Date of Adoption: February 4, 1999.

Purpose: The purpose of the proposed changes was to increase the registration fees collected by SWAPCA to pay for existing programs. The fee increase proposed did not result in an increase in the budget, it merely accounted for reduction in federal grant money.

Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending SWAPCA 400-100.

Statutory Authority for Adoption: [No information supplied by agency.]

Adopted under notice filed as WSR 98-15-044 on July 8, 1999 [1998].

Changes Other than Editing from Proposed to Adopted Version: SWAPCA originally proposed doubling the registration fee from $100 per emission unit to $200. As a result of public comment, the total dollars to be collected remained unchanged, however, the methodology for assessing the fee amount was changed from a flat fee concept to a "polluter pays" concept.

Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0. Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.

March 3, 1999

Robert D. Elliott

Executive Director

SWAPCA 400-100 Registration Requirements and Operating Permit Fees

[Statutory Authority: Chapter 70.94.141 RCW, 70.94,151 RCW, 70.94.162 RCW, 70.94.200 RCW, and 70.94.395 RCW. Original Board adoption 10/29/69 (Regulation 2 Sec 3); Amended by Board 12/18/79; Amended by Board 8/18/81; Amended by Board 3/20/84; 92-04-030 filed 1/28/92, effective 2/28/92; 93-21-004 filed 10/7/93, effective 11/8/93; 95-17-084 filed 8/21/95, effective 9/21/95]

(1) Applicability. All sources or emission units that emit contaminants to the ambient air shall be registered with the Authority in accordance with this section as set forth in RCW 70.94.151 except those sources or emission units specifically exempted by SWAPCA 400-100(3) and SWAPCA 400-101.

(2) General requirements.

(a) A unique registration number shall be assigned to all sources required to be registered with SWAPCA and a separate registration fee shall be provided for each air contaminant emission unit; provided that, an owner has the option to register a process with a detailed inventory of air contaminant sources and emissions related to the process. A registration fee shall not be collected for exempt emission units identified at SWAPCA 400-101.

(((b) Each registration submittal shall be certified for truth, accuracy and completeness by the owner or operator.))

(b((c))) Registration information shall be provided on forms supplied by the Authority and the forms shall be verified by the source and returned to the Authority with payment in full within the time specified by the Authority.

(c((d))) Annual registration fees that are unpaid after ((July 31)) June 30 for the effective year shall be considered to be in default and the source shall be considered to be out of business and in violation of item (d) ((above)) below for failure to report closure. At the discretion of the Control Officer, all Orders of Approval for existing equipment shall become invalid for this source and the source shall be required to submit a Notice of Construction and applicable fees in accordance with SWAPCA 400-110 prior to resuming operations. Prior to taking actions to 'un-register' a source, the source must be notified by certified letter. The registration program covers the period of July 1 through June 30. Sources or emission units operating less than six months in the current registration period that are terminated, shall not be liable for registration fees. This does not apply to temporary or portable stationary sources.

(d((e))) A report of closure or discontinuance shall be filed with the Authority within ninety days after operations producing emissions permanently cease at any source. (Refer to SWAPCA 400-230 for issuance of an Order of Discontinuance.)

(3) Registration Fees. Before the Control Officer may register any emission unit, the use of which may emit contaminants to the atmosphere, an annual registration fee of $((100.00)) 75.00 for each emission unit, plus $25 per ton of each criteria air pollutant and VOC (combined) for fiscal year 1998/1999, plus $10 per ton of total toxic air pollutants greater than 1.0 ton, shall be paid. The $25 per ton of each criteria air pollutant and VOC shall be adjusted in fiscal year 1999/2000, and beyond, to $39 per ton. ((For new stationary sources, registration fees for the first year are included as part of the fees collected for a Notice of Construction application and shall not be considered in addition to those fees.))

(a) Exceptions:

(i) An annual registration fee of $50.00 shall be charged to each gasoline transport tank.

(ii) The registration fee for a small operation may be waived or reduced by the Control Officer provided sufficient demonstration of circumstances is presented, subject to the discretion of the Control Officer.

(iii) Emissions units and activities specifically exempted under SWAPCA 400-101 are not required to comply with the requirements of this section.

(iv) Operating Permit Program sources, as defined in RCW 70.94.030(17) shall pay an operating permit fee in accordance with SWAPCA 400-100(4). Operating Permit Program sources, as defined in RCW 70.94.030(17) are not required to comply with the registration requirements of this section after EPA grants interim or final approval of the SWAPCA Operating Permit Program pursuant to 40 CFR Part 70.

