HB 5318 — AN ACT ESTABLISHING LOCAL REPRESENTATION ON THE CONNECTICUT SITING COUNCIL FOR CERTAIN PROJECTS.

General Assembly ProposedCommittee Bill No.

4963392 Referred to Committee on ENVIRONMENT Introduced by:

REP.(ENV) AN ACT ESTABLISHING LOCAL REPRESENTATION ON THE CONNECTICUT SITING COUNCIL FOR CERTAIN PROJECTS.

HARDING, 107 Dist.

AN ACT ESTABLISHING LOCAL REPRESENTATION ON THE CONNECTICUT SITING COUNCIL FOR PROJECTS.

ThatSection the1. general statutes be amended to establish local representation on the Connecticut Siting Council for each project considered by the council.

StatementSection 16-50j of Purpose:the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2019):

To(a) requireThere localis representationestablished fora "Connecticut Siting Council", hereinafter referred to as the consideration"council", ofwhich projectsshall bybe within the ConnecticutDepartment Sitingof Council.Energy and Environmental Protection for administrative purposes only.

(b) Except for proceedings under chapter 445, this subsection and subsection (c) of this section, the council shall consist of:

(1) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, or his designee;

(2) the chairperson of the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, or the chairperson's designee;

(3) one designee of the speaker of the House and one designee of the president pro tempore of the Senate;

and (4) five members of the public, to be appointed by the Governor, at least two of whom shall be experienced in the field of ecology, and not more than one of whom shall have affiliation, past or LCO No.

3392 1 of 5 Committee Bill No.5318 present, with any utility or governmental utility regulatory agency, or with any person owning, operating, controlling, or presently contracting with respect to a facility, a hazardous waste facility, as defined in section 22a-115, or an ash residue disposal area.

(c) For proceedings under chapter 445, subsection (b) of this section and this subsection, the council shall consist of (1) the Commissioners of Public Health and Emergency Services and Public Protection or their designated representatives;

(2) the designees of the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate as provided in subsection (b) of this section;

(3) the five members of the public as provided in subsection (b) of this section;

and (4) four ad hoc members, three of whom shall be electors from the municipality in which the proposed facility is to be located and one of whom shall be an elector from a neighboring municipality likely to be most affected by the proposed facility.

The municipality most affected by the proposed facility shall be determined by the permanent members of the council.

If any one of the five members of the public or of the designees of the speaker of the House of Representatives or the president pro tempore of the Senate resides (A) in the municipality in which a hazardous waste facility is proposed to be located for a proceeding concerning a hazardous waste facility or in which a low- level radioactive waste facility is proposed to be located for a proceeding concerning a low-level radioactive waste facility, or (B) in the neighboring municipality likely to be most affected by the proposed facility, the appointing authority shall appoint a substitute member for the proceedings on such proposal.

If any appointee is unable to perform his duties on the council due to illness, or has a substantial financial or employment interest which is in conflict with the proper discharge of his duties under this chapter, the appointing authority shall appoint a substitute member for proceedings on such proposal.

An appointee shall report any substantial financial or employment interest which might conflict with the proper discharge of his duties under this chapter to the appointing authority who shall determine if such conflict exists.

If any state agency is the applicant, an LCO No.

3392 2 of 5 Committee Bill No.5318 appointee shall not be deemed to have a substantial employment conflict of interest because of employment with the state unless such appointee is directly employed by the state agency making the application.

Ad hoc members shall be appointed by the chief elected official of the municipality they represent and shall continue their membership until the council issues a letter of completion of the development and management plan to the applicant.

(d) For proceedings involving any electric distribution company, in addition to the membership provided for in subsection (b) of this section, the council shall consist of one elector from each municipality in which such facility is proposed to be located.

Each such member shall serve as a nonvoting member for purposes of such proceeding.

[(d)] (e) The chairman of the council shall be appointed by the Governor from among the five public members appointed by him, with the advice and consent of the House or Senate, and shall serve as chairman at the pleasure of the Governor.

[(e)] (f) The public members of the council, including the chairman, the members appointed by the speaker of the House and president pro tempore of the Senate and the four ad hoc members specified in subsection (c) of this section, shall be compensated for their attendance at public hearings, executive sessions, or other council business as may require their attendance at the rate of two hundred dollars, provided in no case shall the daily compensation exceed two hundred dollars.

[(f)] (g) The council shall, in addition to its other duties prescribed in this chapter, adopt, amend, or rescind suitable regulations to carry out the provisions of this chapter and the policies and practices of the council in connection therewith, and appoint and prescribe the duties of such staff as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.

The chairman of the council, with the consent of five or more other members of the council, may appoint an executive director, who shall be the chief administrative officer of the Connecticut Siting Council.

The executive director shall be exempt from classified service.

4963392 13 of 15 Committee Bill No.5318 [(g)] (h) Prior to commencing any hearing pursuant to section 16- 50m, the council shall consult with and solicit written comments from (1) the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Department of Public Health, the Council on Environmental Quality, the Department of Agriculture, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, the Office of Policy and Management, the Department of Economic and Community Development and the Department of Transportation, and (2) in a hearing pursuant to section 16-50m, for a facility described in subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 16-50i, the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, the Department of Consumer Protection, the Department of Administrative Services and the Labor Department.

Copies of such comments shall be made available to all parties prior to the commencement of the hearing.

Subsequent to the commencement of the hearing, said departments and council may file additional written comments with the council within such period of time as the council designates.

All such written comments shall be made part of the record provided by section 16-50o.

Said departments and council shall not enter any contract or agreement with any party to the proceedings or hearings described in this section or section 16-50p that requires said departments or council to withhold or retract comments, refrain from participating in or withdraw from said proceedings or hearings.

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2019 16-50j Statement of Purpose:

To establish local representation via nonvoting members of the Siting Council for certain projects.