Washington Administrative Code › Title 173 - Ecology, Department of (See also Titles 197, 317, 372, and 508) › Chapter 173-400 - General regulations for air pollution sources › Section 173-400-230 - Regulatory actions

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
Ecology may take any of the following regulatory actions to
				enforce this chapter to meet the provisions of
				RCW
				   43.21B.300 which is incorporated by
				reference.
(1)
Enforcement
			 actions by ecology -- Notice to violators.
At least thirty days prior to
			 the commencement of any formal enforcement action under
			 RCW
			    70.94.430 and
			 70.94.431, the department of
			 ecology shall cause written notice to be served upon the alleged violator or
			 violators. The notice shall specify the provision of this chapter or the rule
			 or regulation alleged to be violated, and the facts alleged to constitute a
			 violation thereof, and may include an order that necessary corrective action be
			 taken within a reasonable time. In lieu of an order, ecology may require that
			 the alleged violator or violators appear before it for the purpose of providing
			 ecology information pertaining to the violation or the charges complained of.
			 Every notice of violation shall offer to the alleged violator an opportunity to
			 meet with ecology prior to the commencement of enforcement action.
(2)
Civil penalties.
(a) In addition to or as an alternate to any
			 other penalty provided by law, any person who violates any of the provisions of
			 chapter
			 70.94 or
			 70.120 RCW, or any of the rules in
			 force under such chapters may incur a civil penalty in an amount as set forth
			 in RCW
			    70.94.431. Each such violation shall be a
			 separate and distinct offense, and in case of a continuing violation, each
			 day's continuance shall be a separate and distinct violation.
Any person who fails to take action as specified by an order
				issued pursuant to this chapter shall be liable for a civil penalty as set
				forth by RCW    70.94.431 for each day of
				continued noncompliance.
(b) Penalties incurred but not paid shall
			 accrue interest, beginning on the ninety-first day following the date that the
			 penalty becomes due and payable, at the highest rate allowed by
			 RCW
			    19.52.020 on the date that the penalty
			 becomes due and payable. If violations or penalties are appealed, interest
			 shall not begin to accrue until the thirty-first day following final resolution
			 of the appeal.
The maximum penalty amounts established in
				RCW
				   70.94.431 may be increased annually to
				account for inflation as determined by the state office of the economic and
				revenue forecast council.
(c) Each act of commission or omission which
			 procures, aids, or abets in the violation shall be considered a violation under
			 the provisions of this section and subject to the same penalty. The penalties
			 provided in this section shall be imposed pursuant to
			 RCW
			    43.21B.300.
(d) All penalties recovered under this
			 section by ecology shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the
			 air pollution control account established in
			 RCW
			    70.94.015 or, if recovered by the authority,
			 shall be paid into the treasury of the authority and credited to its funds. If
			 a prior penalty for the same violation has been paid to a local authority, the
			 penalty imposed by ecology under subsection (a) of this section shall be
			 reduced by the amount of the payment.
(e) To secure the penalty incurred under this
			 section, the state or the authority shall have a lien on any vessel used or
			 operated in violation of this chapter which shall be enforced as provided in
			 RCW
			    60.36.050.
(f) Public or private entities that are
			 recipients or potential recipients of ecology grants, whether for air quality
			 related activities or not, may have such grants rescinded or withheld by
			 ecology for failure to comply with provisions of this chapter.
(g) In addition to other penalties provided
			 by this chapter, persons knowingly under-reporting emissions or other
			 information used to set fees, or persons required to pay emission or permit
			 fees who are more than ninety days late with such payments may be subject to a
			 penalty equal to three times the amount of the original fee owed.