SB 380-FN - AS INTRODUCED

2022 SESSION

22-3102

08/04

SENATE BILL 380-FN

AN ACT relative to solid waste rules and landfill containment tests.

SPONSORS: Sen. Hennessey, Dist 1; Sen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Bradley, Dist 3; Sen. Prentiss, Dist 5; Sen. Sherman, Dist 24; Sen. Ricciardi, Dist 9; Sen. Birdsell, Dist 19; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Sen. Whitley, Dist 15; Rep. Egan, Graf. 2; Rep. Suzanne Smith, Graf. 8; Rep. Massimilla, Graf. 1; Rep. Tucker, Coos 5; Rep. Merner, Coos 7

COMMITTEE: Energy and Natural Resources

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ANALYSIS

This bill:

I. Creates a committee to study the prohibition of any landfill in the state from accepting waste from municipalities with no solid waste plan.

II. Creates a committee to study the development of a solid waste disposal site evaluation committee.

III. Requires statutes and rules in effect at the time an application for a solid waste permit is complete to apply to the application.

IV. Requires the department of environmental services to consider the net public benefit when reviewing an application for a solid waste permit.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

22-3102

08/04

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two

AN ACT relative to solid waste rules and landfill containment tests.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Committee Established.

I. There is established a committee to study prohibiting any landfill in the state from accepting waste from a municipality that does not have a solid waste management plan.

II. The members of the committee shall be as follows:

(a) One member of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.

(b) Four members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

III. Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the committee.

IV. The committee shall study implementing the prohibition of any landfill in the state from accepting waste from a municipality that does not have a solid waste management plan. The committee shall also study the cost to towns to implement a solid waste management plan, the requirements for annual affirmation of a solid waste plan by a town, the benefits of municipal solid waste plans, and the cost to the administer such a prohibition..

V. The members of the study committee shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the committee shall be called by the first-named senate member. The first meeting of the committee shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Three members of the committee shall constitute a quorum.

VI. The committee shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the senate clerk, the house clerk, the governor, and the state library on or before November 1, 2022.

2 Committee Established.

I. There is established a committee to study requiring the development of a solid waste disposal site evaluation committee.

II. The members of the committee shall be as follows:

(a) One member of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.

(b) Four members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

III. Members of the committee shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the committee.

IV. The committee shall study requiring the development of a solid waste disposal site evaluation committee, specifically addressing:

(a) A definition of net public benefit and what factors should to go into that calculation.

(b) Which state agency should oversee the solid waste disposal site evaluation committee.

(d) Cost estimates for the solid waste disposal site evaluation.

3 Permit Required. Amend RSA 149-M:9, VIII to read as follows:

VIII.(a) The department shall act upon each permit application within the time periods specified in rules adopted under RSA 149-M:7. For permits requiring a public hearing under rules adopted under RSA 149-M:7, once the department determines that an application is complete, in no case, without prior written agreement regarding an extension with the applicant, shall the department take longer than 180 days to issue or deny the permit. For permits that do not require a public hearing under rules adopted under RSA 149-M:7, once the department determines that the application is complete, in no case, without the prior written agreement regarding an extension with the applicant, shall the department take longer than 120 days to issue or deny the permit. Prior to such action, the department shall provide notice of the application by publication in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the community and on the department's Internet website, and an opportunity for hearing to interested persons. The applicant shall notify abutters of the public hearing in writing by certified mail, return receipt requested. The requirement of public notice and hearing shall apply at the discretion of the department to facilities or activities that will have an insignificant effect on environmental quality as defined by rule under RSA 149-M:7.

(b) If the department determines that an application for a solid waste permit is incomplete, any changes to statutes or departmental rules governing the application requirements that occur while the application is incomplete shall apply to the incomplete application.

4 Net Public Benefit Requirement. Amend RSA 149-M:11 to read as follows:

149-M:11 Net Public Benefit Requirement.

I. The general court finds and declares as follows:

(a) It is responsible to provide for the solid waste management need of the state and its citizens.

(b) In order to provide for these needs, it must ensure that adequate capacity exists within the state to accommodate the solid waste generated within the borders of the state.

(c) Facilities necessary to meet state solid waste capacity needs must be designed and operated in a manner which will protect the public health and the state's natural environment.

(d) An integrated system of solid waste management requires a variety of types of facilities designed to accommodate the entire solid waste stream, including materials which can be recycled, recovered or reused, materials which can be composted, and residual materials which must be disposed of permanently.

(e) The enactment of statutes to address the needs identified in this section is an exercise of the police power granted to the general court under part II, article 5 of the New Hampshire constitution.

II. The general court declares that it is the purpose of this chapter to ensure benefit to the citizens of New Hampshire by providing for solid waste management options which will meet the capacity needs of the state while minimizing adverse environmental, public health and long-term economic impacts.

III. The department shall determine whether a proposed solid waste facility provides a net substantial public benefit based upon the following criteria:

(a) The short- and long-term need for a solid waste facility of the proposed type, size, and location to provide capacity to accommodate solid waste generated within the borders of New Hampshire, which capacity need shall be identified as provided in paragraph V.

(b) The ability of the proposed facility to assist the state in achieving the implementation of the hierarchy and goals under RSA 149-M:2 and RSA 149-M:3.

(c) The ability of the proposed facility to assist in achieving the goals of the state solid waste management plan, and one or more solid waste management plans submitted to and approved by the department under RSA 149-M:24 and RSA 149-M:25.

