(a) Environmental impact evaluations and a summary thereof, including any negative findings shall be submitted for comment and review to the Council on Environmental Quality, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Office of Policy and Management, the Department of Housing in the case of a proposed action that affects existing housing, and other appropriate agencies, and to the town clerk of each municipality affected thereby, and shall be made available to the public for inspection and comment at the same time. The sponsoring agency shall publish forthwith a notice of the availability of its environmental impact evaluation and summary in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality at least once a week for three consecutive weeks and in the Environmental Monitor. The sponsoring agency preparing an environmental impact evaluation shall hold a public hearing on the evaluation if twenty-five persons or an association having not less than twenty-five persons requests such a hearing within ten days of the publication of the notice in the Environmental Monitor.

(b) All comments received by the sponsoring agency and the sponsoring agency's responses to such comments shall be forwarded to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management.

(c) All comments and responses so forwarded to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management shall be available for public inspection.

(P.A. 73-562, S. 5, 6, 8; P.A. 75-621, S. 1, 2; P.A. 77-514, S. 4; 77-614, S. 19, 610; P.A. 81-177, S. 2; P.A. 91-228, S. 3; P.A. 95-250, S. 1; P.A. 96-211, S. 1, 5, 6; P.A. 02-121, S. 3; P.A. 03-123, S. 13; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 210(e); P.A. 04-20, S. 3; 04-205, S. 5; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 04-2, S. 30; P.A. 11-48, S. 167; 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 13-234, S. 2.)

History: P.A. 75-621 required submission of summary including negative findings as well as evaluations and environmental statements, added town clerks of affected municipalities as recipients of evaluations, summaries, etc. and required publication of notice of availability of evaluations, etc. in Subsec. (a) and deleted Subsec. (d) which had required that evaluations, etc. conform to regulations of environmental protection commissioner; P.A. 77-514 transferred responsibility for publication of availability notice from town clerks to department or agency responsible for preparing evaluation in question, required publication in Connecticut Law Journal as well as in newspaper and added provision re public hearings; P.A. 77-614 replaced state planning council with secretary of the office of policy and management; P.A. 81-177 amended Subsec. (a) by requiring that evaluations be submitted to the historical commission and authorizing a hearing on the finding of no significant environmental impact; P.A. 91-228 amended Subsec. (a) to require that evaluations of actions that affect existing housing be submitted to the department of housing; P.A. 95-250 and P.A. 96-211 replaced Commissioner and Department of Housing with Commissioner and Department of Economic and Community Development; P.A. 02-121 amended Subsec. (a) to substitute “environmental impact evaluations” for “evaluations required by sections 22a-1a to 22a-1f, inclusive” and for “an evaluation required by section 22a-1b”, substitute “sponsoring agency” for “department, institution or agency responsible for preparing an evaluation” and for “department, institution or agency preparing an evaluation”, replace references to the Connecticut Law Journal with references to the Environmental Monitor, add the Office of Policy and Management to the list of parties to which evaluations shall be submitted and delete provisions re finding that proposed actions shall have no significant environmental impact, and amended Subsec. (b) to substitute “sponsoring agency” for “agency, department or institution preparing the evaluation” and to require the sponsoring agency to forward its responses to comments it receives to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management; P.A. 03-123 made a technical change in Subsec. (c), effective June 26, 2003; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 and P.A. 04-20 replaced the Connecticut Historical Commission with the Connecticut Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film, effective August 20, 2003; P.A. 04-205, effective June 3, 2004, and May Sp. Sess. P.A. 04-2, effective May 12, 2004, both replaced Connecticut Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film with Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; P.A. 11-48 amended Subsec. (a) to delete “the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism”, effective July 1, 2011; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Department of Environmental Protection” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Department of Energy and Environmental Protection” in Subsec. (a), effective July 1, 2011; pursuant to P.A. 13-234, reference to Department of Economic and Community Development was changed editorially by the Revisors to reference to Department of Housing in Subsec. (a), effective June 19, 2013.

Cited. 184 C. 51; 204 C. 38; Id., 212.