence on the |
part of the
respondent in attempting to comply with |
requirements of this
Act and regulations thereunder or to |
secure relief therefrom as provided by
this Act; |
(3) any economic benefits accrued by the respondent
|
|
because of delay in compliance with requirements, in which |
case the economic
benefits shall be determined by the |
lowest cost alternative for achieving
compliance; |
(4) the amount of monetary penalty which will serve to |
deter further
violations by the respondent and to otherwise |
aid in enhancing
voluntary
compliance with this Act by the |
respondent and other persons
similarly
subject to the Act; |
(5) the number, proximity in time, and gravity of |
previously
adjudicated violations of this Act by the |
respondent; |
(6) whether the respondent voluntarily self-disclosed, |
in accordance
with subsection (i) of this Section, the |
non-compliance to the Agency; and |
(7) whether the respondent has agreed to undertake a |
"supplemental
environmental project," which means an |
environmentally beneficial project that
a respondent |
agrees to undertake in settlement of an enforcement action |
brought
under this Act, but which the respondent is not |
otherwise legally required to
perform; and . |
(8) whether the respondent has successfully completed |
a Compliance Commitment Agreement under subsection (a) of |
Section 31 of this Act to remedy the violations that are |
the subject of the complaint. |
In determining the appropriate civil penalty to be imposed |
under subsection
(a) or paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (5) of |
subsection (b) of this Section, the
Board shall ensure, in all |
|
cases, that the penalty is at least as great as the
economic |
benefits, if any, accrued by the respondent as a result of the
|
violation, unless the Board finds that imposition of such |
penalty would result
in an arbitrary or unreasonable financial |
hardship. However, such civil
penalty
may be off-set in whole |
or in part pursuant to a supplemental
environmental project |
agreed to by the complainant and the respondent. |
(i) A person who voluntarily self-discloses non-compliance |
to the Agency,
of which the Agency had been unaware, is |
entitled to a 100% reduction in the
portion of the penalty that |
is not based on the economic benefit of
non-compliance if the |
person can
establish the following: |
(1) that the non-compliance was discovered through an |
environmental
audit or a compliance management system |
documented by the regulated entity as
reflecting the |
regulated entity's due diligence in preventing, detecting, |
and
correcting violations; |
(2) that the non-compliance was disclosed in writing |
within 30 days of
the date on which the person discovered |
it; |
(3) that the non-compliance was discovered and |
disclosed prior to: |
(i) the commencement of an Agency inspection, |
investigation, or request
for information; |
(ii) notice of a citizen suit; |
(iii) the filing of a complaint by a citizen, the |
|
Illinois Attorney
General, or the State's Attorney of |
the county in which the violation occurred; |
(iv) the reporting of the non-compliance by an |
employee of the person
without that person's |
knowledge; or |
(v) imminent discovery of the non-compliance by |
the Agency; |
(4) that the non-compliance is being corrected and any |
environmental
harm is being remediated in a timely fashion; |
(5) that the person agrees to prevent a recurrence of |
the non-compliance; |
(6) that no related non-compliance events have |
occurred in the
past 3 years at the same facility or in the |
past 5 years as part of a
pattern at multiple facilities |
owned or operated by the person; |
(7) that the non-compliance did not result in serious |
actual
harm or present an imminent and substantial |
endangerment to human
health or the environment or violate |
the specific terms of any judicial or
administrative order |
or consent agreement; |
(8) that the person cooperates as reasonably requested |
by the Agency
after the disclosure; and |
(9) that the non-compliance was identified voluntarily |
and not through a
monitoring, sampling, or auditing |
procedure that is required by statute, rule,
permit, |
judicial or administrative order, or consent agreement. |
|
If a person can establish all of the elements under this |
subsection except
the element set forth in paragraph (1) of |
this subsection, the person is
entitled to a 75% reduction in |
the portion of the penalty that is not based
upon the economic |
benefit of non-compliance. |
(j) In addition to any an other remedy or penalty that may
|
apply, whether civil or criminal, any person who violates |
Section 22.52 of this Act shall be liable for an additional |
civil penalty of up to 3 times the gross amount of any |
pecuniary gain resulting from the violation.
|
(k) In addition to any other remedy or penalty that may |
apply, whether civil or criminal, any person who violates |
subdivision (a)(7.6) of Section 31 of this Act shall be liable |
for an additional civil penalty of $2,000. |
(Source: P.A. 95-331, eff. 8-21-07; 96-603, eff. 8-24-09; |
96-737, eff. 8-25-09; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10; 96-1416, eff. |
7-30-10.)
|
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
becoming law.
|
