SB 1146 — AN ACT CONCERNING REVISIONS TO VARIOUS PROGRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION.

517(a) 8The sSB1146Commissioner Fileof Energy and Environmental Protection, at least thirty days before approving or denying an application under section 22a-32, 22a-39, 22a-174, 22a-208a, 22a-342, 22a-361, 22a-368, 22a- or 22a-430, subsection (b) or (c) of section 22a-449, section 22a-454 or Section 401 of the federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 USC 466 et seq.), shall publish or cause to be published, at the applicant's expense, once in a newspaper having a substantial circulation in the affected area and, if such application pertains to a single-family residential property, on the Internet web site used for local land use decisions in the municipality where such property is located and on the Internet web site of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection notice of the commissioner's tentative determination regarding such Public Act No.

51723-196 repealed9 andof the15 followingSubstitute isSenate substitutedBill inNo. lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a)1146 The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, at least thirty days before approving or denying an application under section 22a-32, 22a-39, 22a-174, 22a-208a, 22a-342, 22a-361, 22a-368, 22a- 403 or 22a-430, subsection (b) or (c) of section 22a-449, section 22a-454 or Section 401 of the federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 USC 466 et seq.), shall publish or cause to be published, at the applicant's expense, once in a newspaper having a substantial circulation in the affected area or, if such application pertains to a single-family residential property, on the Internet web site used for local land use decisions in the municipality where such property is located and on the Internet web site of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection notice of the commissioner's tentative determination regarding such application.Suchnotice shallinclude:(1)The name andmailing address of the applicant and the address of the location of the proposed activity;

Nothing in this section shall preclude thecommissioner fromgivingsuchadditionalnotice asmay berequired by any other provision of this title or regulations adopted hereunder, or by the federal Clean Air Act, federal Clean Water Act or federal sSB1146Resource /Conservation Fileand No.Recovery Act.

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517 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

(a) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection may make grants under the open space and watershed land acquisition programPublic to:Act No.

23-196 10 of 15 Substitute Senate Bill No.

1146 program to:

and (5) distressed municipalities or targeted investment communities, as defined in section 32-9p, or, with the approval of the chief elected official or governing legislative body of such a municipality or community, to a nonprofit land conservation organization or water company, for acquisition of land within that municipality or community, for open space under subdivisions (1) to (6), inclusive, of subsection (b) of said section 7-131d, as amended by this act, in an amount not to exceed sSB1146seventy-five /per Filecent No.of such value or for performance of work in the restoration, enhancement or protection of resources in an amount not to exceed fifty per cent of the cost of such work.

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517 seventy-five per cent of such value or for performance of work in the restoration, enhancement or protection of resources in an amount not to exceed fifty per cent of the cost of such work.

(b) For purposes of this subsection, the fair market value of land or interestPublic inAct landNo. shall be determined by one or more appraisals satisfactory to the commissioner and shall not include incidental costs, including, but not limited to, surveying, development or closing costs.

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1146 interest in land shall be determined by one or more appraisals satisfactory to the commissioner and shall not include incidental costs, including, but not limited to, surveying, development or closing costs.

or (4) that such project is located in an area sSB1146of /the Filestate No.with a limited amount of land available for such recreational opportunity or natural resource protection and is consistent with:

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517 of the state with a limited amount of land available for such recreational opportunity or natural resource protection and is consistent with:

and (C) any written guidelines developed by the commissioner pursuantPublic toAct saidNo. subsection.

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1146 pursuant to said subsection.

[(c)] (d) To the extent there is a balance of bonds authorized but not allocated by the State Bond Commission on or after July 1, 1998, pursuant to any bond act for the purposes of (1) the recreation and sSB1146natural /heritage Filetrust program established under sections 23-73 to 23- 79, inclusive, and (2) the municipal open space grant program established under sections 7-131c to 7-131g, inclusive, as amended by this act, the State Bond Commission shall authorize the issuance of such Public Act No.

51723-196 1213 sSB1146of File15 Substitute Senate Bill No.

5171146 natural heritage trust program established under sections 23-73 to 23- 79, inclusive, and (2) the municipal open space grant program established under sections 7-131c to 7-131g, inclusive, as amended by this act, the State Bond Commission shall authorize the issuance of such balance only for the purposes described in section 23-74 and sections 23- 75 and 7-131d, as amended by this act, and in two substantially equal installments one in each half of the fiscal year commencing with the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999.

