June 20, 2013, Introduced by Senators CASPERSON, ROBERTSON, HANSEN, GREEN and BOOHER and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, Environment and Great Lakes.
A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
by amending sections 3306, 3307, 3309, and 3311 (MCL 324.3306,
324.3307, 324.3309, and 324.3311), section 3306 as amended by 2011
PA 90 and sections 3307, 3309, and 3311 as added by 2004 PA 246,
and by adding section 3315.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec.
3306. (1) Until October 1, 2015, 2018, an application for
a certificate of coverage under this part shall be accompanied by a
fee
of $75.00. Until October 1, 2015, 2018, and subject to
subsection (2), an application for an individual permit under this
part shall be accompanied by the following fee, based on the size
of the area of impact:
(a) Less than 1/2 acre, $75.00.
(b)
One-half 1/2 acre or more but less than 5 acres, $200.00.
(c)
Five 5 acres or more but less than 20 acres, $400.00.
(d)
Twenty 20 acres or more but less than 100 acres, $800.00.
(e)
One hundred 100 acres or more, $1,500.00.
(2) A fee under this section or section 3309 may be paid by
credit or debit card or electronic fund transfer. The department
shall determine which major credit and debit cards may be used to
pay a fee. If a fee is paid by credit or debit card, the department
may collect a service assessment from the user of the credit or
debit card. The service assessment shall not exceed the actual cost
to the department of the credit or debit card transaction or the
amount appropriated to cover service assessments, whichever is
less.
(3) (2)
The department shall forward fees
collected under this
section to the state treasurer for deposit in the land and water
management permit fee fund created in section 30113.
(4) The department shall not charge a fee for an amendment to
an application for a certificate of coverage or permit, including
an amendment to an application after that application has been
resubmitted under section 3307(7).
Sec. 3307. (1) An application for a certificate of coverage or
permit may be submitted electronically.
(2)
(1) The department shall either approve or deny an
application
for a certificate of coverage by May 1 or within the
later of the following dates:
(a) April 1.
(b)
15 working days after receipt of a
complete application. ,
whichever
is later.
(3) If the department denies an application for a certificate
of coverage, the department shall notify the applicant, in writing,
of the reasons for the denial.
(4) (2)
The department shall approve an
application for a
permit in whole or part and issue the permit, or shall deny the
application,
by May 1 or within the
latest of the following dates:
(a) April 1.
(b)
30 working days after receipt of a
complete application. ,
whichever
is later.This subdivision
does not apply if subdivision
(c) applies.
(c) 15 working days after receipt of a complete application if
the water body is listed on the registry under subsection (9) as
being infested with the particular aquatic nuisance species that
the applicant proposes to control under the permit.
(5) The department shall not delay processing an application
for a permit or certificate of coverage because the department has
not completed processing of the fee payment accompanying the
application.
(6) If the department approves the application for a permit in
part
or denies the application, the department shall, by the same
deadline for approval or denial of the application, notify the
applicant, in writing, of the reasons for the partial approval or
denial.
(7) The department shall not deny an application for a
certificate of coverage or a permit because it was submitted after
a certain date in the year in which treatment is proposed. If the
department approves an application in part or denies an
application, the applicant may resubmit the application with
amendments to address the reasons for partial approval or denial.
The resubmitted application is not subject to an additional fee.
(8) (3)
If the department fails to satisfy
the requirements of
subsection
(1) or (2) subsections (2) to
(7) with respect to an
application
for a certificate of coverage or a permit, the all of
the following apply:
(a) The department shall pay the applicant an amount equal to
15% of the application fee specified in section 3306 for that
certificate of coverage or permit.
(b) The application shall be considered to be approved and the
department shall be considered to have made any determination
required for approval if all of the following apply:
(i) The proposed area of impact is the same as or entirely
contained within the area of impact approved in a previous permit.
(ii) The active ingredient or trade name of each chemical
proposed to be applied is the same as approved in a previous permit
and each chemical is currently approved for use by the department.
(iii) The application rate and number of treatments do not
exceed those approved in the previous permit.
(iv) The minimum length of time between treatments is not less
than that approved in the previous permit.
(9) The department shall post and maintain on its website a
registry of water bodies infested by aquatic nuisance species and
the particular aquatic nuisance species infesting each water body.
The registry shall be based on information from all of the
following:
(a) Permits and certificates of coverage issued under this
part.
(b) Reports received by the department from any of the
following:
(i) Certified applicators or registered applicators under part
83.
(ii) Representatives of public or private institutions of
higher education.
(iii) Representatives of any other state, local, or federal
agency with responsibility for the environment or natural
resources.
Sec. 3309. (1) A permit under this part shall, at a minimum,
include all of the following information:
(a) The active ingredient or the trade name of each chemical
to be applied.