(4) Operating Permit Fees. Fee determination and certification for sources subject to 70.94.161 RCW requirements.

(a) Applicability. The owner or operator of all sources subject to the requirement to obtain an Operating Permit under 40 CFR 70 or 70.94.161 RCW, shall pay an annual fee, or the equivalent over some other period as approved, subject to the discretion of the Control Officer, sufficient to cover all reasonable (direct and indirect) costs required to develop and administer the Operating Permit Program requirements as specified in this section.

(b) Pollutants for which fees will be assessed.

(1) A volatile organic compound.

(2) Each pollutant regulated under Section 7411 or 7412 of the 1990 Federal Clean Air Act Amendments.

(3) Each pollutant for which a national primary ambient air quality standard has been promulgated except that carbon monoxide shall be excluded from this reference. PM₁₀ emissions will be utilized for purposes of calculating particulate matter emissions when such data is provided by the 40 CFR Part 70 source. Source test data is required to demonstrate the PM₁₀ portion of total particulate matter emissions.

(4) Emissions of each regulated pollutant emitted in excess of 7500 tons from a source shall be excluded from fee assessment.

(c) Program cost projections. The Authority shall prepare an Operating Permit Program budget each year based on a projected workload evaluation. Only fee eligible activities as specified in SWAPCA 400-100(f) and Ecology's development and oversight costs, as provided in RCW 70.94.162 shall be considered in the workload analysis. The projected budget shall be submitted to the Authority's Technical Advisory Council, as described in SWAPCA 400-172, for comments. The Technical Advisory Council shall be given an opportunity to provide input regarding the projected budget. The Control Officer shall evaluate all comments and revise the projected budget where deemed appropriate. After consideration of the comments, the Control Officer shall submit the proposed budget to the Board of Directors for approval. The approved budget shall be used in the equations below to determine the Operating Permit Program fees. The Authority shall publish the proposed and approved budgets and workload analysis in the Permit Register.

(d) Three part fee assessment methodology. Operating Permit Program fees shall be determined using a three part fee assessment methodology as described below:

(1) Participation Fee. Fees sufficient to cover one-third of the Board approved Operating Permit Program budget shall be assessed such that each source shall pay an equal share. The total Operating Permit Program budget shall be divided by three. This amount shall be further divided by the number of 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction. Participation fees shall be equal in amount for each 40 CFR Part 70 source. The participation portion of the fee shall be assessed according to the following formula:

PF = B÷3÷n, where;

PF = Participation fee portion of total fee;

B = The total Authority budget for the Operating Permit Program;

n = The number of 40 CFR Part 70 sources.

(2) Emissions Fee. Fees sufficient to cover one-third of the budget shall be assessed such that each source shall pay an amount equal to that source's portion of the total annual emissions of the fee applicable pollutants from all 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction. The total Operating Permit Program budget shall be divided by three. The ratio of each source's annual emissions (in tons) to the total annual emissions of fee applicable pollutants emitted by all 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction shall be paid by the owner or operator of each source. The emissions portion of the fee shall be assessed according to the following formula:

EF = B÷3*SE÷TE, where:

EF = Emissions fee portion of total fee;

B = The total Authority budget for the Operating Permit Program;

SE = The sum of annual emissions of fee applicable pollutants in tons per year from the individual 40 CFR Part 70 source;

TE = The sum of annual emissions of fee applicable pollutants in tons per year from all 40 CFR Part 70 sources.

(3) Complexity Fee. Fees sufficient to cover one-third of the budget shall be assessed such that each 40 CFR Part 70 source shall pay an amount equal to that source's portion of the total emissions units at all 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction. The total Operating Permit Program budget shall be divided by three. The ratio of each source's emissions units to the total number of emissions units located at all 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction shall be paid by the owner or operator of each source. The complexity portion of the fee shall be assessed according to the following formula:

CF = B÷3*SU÷TU, where:

CF = Complexity fee portion of total fee;

B = The total Authority budget for the Operating Permit Program;

SU = The number of emission units at a source;

TU = The number of emissions units at all 40 CFR Part 70 sources.

(4) Total Fee. The amount of the annual assessed fees for each 40 CFR Part 70 source shall be the sum of the participation, emissions and complexity fee portions (PF+EF+CF = Total Fee). The sum of the total fees for all 40 CFR Part 70 sources within the Authority's jurisdiction shall be equal in amount to the Board adopted budget for the Operating Permit Program.

(e) Accountability.