This subsection shall not prohibit the sSB1146continuation /of Fileagricultural activity, the activities of a water company Public Act No.

51723-196 1314 sSB1146of File15 Substitute Senate Bill No.

5171146 continuation of agricultural activity, the activities of a water company for public water supply purposes or the selling of timber incidental to management of the land which management is in accordance with approved forest management practices provided any proceeds of such timber sales shall be used for management of the land.

ThisApproved actJune shall29, take2023 effectPublic asAct followsNo. and shall amend the following sections:

Section23-196 115 fromof passage15 26-5 Sec.

2 from passage 26-113 Sec.

3 from passage 26-159c Sec.

4 from passage 26-102 Sec.

5 from passage 26-116 Sec.

6 from passage 26-137 Sec.

7 from passage 26-142b Sec.

8 from passage 22a-6g(a) Sec.

9 from passage 22a-6h(a) Sec.

10 from passage 7-131g Sec.

11 from passage 7-131d(c) ENV Joint Favorable Subst.

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517 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.

In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.

Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:

Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Treasurer, Debt Serv.

GF - Potential See Below See Below Cost Department of Energy and GF - Potential Minimal Minimal Environmental Protection Revenue Gain Department of Energy and GF - Savings Minimal Minimal Environmental Protection Note:

GF=General Fund Municipal Impact:

None Explanation The bill changes various laws under the administration of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), resulting in a potential debt service impact and minimal positive fiscal impacts to DEEP, beginning in FY 24.

Sections 2, 3, and 9 results in a minimal savings to DEEP beginning in FY 24 as the agency is required to post certain notices online, instead of advertising these notices in a print newspaper.

Posting these notices on a municipality’s website results in no anticipated fiscal impact to municipalities as they have the resources available to complete this requirement.

Section 6 may result in a minimal revenue gain to DEEP beginning in FY 24 as it creates a distance-based prohibition for lamprey fishing, subjecting anyone who violates requirement established in the bill to a $250 fine, per fish.

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517 Sections 10 and 11 expand the potential pool of applicants under the Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Program (OSWA) administered by DEEP.

This could result in increased or more rapiduse of previously-authorized bond funds.

There is an existing General Obligation (GO) bond authorization for the program.

Future General Fund debt service costs may be incurred sooner under the bill to the degree that it causes authorized GO bond funds to be expended or to be expended more rapidly than they otherwise would have been.

As of April 10, 2023, there is an unallocated bond balance of $22 million available under the relevant authorization.

The bill does not change GO bond authorizations relevant to the program.

The bill also makes other technical and clarifying changes that are not anticipated to have a fiscal impact.

The Out Years The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to inflation, the number of notices posted,thenumberofrelevantlampreyfishingviolations, andtheterms of any bonds issued.

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517 OLR Bill Analysis sSB 1146 AN ACT CONCERNING REVISIONS TO VARIOUS PROGRAMS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

SUMMARY § 1 — CONSERVATION OFFICER TRAINING REQUIREMENTS Requires conservation officers to become POST-certified within one year after being appointed;

updates training requirements for special conservation officers and certain lake patrolmen §§ 2 & 3 — PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE ON FISHING REGULATIONS Requires the DEEP commissioner to post notice of a public hearing on proposed fishing regulations on DEEP’s website and the state’s eRegulations system;

requires her to give the notice to affected municipalities so they may post it on their websites §§ 4 & 5 — EMERGENCY CLOSED SEASON FOR THREATENED REGULATED SPECIES Authorizes the DEEP commissioner to declare an emergency closed season for any regulated species threatened with undue depletion, rather than just a threatened fish species;

specifies that this authority applies to recreational and commercial fishing § 6 — LAMPREY FISHING NEAR FISHWAYS PROHIBITED Prohibits lamprey fishing within 250 feet of a fishway (or other distance the DEEP commissioner sets) § 7 — TRANSFERRING COMMERCIAL FISHING LICENSES Expands the circumstances under which DEEP may temporarily reissue or permanently transfer certain commercial fishing licenses §§ 8 & 9 — PERMIT OR LICENSE APPLICATION PUBLIC NOTICE Allows certain permit or license applicants to publish notice of their application in a newspaper or on the affected municipality’s website;

