S.C. Code Regs. § § 61-62.70.9

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 9, September 27, 2024

Section 61-62.70.9 - Fee determination and certification

(a) The Department shall require that the owners or operators of Part 70 sources pay annual fees, or the equivalent over some other period, that are sufficient to cover the permit program costs and shall ensure that any fee required by this Section will be used solely for permit program costs. "Permit program costs" means all reasonable (direct and indirect) costs required to develop and administer a permit program, as set forth in Section70.9(b)(b).

(b) Fee schedule adequacy.

(1) The Department shall establish a fee schedule that results in the collection and retention of revenues sufficient to cover the permit program costs. These costs include, but are not limited to, the costs of the following activities as they relate to the operating permit program for stationary sources:

(i) Preparing generally applicable regulations or guidance regarding the permit program or its implementation or enforcement;

(ii) Reviewing and acting on any application for a permit, permit revision, or permit renewal, including the development of an applicable requirement as part of the processing of a permit, or permit revision or renewal;

(iii) General administrative costs of running the permit program, including the supporting and tracking of permit applications, compliance certification, and related data entry;

(iv) Implementing and enforcing the terms of any Part 70 permit (not including any court costs or other costs associated with an enforcement action), including adequate resources to determine which sources are subject to the program;

(v) Emissions and ambient monitoring;

(vi) Modeling, analyses, or demonstrations;

(vii) Preparing inventories and tracking emissions; and

(viii) Providing direct and indirect support to sources under the Small Business Stationary Source Technical and Environmental Compliance Assistance Program contained in Section507 of the Act in determining and meeting their obligations under this part.

(2)

(i) [Reserved]

(ii) The Department may exclude from such calculation:

(A) The actual emissions of sources for which no fee is required under Section 70.9(b)(4);

(B) The amount of a Part 70 source's actual emissions of each regulated pollutant that the source emits in excess of four thousand (4,000) tpy;

(C) A Part 70 source's actual emissions of any regulated pollutant, the emissions of which are already included in the minimum fees calculation; or

(D) The insignificant quantities of actual emissions not required in a permit application pursuant to Section70.5(c)(c).

(iii) "Actual emissions" means the actual rate of emissions in tons per year of any regulated pollutant emitted from a Part 70 source over the preceding calendar year or any other period determined by the Department to be representative of normal source operation and consistent with the fee schedule approved pursuant to this section. Actual emissions shall be calculated using the unit's actual operating hours, production rates, and in-place control equipment, types of materials processed, stored, or combusted during the preceding calendar year or such other time period established by the Department pursuant to the preceding sentence.

(iv) The program shall provide that the $25 per ton per year to be collected by the fee schedule shall be increased each year by the percentage, if any, by which the Consumer Price Index for the most recent calendar year ending before the beginning of such year exceeds the Consumer Price Index for the calendar year 1989.

(A) The Consumer Price Index for any calendar year is the average of the Consumer Price Index for all-urban consumers published by the Department of Labor, as of the close of the 12-month period ending on August 31 of each calendar year.

(B) The revision of the Consumer Price Index which is most consistent with the Consumer Price Index for the calendar year 1989 shall be used.

(v) "Regulated pollutant," which is used only for purposes of Section70.9(b)(2)(b)(2), means any "regulated air pollutant" except the following:

(A) Carbon monoxide;

(B) Any pollutant that is a regulated air pollutant solely because it is a Class I or II substance subject to a standard promulgated under or established by Title VI of the Act; or

(C) Any pollutant that is a regulated air pollutant solely because it is subject to a standard or regulation under Section112(r)(r) of the Act.

(3) The Department's fee schedule may include emissions fees, application fees, service-based fees or other types of fees, or any combination thereof, to meet the requirements of Section70.9(b)(1) or (b)(2)(b)(1) or (b)(2). Nothing in the provisions of this section shall require a Department to calculate fees on any particular basis or in the same manner for all Part 70 sources, all classes or categories of Part 70 sources, or all regulated air pollutants, provided that the Department collects a total amount of fees sufficient to meet the program support requirements of Section70.9(b)(1)(b)(1).

(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, during the years 1995 through 1999 inclusive, no fee for purposes of Title V shall be required to be paid with respect to emissions from any affected unit under Section404 of the Act.

(5) [Reserved]

(c) [Reserved]

(d) [Reserved]

S.C. Code Regs. § 61-62.70.9

Amended by State Register Volume 36, Issue No. 3, eff March 23, 2012 (errata); State Register Volume 41, Issue No. 08, eff. 8/25/2017.