(1) The sum of the fees assessed by the Authority to all sources required to obtain Operating Permits within the Authority's jurisdiction shall not exceed the cost of developing and administering the program. All fees collected from permit program sources as provided in RCW 70.94.162, shall be deposited in a dedicated air operating permit account. Such fees shall be used exclusively to support and administer the operating permit program.

(2) The Authority shall keep a record of all reasonable (direct and indirect) costs to develop and administer the Operating Permit Program as specified in 40 CFR Part 70. This information shall be used by the Authority to develop the Operating Permit Program budget specified in section (3) above. The information obtained from tracking revenues, time and expenditures shall not provide a basis for challenge to the amount of an individual source's fee.

(3) In the event that the assessed fees exceed the cost of developing and administering the Operating Permit Program, such excess fees shall be used to develop and administer the Operating Permit Program in the next subsequent year. The amount of the excess fees shall be deducted from the projected budget of the next subsequent year prior to fee assessment for the subsequent year.

(f) Fee eligible activities.

(1) Preapplication assistance and review of an application and proposed compliance plan for a permit, permit revision or permit renewal;

(2) Source inspections, testing and other data gathering activities necessary for development of a permit, permit revision or renewal;

(3) Acting on an application for a permit, permit revision or renewal, including the costs of developing an applicable requirement as part of the processing of a permit, permit revision or renewal, preparing a draft permit and fact sheet and preparing a final permit, but excluding the costs of developing BACT, LAER, BART or RACT requirements for criteria and toxic air pollutants;

(4) Notifying and soliciting, reviewing and responding to comment from the public and contiguous states and tribes, conducting public hearings regarding the issuance of a draft permit and other costs of providing information to the public regarding operating permits and the permit issuance process;

(5) Modeling necessary to establish permit limits or to determine compliance with permit limits;

(6) Reviewing compliance certifications and emission reports, conducting related compilation and reporting activities;

(7) Conducting compliance inspections, complaint investigations and other activities necessary to ensure that a source is complying with permit conditions;

(8) Administrative enforcement activities and penalty assessment, excluding the costs of proceedings before the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB) and all costs of judicial enforcement;

(9) The share attributable to permitted sources to the development and maintenance of emissions inventories;

(10) The share attributable to permitted sources of ambient air quality monitoring and associated recording and reporting activities;

(11) Training for permit administration and enforcement;

(12) Fee determination, assessment and collection, including the costs of necessary administrative dispute resolution and enforcement;

(13) Required fiscal audits, periodic performance audits and reporting activities;

(14) Tracking of time, revenues and expenditures and accounting activities;

(15) Administering the permit program including costs of clerical support, supervision and management;

(16) Provision of assistance to small business under jurisdiction of SWAPCA as required under Section 507 of the Federal Clean Air Act; and

(17) Other activities required by operating permit regulations issued by EPA under the Federal Clean Air Act.

(g) Late Fee Payments. Fees shall be paid in accordance with the schedule of payment agreed upon in advance by the Control Officer and each operating permit source. Delinquent fees are subject to a late fee equal to three times the operating permit fee. The penalties authorized by this subsection are additional to and in no way prejudice SWAPCA's ability to exercise other civil and criminal remedies, including authority to revoke a source's operating permit for failure to pay all or part of its permit fee.

(h) Schedules of Payment. A source shall be allowed to pay its annual operating permit fees in one, two or four installments. Each schedule of payment shall specify the terms and dates of payments.

(i) Transfer of Ownership. Transfer of ownership of a source shall not affect that source's obligation to pay operating permit fees. Any liability for fee payment, including payment of delinquent fees and other penalties shall survive any transfer of ownership of a source.

(5) Inspections.

(a) Periodic onsite inspections of emission units and sources shall be allowed to verify compliance with applicable requirements, regulations, orders or rules governing the processes, equipment, or emissions from a source as set forth in RCW 70.94.200.

(b) Authority personnel or representatives shall have the authority to enter at reasonable times upon any private or public property excepting non-multiple unit private dwellings housing two families or less for the purpose of investigating conditions specific to the control, recovery, or release of air contaminants to the atmosphere.

(c) No person shall refuse entry or access to Authority personnel who request entry for the purpose of inspection, who present appropriate credentials.

(d) No person shall obstruct, hamper or interfere with any such inspection.

Reviser's note: The brackets and enclosed material in the text of the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appear in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.

Reviser's note: The typographical error in the above material occurred in the copy filed by the Southwest Air Pollution Control Authority and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.

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