Amended in Assembly April 6, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 335

Introduced by Assembly Member Patterson

(Coauthors: Assembly Members begin insert Baker, end insert Brough, begin insert Chang, end insert Chávez, begin insert Gallagher, end insert Lackey, begin insert Olsen, end insert Steinorth, begin delete and Waldron end delete begin insert Wagner, Waldron, and Wilk end insert )

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(Coauthor: Senator Anderson)

end delete begin insert

(Coauthors: Senators Anderson, Bates, Huff, Nielsen, and Vidak)

end insert

February 13, 2015

An act to add Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 39150) to Part 1 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to air pollution.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 335, as amended, Patterson. Air quality: minor violations.

(1) Existing law authorizes the State Air Resources Board and air pollution control and air quality management districts to enforce air quality laws.

This bill would require the State Air Resources Board and air pollution control and air quality management districts to adopt regulations classifying minor violations. The bill would define the term “notice to comply” and would require a representative of those agencies, who in the course of conducting an inspection detects a minor violation, to issue a notice to comply, as specified. begin insert The bill would exempt an air pollution control or air quality management district from these provisions if it has in effect, as of January 1, 2015, a program with similar provisions, as specified. end insert

The bill would require the State Air Resources Board to report to the Legislature by January 1, 2020, regarding implementation of the bill.

Because the bill would make a false statement of compliance submitted under those procedures a crime pursuant to specified provisions, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime. In addition, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by imposing new requirements on air pollution control and air quality management districts.

(2)The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 39150) is
added to Part 1 of Division 26 of the Health and Safety Code, to
read:

 

Chapter  3. Minor Violations

 

39150.  

(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
purpose of this chapter is to establish an enforcement policy for
violations of this division that the enforcement agency finds are
minor when the danger they pose to, or the potential that they have
for endangering, human health, safety, or welfare or the
environment is taken into account.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter to
provide a more resource-efficient enforcement mechanism, faster
compliance times, and the creation of a productive and cooperative
working relationship between the state board, the districts, and the
regulated community while maintaining protection of human begin delete health
and safety end delete begin insert health, safety, and welfare end insert and the environment.

(c)  begin delete The end delete begin insert Except as provided in Section 39154, the end insert state board
and each district shall, for their respective jurisdictions, implement
this chapter by adopting a regulation or a rule that classifies the
types of violations of this division, or of the regulations, rules,
standards, orders, permit conditions, or other requirements adopted
pursuant to this division, that the state board or the district finds
are minor violations in accordance with subdivision (d).

(d) In classifying the types of violations that are minor
violations, the state board or the district shall consider all of the
following factors:

(1) The magnitude of the violation.

(2) The scope of the violation.

(3) The severity of the violation.

(4) The degree to which a violation puts human health, safety,
or welfare or the environment into jeopardy.

(5) The degree to which a violation could contribute to the
failure to accomplish an important goal or program objective as
established by this division.

(6) The degree to which a violation begin delete may end delete begin insert could end insert make it difficult
to determine if the violator is in compliance with other
requirements of this division.

(e) For purposes of this chapter, a minor violation of this division
shall not include any of the following:

(1) Any knowing, willful, or intentional violation of this
division.

(2) Any violation of this division that enables the violator to
benefit economically from noncompliance, either by realizing
reduced costs or by gaining a competitive advantage.

(3) Any violation that is a chronic violation or that is committed
by a recalcitrant violator.

(f) In determining whether a violation is chronic or a violator
is recalcitrant, for purposes of paragraph (3) of subdivision (e),
the state board or district or an authorized or designated officer
shall consider whether there is evidence indicating that the violator
has engaged in a pattern of neglect or disregard with respect to the
requirements of this division or the requirements adopted pursuant
to this division.

39151.  

For purposes of this chapter, “notice to comply” means
a written method of alleging a minor violation that is in compliance
with all of the following requirements:

(a) The notice to comply is written in the course of conducting
an inspection by an authorized representative of the state board or
district or an authorized or designated officer. If testing is required
by the state board or district or an authorized or designated officer
to determine compliance, and the testing cannot be conducted
during the course of the inspection, the representative of the state
board or the district or an authorized or designated officer shall
have a reasonable period of time to conduct the required testing.
If, after the test results are available, the representative of the state
board or district or an authorized or designated officer determines
that the issuance of a notice to comply is warranted, the
representative or officer shall immediately notify the facility owner
or operator in writing.

(b) A copy of the notice to comply is presented to a person who
is an owner, operator, employee, or representative of the facility
being inspected at the time that the notice to comply is written. If
offsite testing is required pursuant to subdivision (a), a copy of the
notice to comply may be mailed to the owner or operator of the
facility.

