AN ACT to make various changes to the statutes governing the Department of environmental quality, as recommended by the Department OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

COAL COMBUSTION RESIDUAL REPORT REVISION

SECTION 1.  G.S. 130A‑309.204(a) reads as rewritten:

(a)      The Department shall submit quarterly written reports an annual report no later than October 1 to the Environmental Review Commission on its operations, activities, programs, and progress with respect to its obligations under this Part concerning all coal combustion residuals surface impoundments. This report may be combined with the report to members of the General Assembly required by subsection (b) of this section. At a minimum, the report shall include information concerning the status of assessment, corrective action, prioritization, and closure for each coal combustion residuals surface impoundment and information on costs connected therewith. The report shall include an executive summary of each annual Groundwater Protection and Restoration Report submitted to the Department by the operator of any coal combustion residuals surface impoundments pursuant to G.S. 130A‑309.211(d) and a summary of all groundwater sampling, protection, and restoration activities related to the impoundment for the preceding year. The report shall also include an executive summary of each annual Surface Water Protection and Restoration Report submitted to the Department by the operator of any coal combustion residuals surface impoundments pursuant to G.S. 130A‑309.212(e) and a summary of all surface water sampling, protection, and restoration activities related to the impoundment for the preceding year, including the status of the identification, assessment, and correction of unpermitted discharges from coal combustion residuals surface impoundments to the surface waters of the State. The Department shall supplement the written reports required by this subsection with additional written and oral reports as may be requested by the Environmental Review Commission. The Department shall submit the written reports required by this subsection whether or not the General Assembly is in session at the time the report is due.

SOLID WASTE BENEFICIAL REUSE CLARIFICATION

SECTION 2.(a)  G.S. 130A‑309.05 reads as rewritten:

§ 130A‑309.05.  Regulated wastes; certain exclusions.

(a)        Certain Wastes Regulated as Nonhazardous. – Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, the following waste shall be regulated pursuant to this Part:

(1)        Medical waste; and

(2)        Ash generated by a solid waste management facility from the burning of solid waste.

(b)        Management of Ash Generated From Burning of Solid Waste. – Ash generated by a solid waste management facility from the burning of solid waste shall be disposed of in a properly designed solid waste disposal area that complies with standards developed by the Department for the disposal of the ash. The Department shall work with solid waste management facilities that burn solid waste to identify and develop methods for recycling and reusing incinerator ash or treated ash.

(c)        Recovered Material. – Recovered material is not subject to regulation as permitting requirements for solid waste under this Article. In order for a material that would otherwise be regulated as solid waste to qualify as a recovered material, the The Department may require any person who owns or has control over the material to demonstrate that the material meets the requirements of this subsection. In order to protect public health and the environment, the Commission subsection or may require the person to obtain a beneficial use determination from the Department in accordance with subsection (d) of this section. The Department may adopt rules to implement this subsection. Materials that are accumulated speculatively, as that term is defined under 40 Code of Federal Regulations § 261 (July 1, 2014 Edition), shall not qualify as a recovered material, and shall be subject to regulation as solid waste. In order to qualify as a recovered material, the material. The material shall be managed as a valuable commodity in a manner consistent with the desired use or end use, and all of the following conditions shall be met:

(1)        Seventy‑five percent (75%), by weight or volume, of the recovered material stored at a facility at the beginning of a calendar year commencing January 1, shall be removed from the facility through sale, use, or reuse by December 31 of the same year.

(2)        The recovered material or the products or by‑products of operations that process recovered material shall not be discharged, deposited, injected, dumped, spilled, leaked, or placed into or upon any land or water so that the products or by‑products or any constituent thereof may enter other lands or be emitted into the air or discharged into any waters including groundwaters, or otherwise enter the environment or pose a threat to public health and safety. Facilities that process recovered material shall be operated in a manner to ensure compliance with this subdivision.

(3)        The recovered material shall not be a hazardous waste or have been recovered from a hazardous waste.

(4)        The recovered material shall not contain significant concentrations of foreign constituents that render it unserviceable or inadequate for sale, or its intended use or reuse.

(d)       Beneficial Use Determination. – For the purposes of preservation of landfill capacity, economic development, energy savings, and reduction of greenhouse emissions, the Department may determine whether nonhazardous solid waste may be used or reused for a particular site or application as an alternative to disposal at a permitted solid waste management facility as set forth in this subsection.

