This section names the act and requires Alabama environmental officials and legislative committees to report on OTAG, notify key leaders about any EPA request for a state ozone plan, share the plan in advance, hold public hearings, and then recommend action to a review committee.
(a) This section may be referred to as the Ozone Transport Oversight Act of 1997. (b) The Legislature of the State of Alabama finds all of the following: (1) The Federal Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq., contains a comprehensive regulatory scheme for the control of emissions from mobile and stationary sources. (2) Ozone and other air pollutants have declined substantially during the past 25 years throughout the United States due to implementation of the Clean Air Act, and additional air quality improvements will result as the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments are implemented. (3) The Northeast Ozone Transport Commission (“OTC”), in an effort to remedy the serious ozone nonattainment conditions prevailing in urbanized areas of the Northeast, has proposed emission control requirements for stationary and mobile sources more stringent than those applicable to states outside of the Northeast Ozone Transport Region (“OTR”), including a petition to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) concerning Low-Emitting Vehicle emission control requirements, and a Memorandum of Understanding concerning stationary source emission control requirements. (4) The OTC’s initiatives, together with other local emission control actions, will help northeastern states to attain the national ambient air quality standard for ozone. (5) In response to concerns raised by certain northeastern states about the interstate transport of ozone, the U.S. EPA has convened the Ozone Transport Assessment Group (“OTAG”), involving representatives from 25 states to the west and south of the Northeast OTR, including Alabama, to consider means to reduce the atmospheric transport of ozone. (6) OTAG will develop recommendations in 1997 for emission control actions in states outside of the Northeast that may form the basis for U.S. EPA enforcement actions under the Clean Air Act, including the preparation and submission of state implementation plans calling for control actions in Alabama not specifically mandated by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. (7) Computer modeling studies prepared by OTAG indicate all of the following: a. Ozone nonattainment is caused predominantly by local emission sources in densely populated urbanized areas. b. Emissions originating in Alabama do not contribute significantly to ozone nonattainment in other states or regions. c. Extreme emission controls imposed locally or in upwind areas would not permit some urban areas to demonstrate attainment of the current national ozone standard. (8) Emission controls for stationary and mobile sources under consideration by OTAG for states outside the Northeast are more stringent and more costly than those mandated by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, and could impair the competitiveness of businesses and industries in Alabama, with negligible environmental benefits, and with adverse effects on employment and income in Alabama. (9) The emission control requirements under consideration by OTAG could impede economic development, to the detriment of the well-being of the citizens of Alabama and its economy. (10) Legislative oversight of proposed actions of OTAG, and related actions of U.S. EPA directly or indirectly affecting the citizens and economy of Alabama, is in the public interest. (c)(1) The Director of the Department of Environmental Management shall provide periodic reports to the Legislature on progress in the decision-making process of the Ozone Transport Assessment Group (“OTAG”) convened by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and shall submit any OTAG decisions or recommendations, together with an explanation thereof, as expeditiously as practicable to the Legislature for review and consideration. (2) Within a reasonable time following receipt of the OTAG decisions or recommendations, the appropriate Senate and House Committees on Commerce, Transportation and Utilities of the Legislature shall convene public hearings to receive comments from agencies of government and other interested parties on the prospective economic and environmental impacts of the decisions or recommendations, including impacts on energy use, the environment, economic development, transportation fuel costs, and industrial competitiveness. (d)(1) Upon the issuance of a request by the U.S. EPA for submission of a state implementation plan for Alabama related to ozone attainment, the Director of the Department of Environmental Management shall notify the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House, the Chair of the Senate Commerce, Transportation and Utilities Committee, and the Chair of the House Commerce, Transportation and Utilities Committee of the request, and shall provide them with a copy of any state implementation plan prepared pursuant to the request, not less than 60 days prior to the submission of the state implementation plan to U.S. EPA. (2) Within a reasonable time following receipt of the state implementation plan, the Senate and House Committees on Commerce, Transportation and Utilities of the Legislature shall convene public hearings to receive comments from agencies of government and other interested parties on the prospective economic and environmental impacts of the state implementation plan, including impacts on energy use, the environment, economic development, transportation fuel costs, and industrial competitiveness. (3) After completing the hearings required by subdivision (2) of subsection (c) and subdivision (2) of this subsection, the Senate and House Commerce, Transportation, and Utilities Committees will make a recommendation to the Joint Committee on Administrative Regulation Review regarding the action it should take while performing its review of the revision to the plan.