Section 101.223 - Actions to Reduce Excessive Emissions(a) The executive director will provide written notification to an owner or operator of a facility upon determination that a facility has had one or more excessive emissions events. The written notification must contain, at a minimum, a description of the emissions events that were determined to be excessive and the time period when those excessive emissions events were evaluated. Upon receipt of this notice, the owner or operator of the facility must take action to reduce emissions and shall either file a corrective action plan (CAP) or, if the emissions are sufficiently frequent, quantifiable, and predictable, in which case the owner or operator may file a letter of intent to obtain authorization from the commission for emissions from such events, in lieu of a CAP. (1) When a CAP is required, the owner or operator must submit a CAP to the commission office for the region and local air pollution agency with jurisdiction in which the facility is located within 60 days after receiving notification from the executive director that a facility has had one or more excessive emissions events. The 60-day period may be extended once for up to 15 days by the executive director. The CAP must, at a minimum:(A) identify the cause or causes of each excessive emissions event, including all contributing factors that led to each emissions event;(B) specify the control devices or other measures that are reasonably designed to prevent or minimize similar emissions events in the future;(C) identify operational changes the owner or operator will take to prevent or minimize similar emissions events in the future; and(D) specify time frames within which the owner or operator will implement the components of the CAP.(2) An owner or operator must obtain commission approval of a CAP no later than 120 days after the commission receives the first CAP submission from an owner or operator. If not disapproved within 45 days after initial filing, the CAP must be deemed approved. The owner or operator of a facility must respond completely and adequately, as determined by the executive director, to all written requests for information concerning its CAP within 15 days after the date of such requests, or by any other deadline specified in writing. An owner or operator of a facility may request written approval of a CAP, in which case the commission shall take final written action to approve or disapprove the plan within 120 days from the receipt of such request. Once approved, the owner or operator must implement the CAP in accordance with the approved schedule. The implementation schedule is enforceable by the commission. The commission may require the owner or operator to revise a CAP if the commission finds the plan, after implementation begins, to be inadequate to prevent or minimize emissions or emissions events. If the CAP is disapproved, or determined to be inadequate to prevent or minimize excessive emissions events, the executive director shall identify deficiencies in the CAP and state the reasons for disapproval of the CAP in a letter to the owner or operator. If the commission finds a CAP inadequate to prevent or minimize excessive emissions events after implementation begins, an owner or operator must file an amended CAP within 60 days after written notification by the executive director.(3) If the emissions from excessive emissions events are sufficiently frequent, quantifiable, and predictable, and an owner or operator of a facility elects to file a letter of intent to obtain authorization from the commission for the emissions from excessive emissions events, the owner or operator must file such letter within 30 days of the notification that a facility has had one or more excessive emissions events. If the commission denies the requested authorization, the owner or operator of a facility shall file a CAP in accordance with paragraph (1) of this subsection within 45 days after receiving notice of the commission denial. (A) If the intended authorization is a permit, the owner or operator must file a permit application with the executive director within 120 days after the filing of the letter of intent. The owner or operator of a facility must respond completely and adequately, as determined by the executive director, to all written requests for information concerning its permit application within 15 days after the date of such requests, or by any other deadline specified in writing.(B) If the intended authorization is a permit by rule or standard permit, the owner or operator must obtain authorization within 120 days after filing of the letter of intent.(b) The executive director, after a review of the excessive emissions events determinations made at a regulated entity as defined in § 101.1 of this title (relating to Definitions), may forward these determinations to the commission requesting that it issue an order finding that the regulated entity has chronic excessive emissions events. Orders issued by the commission under this section will be part of the entity's compliance history as provided in Chapter 60 of this title (relating to Compliance History). The commission may issue an order finding that a regulated entity has chronic excessive emissions events after considering the following factors: (1) the size, nature, and complexity of the regulated entity operations;(2) the frequency of emissions events at the regulated entity; and(3) the reason or reasons for excessive emissions event determinations at that regulated entity.(c) If an emissions event recurs because an owner or operator fails to take corrective action as required and within the time specified by a CAP approved by the commission, the emissions event is excessive and the affirmative defenses in § 101.222 of this title (relating to Demonstrations) do not apply.(d) Nothing in this section will limit the commission's ability to bring enforcement actions for violations of the Texas Clean Air Act or rules promulgated thereunder, including enforcement actions to require actions to reduce emissions from excessive emissions events.30 Tex. Admin. Code § 101.223
The provisions of this §101.223 adopted to be effective September 12, 2002, 27 TexReg 8499; amended to be effective January 8, 2004, 29 TexReg 118; amended to be effective June 23, 2005, 30 TexReg 3593; amended to be effective January 5, 2006, 30 TexReg 8884