(1)        A person seeking a beneficial use determination shall submit an application to the Department. The Department, after a review of an application submitted under this subsection, may take any of the following actions:

a.         Authorize management of a specified type of nonhazardous solid waste at a site other than a permitted solid waste management facility.

b.         Issue a beneficial use determination with appropriate conditions for use of specific types of solid waste in construction, land application, or other projects and applications.

(2)        An applicant for a determination under this subsection shall submit information on forms prescribed by the Department and any additional information required by the Department necessary for a determination under this subsection. In its review of the application and additional information, the Department shall also consider internal research or information submitted by any person or entity concerning the potential hazard to public health or the environment of any type of solid waste.

(3)        The Department may require submittal of a demonstration that the solid waste is being managed in a manner to protect public health or the environment and may include any of the following as a part of an authorization under subdivision (1) of this subsection:

a.         Requirements for periodic testing of solid wastes.

b.         Conditions to ensure that the product or by‑products of a material recovered or diverted for beneficial use shall not be discharged, deposited, injected, dumped, spilled, leaked, or placed into or upon any land or water so that the products or by‑products or any constituents thereof may enter other lands or be emitted into the air, or discharged into any waters, including groundwaters, or otherwise enter the environment or pose a threat to public health and safety.

(4)        Approvals granted under this subsection are valid for no longer than five years. Requests for renewal shall be made at least 60 days in advance of the expiration date of the approval.

(5)        The applicant for a determination under this subdivision shall submit to the Department on an annual basis a report detailing the usage of material under the approval and certifying compliance with this Article and any applicable rules adopted under this Article.

(6)        The Department may suspend or revoke an authorization and may modify an authorization if it is determined that the activity is not in compliance with the requirements of applicable laws or rules or if new information is provided to the Department that impacts the determination of protection of public health or the environment.

(7)        The Department shall provide notice on its website of approved beneficial use determinations.

(8)        Facilities that manage source separated materials for the purpose of recycling as defined in G.S. 130A‑290 are not subject to the provisions of this subsection.

(9)        The Department may adopt rules implementing this subsection and establishing application fees for a reuse determination under this subsection. All fees collected under this subdivision shall be credited to the Solid Waste Management Account established under G.S. 130A‑295.8(a). In determining the amount of the total application fee in rule, the Department shall have the authority to establish separate fee amounts for annual fees for each year based on the length of time for which the approval will be valid as requested by the applicant.

SECTION 2.(b)  This section becomes effective October 1, 2023.

CODIFY LASII IN WATER INFRASTRUCTURE FUND

SECTION 3.(a)  G.S. 159G‑22 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

(g1)    LASII Fund. – The Local Assistance for Stormwater Infrastructure Investments (LASII) Fund created in Section 12.14 of S.L. 2021‑180 is established as an account within the Water Infrastructure Fund to provide grants to eligible entities for projects that will improve or create infrastructure for controlling stormwater quantity and quality. For purposes of grants from LASII under this subsection, an eligible entity is a city or county that (i) documents in a form and manner as the Department may specify a stormwater quality or quantity issue and (ii) demonstrates that it would experience a significant hardship raising the revenue necessary to finance stormwater management activities within its jurisdiction based on income and unemployment data, population trends, and any other data determined relevant by the Department. A regional council of government created pursuant to Part 2 of Article 20 of Chapter 160A of the General Statutes or a nonprofit entity is also an eligible entity under this section if the regional council of government or nonprofit entity partners with a city or county.

SECTION 3.(b)  This section becomes effective October 1, 2023.

REMOVE TIME LIMITS ON CERTAIN VUR GRANTS

SECTION 4.(a)  G.S. 159G‑36(d)(2) reads as rewritten:

(2)      Grants for the purpose set forth in G.S. 159‑32(d)(6) to any single local government unit shall not (i) exceed seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000) in any fiscal year and (ii) be awarded for more than three consecutive fiscal years.year.

SECTION 4.(b)  This section becomes effective July 1, 2023.

EXTEND LIMIT ON INTERGOVERNMENTAL PERSONNEL ACT AGREEMENTS

SECTION 5.  G.S. 126‑53 reads as rewritten:

§ 126‑53.  Authority to interchange employees.

(a)        Any division, department, agency, instrumentality, authority, or political subdivision of the State of North Carolina is authorized to participate in a program of interchange of employees with divisions, departments, agencies, instrumentalities, authorities, or political subdivisions of the federal government, of another state, or of this State, as a sending agency or a receiving agency.

(b)        The period of individual assignment, detail, or leave of absence under an interchange program shall not exceed two years.may last up to two years and may be extended for an additional two years if the sending agency and receiving agency agree.

….

EFFECTIVE DATE

SECTION 6.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law.