Bill Text: NY A06150 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Directs the department of environmental conservation to promulgate air quality standards for emissions of certain toxic air contaminants.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 21-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-06-01 - substituted by s4371d [A06150 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A06150-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6150

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     March 10, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. SEPTIMO -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Environmental Conservation

        AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to emis-
          sions of toxic air contaminants; and to amend the state  finance  law,
          in relation to establishing the community benefit fund

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The environmental conservation law is amended by  adding  a
     2  new section 19-0329 to read as follows:
     3  § 19-0329. Air quality standards for toxic air contaminants.
     4    1.  Definitions.  For  purposes  of  this section, the following terms
     5  shall have the following meanings:
     6    a. "Adjacent to" shall mean within a radius of one mile.
     7    b. "Economically distressed area" shall mean an area characterized  by
     8  a poverty rate of at least twenty percent; or an unemployment rate of at
     9  least  one  hundred  twenty-five  percent  of the statewide unemployment
    10  rate.
    11    c. "Ethnic group" shall mean those groups identified in the definition
    12  of minority group member in subdivision eight of section  three  hundred
    13  ten of the executive law.
    14    d.  "Environmental  justice  community"  shall  mean  an  economically
    15  distressed or minority community and includes, but is  not  limited  to,
    16  environmental justice areas identified by the department.
    17    e. "Fenceline" shall mean the property boundary of a major source.
    18    f.  "Major source" shall mean stationary air contamination source that
    19  emits or has the potential to emit ten tons per year or more of a  toxic
    20  air contaminant or twenty-five tons per year or more of a combination of
    21  toxic contaminants.
    22    g.  "Minority  community" shall mean any census tract, census block or
    23  census block group that includes twenty-five  percent  or  more  of  any
    24  ethnic group.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08074-04-1
        A. 6150                             2

     1    h.  "Toxic  air  contaminant"  shall mean benzene, formaldehyde, vinyl
     2  chloride, polychlorinated dibenzodioxins, polychlorinated dibenzofurans,
     3  trichloroethylene and mercury.
     4    2.  Promulgation  of  standards. a. The department shall, on or before
     5  July first, two thousand  twenty-two,  promulgate  ambient  air  quality
     6  standards  for the following toxic air contaminants: benzene, formaldeh-
     7  yde, vinyl  chloride,  polychlorinated  dibenzodioxins,  polychlorinated
     8  dibenzofurans,  trichloroethylene  and  mercury.  Such  standards may be
     9  hourly, rolling eight-hour or annual, or  any  combination  thereof,  as
    10  determined  by  the  department  in  consultation with the department of
    11  health.
    12    b. The ambient air quality standards for toxic air contaminants  shall
    13  be  based on the best available scientific data concerning the potential
    14  adverse human health effects  of  each  contaminant  and  shall  protect
    15  public health with an adequate margin of safety.
    16    c.  The  department  shall  promulgate  such  rules and regulations as
    17  deemed necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
    18    3. Monitoring and reporting. a. The  owner  or  operator  of  a  major
    19  source  located  in  or  adjacent  to an environmental justice community
    20  shall, no later than July first, two thousand twenty-two, submit to  the
    21  department  a plan to install, operate and maintain a fenceline monitor-
    22  ing system at such source to measure ambient air concentrations of  each
    23  toxic air contaminant the source emits or has the potential to emit. The
    24  department  shall  review  and  approve  such  plan within sixty days of
    25  receipt.
    26    b. The owner or operator of a major source subject to this subdivision
    27  shall install, operate and maintain a fenceline monitor  system  meeting
    28  the  requirements  of  this  subdivision no later than thirty days after
    29  approval of the fenceline monitoring system plan by the department.
    30    c. The owner or operator of a major source subject to this subdivision
    31  shall submit to the department, on a quarterly basis, a report comparing
    32  the fenceline monitoring results with the ambient air quality  standards
    33  for  each toxic air contaminant the source emits or has the potential to
    34  emit. The comparison of the fenceline monitoring results with the  ambi-
    35  ent  air  quality  standards  shall  not make adjustments to account for
    36  actual or potential offsite upwind source of toxic air contaminants.
    37    d. The quarterly reports required by this subdivision  shall  be  made
    38  available to the public on the department's website.
    39    e.  The department may grant an extension of the deadline in paragraph
    40  (a) of this subdivision upon a written showing by the owner or  operator
    41  of  a  major  source that compliance with the monitoring requirements of
    42  this subdivision will cause economic hardship; provided,  however,  that
    43  the  extension  granted  by  the  department  shall  not exceed eighteen
    44  months.
    45    4. Prohibitions. a. No person shall emit or cause to be  emitted  from
    46  an  air  contamination  source  a  toxic air contaminant in an amount or
    47  level that causes or contributes to a violation of an ambient air quali-
    48  ty standard for that contaminant.
    49    b. The department shall not  issue  a  permit,  certificate  or  other
    50  approval  under  this article to the owner or operator of a major source
    51  that emits or has the potential to emit a toxic air  contaminant  unless
    52  the source owner or operator demonstrates that the source's emissions of
    53  such  contaminant  will  not  cause  or contribute to a violation of any
    54  applicable ambient air quality standard for toxic air contaminants.
    55    5. Violations and penalties. a. Any person who violates an ambient air
    56  quality for a toxic air contaminant or fails to perform any duty imposed
        A. 6150                             3

     1  by any rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to this section shall  be
     2  subject  to  the civil and administrative sanctions set forth in section
     3  71-2113 of this chapter.
     4    b.  Penalties.  A  civil  penalty  for violations of this section by a
     5  major source subject to the provisions  of  subdivision  three  of  this
     6  section  shall  be deposited into the community benefit fund established
     7  pursuant to section ninety-seven-ccc of the state finance law,  provided
     8  however, that deposit of the civil penalty into a community benefit fund
     9  shall not diminish the payable portion of such civil penalty.
    10    §  2.  The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-ccc
    11  to read as follows:
    12    § 97-ccc. Community benefit fund. 1. There is  hereby  established  in
    13  the  joint  custody of the comptroller, the commissioner of taxation and
    14  finance, and the commissioner of environmental  conservation  a  special
    15  fund to be known as the community benefit fund.
    16    2.  Such  fund shall consist of all moneys deposited pursuant to para-
    17  graph b of subdivision five of  section  19-0329  of  the  environmental
    18  conservation law.
    19    3.  The  moneys  in  the  fund shall be expended by the department for
    20  environmental conservation for the purpose of implementing one  or  more
    21  environmental  benefit projects that directly and verifiably benefit the
    22  adjacent environmental justice community.
    23    4. On or before the first day of February each year,  the  comptroller
    24  shall  certify to the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker
    25  of the assembly, the amount of money deposited by  source  in  the  fund
    26  during  the  preceding  calendar year, as well as all disbursements from
    27  the fund during the preceding calendar year.
    28    5. Moneys shall be payable from the fund on the audit and  warrant  of
    29  the  comptroller  on vouchers certified and approved by the commissioner
    30  of environmental conservation.
    31    § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    32  have become a law.