Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 301 CMR - EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS › Title 301 CMR 11.00 - Mepa Regulations › Section 11.09 - Special Review Procedures

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
(1)
General
. With the consent of the Proponent, and after
			 consulting with any Participating Agency, the Secretary may establish a Special
			 Review Procedure for a Project, notwithstanding the other provisions of
			 301 CMR
			 11.00. Among other things, a Special Review Procedure
			 may provide for: review documents other than ENFs and EIRs and other periodic
			 reports to be filed and reviewed; shortened or extended review periods; review
			 of a Project in phases; lapses of time between review documents not requiring a
			 Notice of Project Change; coordination or consolidation of MEPA review with
			 other environmental or development review and permitting processes; and
			 establishment of a CAC. The final review document called for in a Special
			 Review Procedure shall be considered a final EIR. A Special Review Procedure
			 may be appropriate, for example, for reviewing a proposed program, regulations,
			 policy, or other Project in which there is more than one Proponent or more than
			 one Participating Agency with a significant role, or a Project that is
			 undefined or is expected to evolve during MEPA review, or a Project that may
			 benefit the environment if there is early Commencement of a portion of the
			 Project. The Secretary may establish a Special Review Procedure for a Project
			 regardless of its size or complexity.
(2)
Establishment
.
			 The Proponent shall ordinarily request a Special Review Procedure prior to or
			 when filing the ENF. In the certificate establishing the Special Review
			 Procedure, the Secretary shall find that a Special Review Procedure shall serve
			 the purposes of MEPA, including providing meaningful opportunities for public
			 review, analysis of alternatives, and consideration of cumulative environmental
			 impacts. The Proponent may file a Notice of Project Change after the
			 Secretary's decision on the ENF to request a Special Review Procedure or to
			 modify a previously established Special Review Procedure. The Secretary shall
			 publish notice in the
Environmental Monitor
of: the
			 establishment of a Special Review Procedure; any modification of a Special
			 Review Procedure; the establishment of a CAC; significant events in a Special
			 Review Procedure including meetings of the CAC; and the availability of review
			 documents called for in a Special Review Procedure.
(3)
Citizens Advisory
			 Committee
. When establishing or modifying a Special Review
			 Procedure, the Secretary shall ordinarily (in the case of a Project undertaken
			 by an Agency) or may (in the case of a Project undertaken by a Person)
			 establish a CAC to assist in reviewing the Project.
(a)
Membership of
			 CAC
. The CAC shall ordinarily consist of at least ten Persons
			 appointed by the Secretary. The Secretary shall solicit nominations for the CAC
			 when announcing its establishment or modification in the
Environmental
			 Monitor
from those individuals and entities whose interests are
			 affected by the Project, including any neighbor, neighborhood association,
			 ad-hoc committee, business or non-profit organization, Agency, Federal,
			 municipal, or regional governmental entity, or other organization. The
			 Proponent shall be entitled to one representative on the CAC. The membership of
			 the CAC shall be diverse in affiliation and experience and fairly represent a
			 range of viewpoints.
(b)
Role of CAC During Special Review Procedure
. The CAC
			 shall ordinarily participate in the Special Review Procedure by advising in the
			 Secretary's establishment of the Special Review Procedure and review of review
			 documents called for in the Special Review Procedure, and in the Proponent's
			 review of detailed scopes of service for the consultant and preliminary review
			 of the consultant work product.
(c)
Meetings of CAC
. The CAC shall establish its own
			 schedule of meetings. The CAC may establish working groups on particular
			 aspects of the Project or issues within the Scope. The CAC shall be entitled to
			 meet monthly with the Proponent and its consultants and shall be kept informed
			 of progress on any review document called for in the Special Review Procedure.
			 The CAC may direct questions concerning the Special Review Procedure to the
			 Proponent or the Secretary.
(d)
Staff for CAC
. The Secretary may require the Proponent
			 to provide staff support to the CAC such as secretarial services, keeping of
			 minutes, mailings, and arrangement of meetings. In the case of a Project
			 undertaken by an Agency, the Secretary may require the Proponent to transfer
			 funds to assist the Secretary in maintaining the CAC.
(e)
Document Review by
			 CAC
. The Proponent shall ordinarily submit a draft of any review
			 document called for in the Special Review Procedure to the CAC at least one
			 month prior to filing the review document with the Secretary. The CAC may
			 suggest changes or additions to the review document prior to the Proponent
			 filing the review document with the Secretary. The CAC may file its comments
			 with the Secretary prior to or when the Proponent files the review document
			 with the Secretary. The CAC shall present a consensus in its comments to the
			 extent to which its members have reached a consensus, although it may present
			 the diverse views of its members when consensus has not or cannot be attained.
			 The Proponent shall distribute any comments of the CAC or its members with the
			 filed review document, provided that the CAC or its members file the comments
			 with the Secretary prior to the Secretary publishing notice of the availability
			 of the filed review document in the
Environmental
			 Monitor.
(f)
Role of CAC after Special Review Procedure
. After the
			 Proponent files the final review document called for in the Special Review
			 Procedure, the CAC may consult with the Secretary and the Proponent to
			 determine whether it shall have any role in any future actions on the
			 Project.