(b) The application rate of each chemical.
(c) The maximum amount of each chemical to be applied per
treatment.
(d) Minimum length of time between treatments for each
chemical.
(e) A map or maps that clearly delineate the approved area of
impact.
(f) The term of the permit, which shall not be less than 3
years.
(2) A permit under this part shall authorize chemical
treatment in each year covered by the permit. This subsection does
not apply to a chemical if its annual use was restricted in rules
in effect on the effective date of the amendatory act that added
this subsection.
(3) By April 1 of the second and each subsequent year of a
permit, the permittee shall pay the department an annual fee. The
annual fee shall equal the permit application fee for that permit
under section 3306 including, for annual fees due after the initial
treatment of an expanded area of impact under section 3311(3), the
additional fee under section 3311(3)(d). However, the last annual
fee is subject to a discount equal to 5% multiplied by the number
of years in the term of the permit in excess of 1 year. If an
annual fee is not received by the department by April 1, the permit
is suspended until the annual fee is paid. When the application fee
for a permit is paid, an applicant may choose to also pay in
advance all the annual fees that will become due under this
subsection if the permit is granted for the term requested by the
applicant. If the application is denied or is granted for a shorter
period than the applicant requested, the department shall refund
those annual fees that will not become due.
(4) (2)
The Subject to subsection
(1)(f), the department may
impose additional conditions on a permit under this part to protect
the natural resources or the public health, to prevent economic
loss or impairment of recreational uses, to protect nontarget
organisms, or to help ensure control of the aquatic nuisance.
Sec.
3311. (1) The department may make minor revisions to a
permit under this part, to minimize the impacts to the natural
resources,
public health, and safety , or to
improve aquatic
nuisance
control, if the proposed revisions do not involve a change
in
the scope of the project , and the permittee requests the
revisions in writing. The department shall not charge a fee for a
request for revisions to a permit. The department shall approve a
request for revisions to a permit in whole or in part or deny the
request within 2 business days after the request is received. The
request shall include all of the following information:
(a) The proposed changes to the permit.
(b) An explanation of the necessity for the proposed changes.
(c) Maps that clearly delineate any proposed changes to the
area of impact.
(d) Additional information that would help the department
reach a decision on a permit amendment.
(2) If the permittee has written authorization to act on
behalf of a person described in section 3303(4)(a), (b), or (c),
upon written request of the person, the department shall transfer
the permit to a new permittee with written authorization to act on
behalf of that person. The department shall notify the original
permittee of the transfer of the permit.
(3) A permittee may, without a revision to the permit or
certificate of coverage, expand the area of impact beyond that
authorized in the permit or certificate of coverage to include
adjacent waters that become infested after the application for the
permit or certificate of coverage was submitted to the department.
The permittee may increase the amount of chemicals, as authorized
in the permit or certificate of coverage, according to the approved
product label to match the expansion in the area of impact. The
permittee shall, within 15 business days after the initial
treatment of the expanded area of impact, provide the department
with all of the following:
(a) A written explanation of the necessity for the expansion
of the area of impact.
(b) A map that clearly delineates the changes to the area of
impact.
(c) A written statement specifying the increase in the amount
of chemicals used or to be used as a result of the expansion of the
area of impact.
(d) If the permit application fee under section 3306 would
have been higher if the expanded area of impact had been included
in the permit application, a fee equal to the difference between
the application fee paid and the application fee that would have
been due.
Sec. 3315. (1) A local unit of government may adopt an
ordinance for the prevention, control, or eradication of aquatic
nuisances in a waterbody, other than a Great Lake or connecting
water, that lies in whole or in part within the boundaries of the
local unit of government.
(2) An ordinance under this section may require the payment of
a fee for the launching or use of a vessel in the waterbody if the
fee is used exclusively for the purposes described in subsection
(1) and the costs of administering and enforcing the ordinance.
However, the fee shall not be charged unless the department has
determined in writing, such as by issuance of a permit under this
part, that the waterbody is infested with an aquatic nuisance. The
fee shall not be charged after the aquatic nuisances in the
waterbody have been eradicated. The ordinance may exempt a
pesticide applicator, lake management consultant, or other person
engaged in aquatic nuisance management activities; a government
entity; or a nonprofit organization from the fee. Not more than 5%
of the revenue collected from the fee shall be used for
administration.
(3) An ordinance under this section is not enforceable unless
1 of the following applies:
(a) The same ordinance is adopted by least 50% of the cities
and townships within which the waterbody is located and at least
2/3 of the shoreline of the waterbody is located within those
cities and townships.
(b) The same ordinance is adopted by least 50% of the counties
within which the waterbody is located and at least 2/3 of the
shoreline of the waterbody is located within those counties.
(4) An ordinance adopted under this section shall not conflict
with state law.