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517 requires notice to also be published on DEEP’s website;

requires DEEP to publish certain tentative determinations on its website §§ 10 & 11 — OPEN SPACE AND WATERSHED LAND ACQUISITION PROGRAM GRANTS Provides an exception to the general program rule that state grants cannot be made for land that is already committed for public use;

specifies criteria for the exception to apply SUMMARY This bill makes changes in various statutes and programs related to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), as summarized in the section-by-section analysis below.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

Upon passage § 1 — CONSERVATION OFFICER TRAINING REQUIREMENTS Requires conservation officers to become POST-certified within one year after being appointed;

updates training requirements for special conservation officers and certain lake patrolmen Under current law, each DEEP-appointed conservation officer or special conservation officer must either complete a police training course at the state police training school or an equivalent course approved by the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) commissioner.

The bill instead requires each conservation officer to become certified by the Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POST) within one year after being appointed.

It also requires each special conservation officer to become POST-certified or complete a DESPP commissioner-approved equivalent course.

For lake patrolmen appointed by DEEP as special conservation officers to enforce boating laws in their respective jurisdictions, the bill requires each to complete a police training course at a POST-approved training academy.

Current law requires they complete the course at the state police training school or an equivalent DESPP commissioner- approved course.

§§ 2 & 3 — PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE ON FISHING REGULATIONS sSB1146 / File No.

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517 Requires the DEEP commissioner to post notice of a public hearing on proposed fishing regulations on DEEP’s website and the state’s eRegulations system;

requires her to give the notice to affected municipalities so they may post it on their websites The bill requires the DEEP commissioner to post notice of a public hearing on proposed fishing regulations for inland and marine fishing (including sport fishing and commercial fishing activities) on DEEP’s website and the state’s eRegulations system, rather than in newspapers as under current law.

The bill requires her to post notice at least 14 days before a hearing.

Current law requires notice of at least 14 days for inland fishing regulations and between 10 and 30 days for marine fishing regulations.

The bill also requires the commissioner, or her designee, to give a copy of a notice on (1) inland fishing regulations to each municipality where the waters are located and (2) marine fishing regulations to each coastal municipality with people substantially affected by the regulations, for publication on the municipalities’ websites.

§§ 4 & 5 — EMERGENCY CLOSED SEASON FOR THREATENED REGULATED SPECIES Authorizes the DEEP commissioner to declare an emergency closed season for any regulated species threatened with undue depletion, rather than just a threatened fish species;

specifies that this authority applies to recreational and commercial fishing The bill expands the DEEP commissioner’s authority to declare an emergency closed season because of undue species depletion to any regulated species, not just a fish species.

“Regulated species” include any bait species, crustaceans, finfish, horseshoe crabs, sea scallops, squid, or whelk (CGS § 26-1).

It also specifies, by removing a statutory conflict, that her emergency closure powers apply to both recreational and commercial fishing.

§ 6 — LAMPREY FISHING NEAR FISHWAYS PROHIBITED Prohibits lamprey fishing within 250 feet of a fishway (or other distance the DEEP commissioner sets) The bill prohibits lamprey fishing within 250 feet of a fishway.

The DEEP commissioner may determine and post a different distance she decides is necessary.

Current law prohibits all fishing near fishways, except for lamprey during its open season.

(A fishway is a passage way sSB1146 / File No.

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517 for fish, usually near dams and artificial obstructions.) Any person who violates the fishing prohibition is subject to a $250 fine.

Each fish taken or possessed is a separate offense (CGS § 26-141).

§ 7 — TRANSFERRING COMMERCIAL FISHING LICENSES Expands the circumstances under which DEEP may temporarily reissue or permanently transfer certain commercial fishing licenses The bill expands the circumstances under which DEEP may temporarily reissue or permanently transfer certain commercial fishing licenses (i.e., principal commercial fishing license, general commercial fishing license, or commercial lobster pot fishing license).

Temporary License Reissue Under current law, the DEEP commissioner may temporarily reissue a commercial fishing license while the licensee is incapacitated and, as a result, cannot operate a vessel or fish.

DEEP may issue a temporary license only to a member ofthelicensee’simmediate family or crew,and for either 12 months, or the period of incapacity, whichever is shorter.

