49-762.03. Solid waste facility plan approval

A. Except as provided in subsections C and E of this section, the owner or operator of a solid waste facility identified in section 49-762 shall obtain the department's approval of a solid waste facility plan as follows:

1. For a new solid waste facility and before commencing construction of the solid waste facility, the owner or operator shall obtain approval of a solid waste facility plan that satisfies rules adopted by the director.

2. For an existing solid waste facility, the owner or operator shall file with the department a solid waste facility plan within one hundred eighty days after the effective date of rules adopted pursuant to section 49-761 that contain design and operation standards for that type of solid waste facility. An existing solid waste facility may continue to operate while the department reviews the plan. For an existing public solid waste facility that is currently subject to rules that contain design and operation standards, the owner or operator shall file with the department a solid waste facility plan by October 1, 1996, if the facility has not received plan approval before that date.

B. For a solid waste facility subject to site approval pursuant to section 49-767, a solid waste facility plan shall not be submitted to the department until the site for the solid waste facility has been approved pursuant to section 49-767. For all new solid waste landfills, a solid waste facility plan shall provide evidence of compliance with or the inapplicability of city, town or county zoning ordinances.

C. The director shall grant temporary authorization to operate a new solid waste facility if in the director's opinion the solid waste facility is needed immediately and could not be properly planned in advance.

D. An owner or operator of more than one solid waste facility that conducts similar activities with similar waste streams may prepare and implement a single plan that covers all of its facilities if it has received prior approval from the director and has complied with rules regarding single plans that are adopted by the director.

E. The director by rule may exempt from some or all of the facility plan approval requirements those solid waste facilities that are located in unincorporated areas and that are used for disposal by any single family residence located on the same property or those solid waste facilities that do not present a threat to public health and safety and the environment.

F. The department shall collect from the applicant reasonable fees established by the director by rule for the approval of the plan, including costs for the processing, review, approval or disapproval of the plan. After the effective date of this amendment to this section, the director shall establish by rule fees for the approval of the plan, including costs for the processing, review, approval or disapproval of the plan and maximum fees. As part of the rule making process, there must be public notice and comment and a review of the rule by the joint legislative budget committee. After September 30, 2013, the director shall not increase those fees by rule without specific statutory authority for the increase. The fees shall be deposited, pursuant to sections 35-146 and 35-147, in the solid waste fee fund established by section 49-881.

G. The department may contract with private consultants for the purposes of assisting the department in reviewing solid waste facility plan approvals to determine whether a facility meets the criteria of section 49-762.04. The department shall pay the consultant for the services rendered by the consultant from fees paid by the applicant. If the department contracts with a consultant under this section, an applicant may request that the department expedite the application review by requesting that the department use the services of the consultant and by agreeing to pay the department the costs of the consultant's services. Notwithstanding section 49-881, fees collected by the department for expedited plan review shall be deposited, pursuant to sections 35-146 and 35-147, in the solid waste fee fund established by section 49-881 and used for payment of the costs of the consultant services. Fees received for the purpose of expedited plan review are not subject to appropriation.