49-289.04. Water quality assurance revolving fund advisory board; definitions
A. The water quality assurance revolving fund advisory board is established to provide recommendations to improve the functioning of the program established pursuant to this article.
B. The board consists of the following members:
1. A representative from a qualified business as defined in section 49-292.01.
2. A representative of a water provider.
3. A representative of an agricultural improvement district.
4. One representative of a municipal government of a municipality with a population of two hundred fifty thousand persons or more and one representative of a municipal government of a municipality with a population of less than two hundred fifty thousand persons.
5. Two persons residing within the boundaries of a site located in a city or town with a population of one hundred thousand persons or more. These individuals may be members of a community advisory board formed pursuant to section 49-289.03.
6. One person residing within or in close proximity to the boundaries of a site located in a city or town with a population of less than one hundred thousand persons or an unincorporated area. This person may be a member of a community advisory board formed pursuant to section 49-289.03.
7. Two representatives of businesses.
8. A person with an academic appointment at a college or university and who has technical expertise in groundwater remediation.
9. A representative of a mining entity.
10. A representative of the agricultural industry.
11. A representative of the governor's office.
12. The director of environmental quality or the director's designee.
13. The director of water resources or the director's designee.
14. The director of the department of health services or the director's designee.
15. The attorney general or the attorney general's designee.
C. Members prescribed by subsection B, paragraphs 1 through 11 of this section shall be appointed by the governor for staggered terms of up to three years pursuant to section 38-211 and shall have technical expertise related to or personal knowledge of or experience in remedial actions conducted pursuant to this article or CERCLA.
D. The board shall:
1. Select a chairperson and vice-chairperson from among its members.
2. Meet at least quarterly, pursuant to subsection F of this section.
3. Evaluate the overall effectiveness of the program established pursuant to this article, including:
(a) The prioritization of sites.
(b) The selection of remedies and their effectiveness.
(c) The allocation process.
(d) The pace of remedial actions.
(e) The adequacy of funding provided for remedial actions and agency responsibilities at current and future sites, including the need for additional funding to account for inflation.
(f) The criteria and processes for settlements.
(g) The effectiveness of early settlement incentives.
(h) The effectiveness of disincentives for parties not willing to participate in the allocation process.
(i) The level of coordination between the department of environmental quality and the department of water resources.
(j) The effectiveness of incentives to encourage beneficial use of remediated water.
(k) The well inspection and cross-contamination prevention program.
(l) The pace of rule making by the department of environmental quality.
(m) The participation of the department of water resources and other state agencies.
(n) Any other aspects of the program deemed relevant by the board.
4. At least once every five years, submit a comprehensive report to the director, the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives and the governor summarizing the board's evaluation of the effectiveness of the program established pursuant to this article and containing any recommendations for improving the effectiveness of that program.
E. The board may:
1. Meet more often than quarterly to conduct its business.
2. Form subcommittees to consider specific issues.
3. Transmit specific recommendations for improving the effectiveness of the program established pursuant to this article to the director, the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives and the governor at any time.
4. Solicit or accept comments from any person on any topic within the scope of the board's authority pursuant to this subsection and subsection D of this section.
F. Meetings of the board or any subcommittee shall be open to the public. An opportunity for public comments shall be provided. Meetings of the board or a subcommittee may be held in any county in which a site is located. Meetings of the board and any subcommittees of the board are subject to the requirements of title 38, chapter 3, article 3.1. Public notice of all meetings of the board may be provided by notice in the Arizona administrative register, by existing available electronic media maintained by the department, by recorded inclusion in toll free telephonic recordings accessible to all persons and by other appropriate means, if feasible. Notice also may be provided through the community advisory boards established pursuant to section 49-289.03. Meetings of the board or a subcommittee may be coordinated with meetings of a community advisory board established pursuant to section 49-289.03.
G. Members of the board shall serve without compensation but are eligible for reimbursement for travel and expenses as provided in title 38, chapter 4, article 2.
H. State agencies shall cooperate in providing information and other assistance to the board. The director of environmental quality and the director of water resources shall consider the recommendations of the board in administering the requirements of this article.
I. Members of the board are subject to title 38, chapter 3, article 8. Notwithstanding title 38, chapter 3, article 8, unless a member has a direct pecuniary or proprietary interest, a member's discussion or vote on an issue of general applicability to the program established pursuant to this article is not an indirect conflict of interest. A member of the board shall not vote on or otherwise participate in any manner on a specific recommendation of the board relating to a particular site if the member is identified as a responsible party in a notice of liability allocation issued by the department of environmental quality pursuant to section 49-287.05 relating to that site, or if the member receives a significant portion of income directly or indirectly from a person identified as a responsible party.
J. For the purposes of this section:
1. " An issue of general applicability" means an issue that affects a substantial number of persons affected by this article and therefore qualifies as a remote interest as defined in section 38-502 and applied in section 38-503.
2. " Significant portion of income" has the same meaning prescribed in section 49-322, subsection B.
Section: Previous 49-287.06 49-287.07 49-288 49-289 49-289.01 49-289.02 49-289.03 49-289.04 49-289.05 49-290 49-290.01 49-290.02 49-292 49-292.01 49-292.02 NextLast modified: October 13, 2016