The bill instead allows the commissioner to temporarily reissue a license due to a licensee’s own incapacity or an immediate family member’s medical situation that prevents the licensee from fishing.

The temporary license will be valid for the duration of the licensee’s incapacity or family member’s medical situation.

The bill specifies that any landings made under the temporary license may count toward the requirements for a permanent license transfer.

Permanent License Transfer By law, the DEEP commissioner may permanently transfer a commercial fishing license to another person if the original licensee landed regulated species in at least five of the prior eight years and reported landings to the commissioner for at least 30 fishing days in eachyear.

The billalso allowsthecommissioner to permanently transfer a license if the original licensee owned a vessel that landed regulated species under a quota-managed species license endorsement in at least five of the prior eight years and reported landings to the commissioner sSB1146 / File No.

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517 for at least 30 fishing days in each year.

Additionally, the bill allows a recipient of a transferred license to use a vessel that is 20% greater, rather than 10% as under current law, than the length of the largest vessel the original licensee used when fishing with a trawl net.

Transfer After the Licensee’s Death The bill expands the circumstances under which the DEEP commissioner may transfer a license following the death of a licensee.

By law, she may transfer the license for a two-year period from the date of the licensee’s death by using the permanent transfer process described above.

Under thebill, ifthedeceasedheldalicense for lessthanfive calendar years, the DEEP commissioner may transfer the license as long as the licensee landed regulated species, or owned a vessel that did so under a quota-managed species license endorsement, for at least six months of each year in which the licensee held the license and reported the landings to the commissioner as required for at least 30 fishing days each year.

§§ 8 & 9 — PERMIT OR LICENSE APPLICATION PUBLIC NOTICE Allows certain permit or license applicants to publish notice of their application in a newspaper or on the affected municipality’s website;

requires notice to also be published on DEEP’s website;

requires DEEP to publish certain tentative determinations on its website The bill revises the public notice requirements for applications for certain DEEP-issued permits and licenses for various regulated activities (e.g., constructing dams, constructing solid waste facilities, dredging, stream channel encroachment).

Currently, an applicant must publish notice of an application in a local newspaper.

The bill instead requires the applicant to publish notice either in a local newspaper of general circulation or on the website where the affected municipality posts local land use decisions.

The bill also requires the notice to be published on DEEP’s website.

(By law, the applicant must include a copy of the notice with its application.) sSB1146 / File No.

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517 By law, the DEEP commissioner must publish her tentative determination on an application at least 30 days before approving or denying the application.

Currently, she must publish it in the affected area’s local newspaper with substantial circulation at the applicant’s expense.

Under the bill, if the application relates to a single-family residential property, she must publish her tentative determination on the affected municipality’s website where local land use decisions are posted and on DEEP’s website.

§§ 10 & 11 — OPEN SPACE AND WATERSHED LAND ACQUISITION PROGRAM GRANTS Provides an exception to the general program rule that state grants cannot be made for land that is already committed for public use;

specifies criteria for the exception to apply The Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Program (OSWA) gives state grants to municipalities, land trusts, and water companies to buy land to be preserved as open space in perpetuity.

Current law prohibits OSWA grants for land that is already committed for public use.

The bill creates anexceptionto this.Under the bill, land will not be considered “already committed for public use” if it is subject to a conservation easement or restriction that resulted from a federally funded land conservation program, municipal conservation grant program, or private conservation grant program before the state’s permanent conservation easement is recorded.

Under thebill,inorderfor thisexceptiontoapply, thefollowing must happen:

1.

the non-state conservation easement or restriction must be executed after the OSWA grant agreement has been executed;

2.

any non-federal holder of easements must subordinate their interests in the land to the state’s interests when the state’s permanent conservation easement is recorded;

3.

funds associated with non-state easements or restrictions (i.e., federal funds, municipal grant funds, or private grant funds) must be used as matching funds for the OSWA grant;

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517 4.

the DEEP commissioner must determine that the conveyance of the other conservation easement or restriction, in combination with the acquisition of the state’s interest under OSWA, is one concurrent property acquisition.

COMMITTEE ACTION Environment Committee Joint Favorable Substitute Yea 31 Nay 2 (03/24/2023) sSB1146 / File No.

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