SB3282eng 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB3282 Engrossed LRB097 17986 JDS 63209 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 Section 39.14 as follows:

(415 ILCS 5/39.14)

Sec. 39.14. Expedited review of permits.

(a) It is the intent of this Section to promote an expedited permit review process for any permit required under this Act.

(b) Any applicant for a permit under this Act may request in writing from the Agency an expedited review of the application for a permit. Within a reasonable time, the Agency shall respond in writing, indicating whether the Agency will perform an expedited review.

(c) In addition to any other fees required by this Act or Board regulations, an applicant requesting expedited review under this Section shall pay to the Agency an expedited permit fee. The amount of the expedited permit fee shall be 4 times the standard permit fee required for the requested permit under this Act or Board regulations; provided that the expedited permit fee shall not exceed $100,000. For recurring permit fees, such as annual fees, operating fees, or discharge fees, the expedited permit fee shall be 4 times the amount of the recurring fee on a one-time basis for each expedited permitting action. If an owner or operator is not required to pay a standard permit fee for the requested permit, the amount of the expedited permit fee shall be mutually agreed upon by the Agency and the applicant. Prior to any Agency review, the applicant shall make full payment of the expedited permit fee to the Agency. All amounts paid to the Agency pursuant to this Section shall be deposited into the Environmental Protection Permit and Inspection Fund. The applicant shall also pay all standard permit fees in accordance with the applicable fee provisions of this Act or Board regulations.

(d) The Agency's expedited review under this Section shall include the usual and customary review by the Agency as necessary for processing any similar application.

(e) "Expedited review" means, for the purposes of this Section, the Agency taking action on a permit application within a period of time mutually agreed upon by the Agency and the applicant; provided, however, that the agreed-upon period of time shall be tolled during any times the Agency is waiting for the applicant or another party to provide information necessary for the Agency to complete its expedited review.

(f) If the Agency fails to complete an expedited review within the period of time agreed upon by the Agency and the applicant, taking into account the tolling provided under subsection (e) of this Section, the applicant shall be entitled to a refund of the expedited permit fee paid under this Section, on a prorated basis, as mutually agreed upon by the Agency and the applicant.

(g) This Section shall not apply to applications related to emergency events necessitating immediate action by the Agency on permit applications.

(h) The Agency may adopt rules for the implementation of this Section.

(i) Upon the Agency taking action on a permit application pursuant to this Section, the Agency shall provide the applicant with an invoice setting forth the total fee paid pursuant to this Section, as well as the number of overtime hours that were expended by Agency staff in the expedited review.

(Source: P.A. 97-95, eff. 7-12-11.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.