Senate Bill No. 487
(By Senator Manchin)
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[Introduced February 21, 1994; referred to the Committee
on Natural Resources.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section one-c, article two, chapter
twenty-four of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to certificates of
acceptance required for solid waste facilities; and
eliminating provisions whereby the public service commission
would assess need or deny a certificate for any facility
owned or operated by a county or entity thereof.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one-c, article two, chapter twenty-four of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. POWERS AND DUTIES OF PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION.
§24-2-1c. Certificate of acceptance required for solid waste
facilities; priority of disposal.
(a) Any person who holds a valid permit, compliance order or
administrative order allowing continued operation of a commercial
solid waste facility in this state on the first day of September,one thousand nine hundred ninety-one, shall submit an application
for a certificate of need acceptance with the public service
commission, on forms prescribed by the commission, prior to the
first day of March, one thousand nine hundred ninety-two. The
commission shall grant such application within sixty days after
submission of a complete application.
(b) Any person applying for a permit to construct, operate
or expand a commercial solid waste facility as defined in section
two, article five-f, chapter twenty of this code, or any person
seeking a major permit modification from the division of natural
resources first shall obtain a certificate of need acceptance
from the public service commission. Application for such
certificate shall be submitted on forms prescribed by the
commission. The commission shall grant or deny a certificate of
need acceptance, in accordance with provisions set forth in this
chapter. If the commission grants a certificate of need
acceptance, the commission may include conditions not
inconsistent with the criteria set forth in this section.
(c) For purposes of subsections (a) and (b) of this section,
a complete application shall consist of the following and
notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the
contrary, such information contained in the application provided
by the applicant shall not be confidential and shall be
disclosable pursuant to the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-b
of this code:
(1) The names of the owners or operators of the facilityincluding any officer, director, manager, person owning five
percent or more interest or other person conducting or managing
the affairs of the applicant or of the proposed facility;
(2) The proposed or existing location of the facility;
(3) A description of the geographic area to be served by the
facility;
(4) The anticipated total number of citizens to be served by
the facility;
(5) The average monthly tonnage of solid waste to be
disposed of by the facility;
(6) The total monthly tonnage of solid waste for which the
facility is seeking a permit from the division of natural
resources;
(7) The anticipated lifespan and closure date of the
facility; and
(8) Any other information requested on the forms prescribed
by the public service commission.
(d) In considering whether to grant a certificate of need
acceptance the commission shall consider, but shall not be
limited to considering, the following factors:
(1) The total tonnage of solid waste generated within the
county;
(2) The total tonnage of solid waste generated within the
wasteshed;
(3) The current capacity and lifespan of other solid waste
facilities located within the county, if any;
(4) The current capacity and lifespan of other solid waste
facilities located within the wasteshed, if any;
(5) The current capacity and lifespan of other solid waste
facilities located within this state;
(6) The lifespan of the proposed or existing facility;
(7) The cost of transporting solid waste from the points of
generation within the county or wasteshed and the disposal
facility;
(8) The impact of the proposed or existing facility on needs
and criteria contained in the statewide solid waste management
plan; and
(9) Any other criteria which the commission regularly
utilizes in making such determinations.
(e) The public service commission shall deny a certificate
of need acceptance upon one or more of the following findings:
(1) The proposed capacity is unreasonable in light of
demonstrated needs;
(2) The location of the facility is inconsistent with the
statewide solid waste management plan;
(3) The location of the facility is inconsistent with any
applicable county or regional solid waste management plan;
(4) The proposed capacity is not reasonably cost effective
in light of alternative disposal sites;
(5) The proposal, taken as a whole, is inconsistent with the
needs and criteria contained in the statewide solid waste
management plan; or
(6) The proposal, taken as a whole, is inconsistent with the
public convenience and necessity: Provided, That the commission
is not required to make any determination of need, necessity or
reasonableness when acting on any application regarding a
commercial solid waste disposal facility which is, or shall be,
owned or operated by a county government, or by an agency, board
or entity thereof, and subdivision (1), subsection (e) of this
article shall not apply to such a facility.
(f) Any certificates of need acceptance granted pursuant to
this section shall be conditioned on acceptance of:
(1) Solid waste generated within the county in which the
facility is or is to be located; and
(2) Solid waste generated within the wasteshed in which the
facility is or is to be located.
(g) An application for a certificate of need acceptance
shall be submitted prior to submitting an application for
certificate of site approval in accordance with section twelve-a,
article nine, chapter twenty of this code. Upon the decision of
the commission to grant or deny a certificate of need acceptance,
the commission shall immediately notify the solid waste
management board and the division of natural resources.
(h) Any party aggrieved by a decision of the commission
granting or denying a certificate of need acceptance may obtain
judicial review thereof in the same manner provided in section
one, article five of this chapter.
(i) No person may sell, lease or transfer a certificate ofneed acceptance without first obtaining the consent and approval
of the commission pursuant to the provisions of section twelve,
article two of this chapter.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to eliminate any
provision whereby the public service commission would deny a
certificate of acceptance, or make any determination of need,
necessity or reasonableness, for solid waste disposal facilities
owned or operated by a county, or an entity thereof.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.