Bill Text: NY S04371 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended

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 13-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2022-12-09 - VETOED MEMO.96 [S04371 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S04371-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         4371--C

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 3, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens.  BIAGGI, HINCHEY, HOYLMAN, MAY, PARKER, SANDERS --
          read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to
          the  Committee  on Environmental Conservation -- committee discharged,
          bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended  and  recommitted  to  said
          committee  -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
          amended and recommitted  to  said  committee  --  recommitted  to  the
          Committee on Environmental Conservation in accordance with Senate Rule
          6,  sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
          amended and recommitted to said committee

        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 19-0330 to read as follows:
     3  § 19-0330. 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.  "Disadvantaged community" shall have the same meaning as in subdi-
     8  vision five of section 75-0101 of this chapter.
     9    c. "Fenceline" shall mean the property boundary of a major source.
    10    d. "Major source" shall mean stationary air contamination source  that
    11  emits  or has the potential to emit ten tons per year or more of a toxic
    12  air contaminant or twenty-five tons per year or more of a combination of
    13  toxic contaminants.
    14    e. "Toxic air contaminant" shall  mean  benzene,  formaldehyde,  vinyl
    15  chloride, polychlorinated dibenzodioxins, polychlorinated dibenzofurans,
    16  trichloroethylene and mercury.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08074-05-2
        S. 4371--C                          2

     1    2.  Promulgation  of  standards. a. The department shall, on or before
     2  July first, two thousand  twenty-two,  promulgate  ambient  air  quality
     3  standards  for the following toxic air contaminants: benzene, formaldeh-
     4  yde, vinyl  chloride,  polychlorinated  dibenzodioxins,  polychlorinated
     5  dibenzofurans,  trichloroethylene  and  mercury.  Such  standards may be
     6  hourly, rolling eight-hour or annual, or  any  combination  thereof,  as
     7  determined  by  the  department  in  consultation with the department of
     8  health.
     9    b. The ambient air quality standards for toxic air contaminants  shall
    10  be  based on the best available scientific data concerning the potential
    11  adverse human health effects  of  each  contaminant  and  shall  protect
    12  public health with an adequate margin of safety.
    13    c.  The  department  shall  promulgate  such  rules and regulations as
    14  deemed necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
    15    3. Monitoring and reporting. a. The  owner  or  operator  of  a  major
    16  source  located  in  or  adjacent to a disadvantaged community shall, no
    17  later than July first, two thousand twenty-two, submit to the department
    18  a plan to install, operate and maintain a fenceline monitoring system at
    19  such source to measure ambient air  concentrations  of  each  toxic  air
    20  contaminant  the  source emits or has the potential to emit. The depart-
    21  ment shall review and approve such plan within sixty days of receipt.
    22    b. The owner or operator of a major source subject to this subdivision
    23  shall install, operate and maintain a fenceline monitor  system  meeting
    24  the  requirements  of  this  subdivision no later than thirty days after
    25  approval of the fenceline monitoring system plan by the department.
    26    c. The owner or operator of a major source subject to this subdivision
    27  shall submit to the department, on a quarterly basis, a report comparing
    28  the fenceline monitoring results with the ambient air quality  standards
    29  for  each toxic air contaminant the source emits or has the potential to
    30  emit. The comparison of the fenceline monitoring results with the  ambi-
    31  ent  air  quality  standards  shall  not make adjustments to account for
    32  actual or potential offsite upwind source of toxic air contaminants.
    33    d. The quarterly reports required by this subdivision  shall  be  made
    34  available to the public on the department's website.
    35    e.  The department may grant an extension of the deadline in paragraph
    36  a of this subdivision upon a written showing by the owner or operator of
    37  a major source that compliance with the monitoring requirements of  this
    38  subdivision  will  cause  economic hardship; provided, however, that the
    39  extension granted by the department shall not exceed eighteen months.
    40    4. Prohibitions. a. No person shall emit or cause to be  emitted  from
    41  an  air  contamination  source  a  toxic air contaminant in an amount or
    42  level that causes or contributes to a violation of an ambient air quali-
    43  ty standard for that contaminant.
    44    b. The department shall not  issue  a  permit,  certificate  or  other
    45  approval  under  this article to the owner or operator of a major source
    46  that emits or has the potential to emit a toxic air  contaminant  unless
    47  the source owner or operator demonstrates that the source's emissions of
    48  such  contaminant  will  not  cause  or contribute to a violation of any
    49  applicable ambient air quality standard for toxic air contaminants.
    50    5. Violations and penalties. a. Any person who violates an ambient air
    51  quality for a toxic air contaminant or fails to perform any duty imposed
    52  by any rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to this section shall  be
    53  subject  to  the civil and administrative sanctions set forth in section
    54  71-2113 of this chapter.
    55    b. Penalties. A civil penalty for violations  of  this  section  by  a
    56  major  source  subject  to  the  provisions of subdivision three of this
        S. 4371--C                          3

     1  section shall be deposited into the community benefit  fund  established
     2  pursuant  to section ninety-seven-ccc of the state finance law, provided
     3  however, that deposit of the civil penalty into a community benefit fund
     4  shall not diminish the payable portion of such civil penalty.
     5    §  2.  The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-ccc
     6  to read as follows:
     7    § 97-ccc. Community benefit fund. 1. There is  hereby  established  in
     8  the  joint  custody of the comptroller, the commissioner of taxation and
     9  finance, and the commissioner of environmental  conservation  a  special
    10  fund to be known as the community benefit fund.
    11    2.  Such  fund shall consist of all moneys deposited pursuant to para-
    12  graph b of subdivision five of  section  19-0330  of  the  environmental
    13  conservation law.
    14    3.  The  moneys  in  the  fund shall be expended by the department for
    15  environmental conservation for the purpose of implementing one  or  more
    16  environmental  benefit projects that directly and verifiably benefit the
    17  adjacent disadvantaged community.
    18    4. On or before the first day of February each year,  the  comptroller
    19  shall  certify to the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker
    20  of the assembly, the amount of money deposited by  source  in  the  fund
    21  during  the  preceding  calendar year, as well as all disbursements from
    22  the fund during the preceding calendar year.
    23    5. Moneys shall be payable from the fund on the audit and  warrant  of
    24  the  comptroller  on vouchers certified and approved by the commissioner
    25  of environmental conservation.
    26    § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    27  have become a law.