(c) The notice to comply clearly states the nature of the alleged
minor violation, a means by which compliance with the
requirement cited by the state board’s or district’s representative
or an authorized or designated officer may be achieved, and a time
limit in which to comply, which shall not exceed 30 days.

(d) The notice to comply shall contain the information specified
in subdivision (h) of Section 39152 with regard to the possible
reinspection of the facility.

39152.  

(a) An authorized representative of the state board or
district or an authorized or designated officer, who, in the course
of conducting an inspection, detects a minor violation shall issue
a notice to comply before leaving the site at which the minor
violation is alleged to have occurred if the authorized representative
finds that a notice to comply is warranted.

(b) A person who receives a notice to comply pursuant to
subdivision (a) shall have the period specified in the notice to
comply from the date of receipt of the notice to comply in which
to achieve compliance with the requirement cited on the notice to
comply. Within five working days of achieving compliance, the
person who received the notice to comply shall sign the notice to
comply and return it to the state board’s or district’s representative
or an authorized or designated officer, stating that the person has
complied with the notice to comply. A false statement that
compliance has been achieved is a violation of this division
pursuant to Section 42400.2 or 42402.2.

(c) A single notice to comply shall be issued for all minor
violations cited during the same inspection and the notice to comply
shall separately list each cited minor violation and the manner in
which each minor violation may be brought into compliance.

(d) A notice to comply shall not be issued for any minor
violation that is corrected immediately in the presence of the
inspector. Immediate compliance in that manner may be noted in
the inspection report, but the person shall not be subject to any
further action by the state board’s or district’s representative or an
authorized or designated officer.

(e) Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (g), a notice to
comply shall be the only means by which the state board’s or
district’s representative or an authorized or designated officer shall
cite a minor violation. The state board’s or district’s representative
or an authorized or designated officer shall not take any other
enforcement action specified in this division to enforce the minor
violation against a person who has received a notice to comply if
the person is in compliance with this section.

(f) If a person who receives a notice to comply pursuant to
subdivision (a) disagrees with one or more of the alleged violations
cited in the notice to comply, the person shall give written notice
of appeal to the state board or district, which shall develop a
process for reviewing and determining the disposition of the appeal.

(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, if a
person fails to comply with a notice to comply within the
prescribed period, or if the state board or district or an authorized
or designated officer determines that the circumstances surrounding
a particular minor violation are such that immediate enforcement
is warranted to prevent harm to begin delete the public health or safety or to end delete
begin insert human health, safety, or welfare or end insert the environment, the state
board or district or an authorized or designated officer may take
any needed enforcement action authorized by this division.

(h) A notice to comply issued to a person pursuant to this section
shall contain a statement that the inspected facility may be subject
to reinspection at any time. Nothing in this section shall be
construed as preventing the reinspection of a facility to ensure
compliance or to ensure that minor violations cited in a notice to
comply have been corrected.

(i) Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing the
state board or district or an authorized or designated officer, on a
case-by-case basis, from requiring a person subject to a notice to
comply to submit reasonable and necessary documentation to
support a claim of compliance by the person.

(j) Nothing in this section restricts the power of a city attorney,
district attorney, county counsel, or the Attorney General to bring,
in the name of the people of California, any criminal proceeding
otherwise authorized by law. Furthermore, nothing in this section
prevents the state board or district, or any representative of the
state board or district, from cooperating with, or participating in,
such a proceeding.

(k) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, if the
state board or district or an authorized or designated officer
determines that the circumstances surrounding a particular minor
violation are such that the assessment of a civil penalty pursuant
to this division is warranted or required by federal law, in addition
to issuance of a notice to comply, the state board or district or an
authorized or designated officer shall assess a civil penalty in
accordance with this division, if the state board or district or an
authorized or designated officer makes written findings that set
forth the basis for the determination of the state board or district.

39153.  

On or before January 1, 2020, the state board shall
report to the Legislature on actions taken by the state board and
the districts to implement this chapter and the results of that
implementation. Each district shall provide the state board with
the information that the state board requests to determine the degree
to which the purposes described in subdivision (a) of Section 39150
have been achieved. The report shall be submitted consistent with
Section 9795 of the Government Code.

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begin insert 39154. end insert   

Sections 39150, 39151, and 39152 do not apply to a
district that, as of January 1, 2015, has in effect a program with
provisions similar to those required by this chapter.

end insert

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service
charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or
level of service mandated by this act or because costs that may be
incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred
because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a
crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction,
within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or
changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6
of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.