(d) The ability of the proposed facility to reduce transportation costs and tipping fees so that waste generators within New Hampshire can reduce costs relative to the status quo.

(e) The incremental harms that a landfill would likely cause by identifying and determining any potentially harmful impacts on human health, property values, tourism, outdoor recreation, and wildlife. Such impacts may include noise, odor, traffic, groundwater pollution, surface water pollution, greenhouse gas, and other emissions emanating from the facility and to include the emissions from transport of solid waste-related material and by-products to and from the proposed facility.

IV. The department shall also consider as part of its net public benefit determination:

(a) The concerns of the citizens and governing bodies of the host municipality, county, and district and other affected persons. For any proposed solid waste facility, including transfer stations, designed to accommodate in excess of 30 tons of solid waste per day, the department shall hold at least one public hearing in the host municipality, or in the case of an unincorporated town or unorganized place in the host county, in order to take testimony to identify those concerns.

(b) The economic viability of the proposed facility, including but not limited to, its ability to secure financing.

(c) The assessment of net public benefit shall be conducted on behalf of the host community and/or other abutting municipalities by an independent third-party and the costs for such assessment shall be borne by the applicant.

V. In order to determine the state's solid waste capacity need, the department shall:

(a) Project, as necessary, the amount of solid waste which will be generated within the borders of New Hampshire for a 20-year planning period. In making these projections the department shall assume that all unlined landfill capacity within the state is no longer available to receive solid waste.

(b) Identify the types of solid waste which can be managed according to each of the methods listed under RSA 149-M:3 and determine which such types will be received by the proposed facility.

(c) Identify, according to type of solid waste received, all permitted facilities operating in the state on the date a determination is made under this section.

(d) Identify any shortfall in the capacity of existing facilities to accommodate the type of solid waste to be received at the proposed facility for 20 years from the date a determination is made under this section. If such a shortfall is identified, a capacity need for the proposed type of facility shall be deemed to exist to the extent that the proposed facility satisfies that need.

VI. All applicants under this chapter shall provide any information requested by the department. If an applicant declares that any information requested under this section should be considered exempt under RSA 91-A:5, IV, the attorney general shall determine the reasonableness of such declaration and, if the attorney general agrees, shall direct the department to treat it as confidential information which shall be considered exempt under RSA 91-A:5, IV.

VII. Any proposed solid waste facility to be owned and controlled by a solid waste district, or a member municipality on behalf of its solid waste district, shall be deemed to fulfill the requirements of subparagraph III(a), provided that it is built within the district and shall serve only the capacity needs of that district. Any permit issued for a facility which fulfills the public benefit requirement by relying on this paragraph shall state that the facility is limited to receiving solid waste generated within that district.

VIII. Each applicant for a solid waste permit under this chapter shall have the burden of demonstrating that a proposed solid waste facility provides a public benefit by showing how the proposed facility satisfies the criteria listed under paragraph III. Such demonstration shall be included as part of each application for a solid waste permit.

IX. If the department determines that an applicant has failed to demonstrate that it satisfies the criteria listed under paragraph III, it shall notify the applicant in writing that its application has been denied, and provide a written explanation of the reasons for that determination.

X. If the department determines that an applicant has demonstrated that it satisfies the criteria listed under paragraph III, it shall state that determination in any permit issued.

XI. Facilities permitted under this chapter shall be operated so as to provide a net substantial public benefit consistent with the information submitted as part of the application concerning how the facility accommodates New Hampshire capacity needs. If a permitted cannot demonstrate consistency with information submitted in its permit application, and where it no longer meets needs identified in the state solid waste management plan and one or more solid waste management plans submitted to and approved by the department under RSA 149-M:25 due to circumstances beyond its control, as determined by the commissioner and the attorney general, the department shall not enforce this paragraph based solely upon such inconsistency.

5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.

LBA

22-3102

Redraft 12/16/21

SB 380-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

AN ACT relative to solid waste rules and landfill containment tests.

FISCAL IMPACT: [ ] State [ ] County [ X ] Local [ ] None


	Estimated Increase / (Decrease)
LCCAL:	FY 2022	FY 2023	FY 2024	FY 2025
Revenue	Indeterminable	Indeterminable	Indeterminable	Indeterminable
Expenditures	Indeterminable	Indeterminable	Indeterminable	Indeterminable

METHODOLOGY:

This bill, addition to creating two study committees, requires that public benefit demonstrations for proposed solid waste facilities:

Include consideration of a facility’s ability to reduce transportation and tipping fee costs compared to the status quo;
Include consideration of a landfill’s potential impacts on human health, property values, tourism, outdoor recreation, and wildlife, including impacts caused by noise, odor, traffic, water pollution, and emissions from the facility and from related transportation activities to and from the facility; and
Be conducted on behalf of a host community and/or other abutting municipalities by a third-party, with the costs for such assessment borne by the applicant.

While the Department of Environmental Services states it should not experience any incremental costs to administer this bill, to the extent a local government elects to own and operate a solid waste facility, its proposed facility would be subject to the bill, specifically sections 3 and 4, and the cost to permit and operate such a facility may increase. The Department further states a municipality that is host to some type of operating solid waste facility (such as private/commercial landfills) may receive revenue from such facilities, and to the extent this bill may increase permitting and operating costs to said facilities, revenue received by host municipalities may decrease.

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Department of Environmental Services