Bill Text: VA HB7 | 2024 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: State Air Pollution Control Board; regulations, low-emissions and zero-emissions vehicle standards.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 16-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-02-13 - Left in Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources [HB7 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2024-HB7-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §10.1-1307 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§10.1-1307. Further powers and duties of Board and Department.
A. The Board shall have the power to control and regulate its internal affairs. The Department shall have the power to initiate and supervise research programs to determine the causes, effects, and hazards of air pollution; initiate and supervise statewide programs of air pollution control education; cooperate with and receive money from the federal government or any county or municipal government, and receive money from any other source, whether public or private; develop a comprehensive program for the study, abatement, and control of all sources of air pollution in the Commonwealth; and advise, consult, and cooperate with agencies of the United States and all agencies of the Commonwealth, political subdivisions, private industries, and any other affected groups in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter.
B. The Board may adopt by regulation emissions standards
controlling the release into the atmosphere of air pollutants from motor
vehicles, only as provided in §10.1-1307.05 and
Article 22 (§46.2-1176 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 46.2.
C. After any regulation has been adopted by the Board pursuant
to §10.1-1308, the Department may grant local variances therefrom, if it finds after an
investigation and hearing that local conditions warrant;, except that no local
variances shall be granted from regulations adopted by the Board pursuant to §
10.1-1308 related to the requirements of subsection E of §10.1-1308 or Article
4 (§10.1-1329 et seq.). If local variances are permitted, the Department shall
issue an order to this effect. Such order shall be subject to revocation or
amendment at any time if the Department, after a hearing, determines that the
amendment or revocation is warranted. Variances and amendments to variances
shall be adopted only after a public hearing has been conducted pursuant to the
public advertisement of the subject, date, time, and place of the hearing at
least 30 days prior to the scheduled hearing. The hearing shall be conducted to
give the public an opportunity to comment on the variance.
D. After the Board has adopted the regulations provided for in §10.1-1308, the Department shall have the power to (i) initiate and receive complaints as to air pollution; (ii) hold or cause to be held hearings and enter orders diminishing or abating the causes of air pollution and orders to enforce the Board's regulations pursuant to §10.1-1309; and (iii) institute legal proceedings, including suits for injunctions for the enforcement of orders, regulations, and the abatement and control of air pollution and for the enforcement of penalties.
E. The Board in making regulations;, the Department in approving
variances, control programs, or permits;, and the courts in granting
injunctive relief under the provisions of this chapter,
shall consider facts and circumstances relevant to the reasonableness of the
activity involved and the regulations proposed to control it, including:
1. The character and degree of injury to, or interference
with, safety, health, or the reasonable use of property which that is caused or threatened
to be caused;
2. The social and economic value of the activity involved;
3. The suitability of the activity to the area in which it is located, except that consideration of this factor shall be satisfied if the local governing body of a locality in which a facility or activity is proposed has resolved that the location and operation of the proposed facility or activity is suitable to the area in which it is located; and
4. The scientific and economic practicality of reducing or eliminating the discharge resulting from such activity.
F. The Department shall conduct the hearings provided for in this chapter.
G. The Board shall not:
1. Adopt any regulation limiting emissions from wood heaters; or
2. Enforce against a manufacturer, distributor, or consumer any federal regulation limiting emissions from wood heaters adopted after May 1, 2014.
H. The Department shall submit an annual report to the Governor and General Assembly on or before October 1 of each year on matters relating to the Commonwealth's air pollution control policies and on the status of the Commonwealth's air quality.
I. In granting a permit pursuant to this section, the
Department shall provide in writing a clear and concise statement of the legal
basis, scientific rationale, and justification for the decision reached. When
the decision of the Department is to deny a permit,
pursuant to this section, the Department shall, in consultation with legal
counsel, provide a clear and concise statement explaining the reason for the
denial, the scientific justification for the same, and how the Department's
decision is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Copies of the
decision, certified by the Director, shall be mailed by certified mail to the
permittee or applicant.
2. That §10.1-1307.05 of the Code of Virginia is repealed.
