Opinion ID: 2799297
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Judicial Reviewability

Text: [¶11] We review issues of statutory interpretation de novo. Carrier v. Sec’y of State, 2012 ME 142, ¶ 12, 60 A.3d 1241. Section 3456(2), which governs siting considerations for small-scale wind projects, provides: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, [DEP’s] certification pursuant to this section . . . is not itself subject to judicial review as final agency action or otherwise.” The language is clear: DEP-issued certifications for small-scale wind projects are not judicially reviewable. Therefore, the first question we must resolve is whether the challenged DEP action, the CCO, was part of DEP’s certification process, or a post-certification enforcement action subject to judicial review. See 5 M.R.S. § 11001 (2014); 38 M.R.S. § 347-A (2014). 7 In addition to the Superior Court’s mandate that an executive branch agency explain why it has not undertaken a specific course of action in an enforcement matter, the remand with specific instructions to the DEP to institute an operational protocol may leave the DEP without recourse to judicial review because it cannot seek appellate review of its own action. 7 [¶12] The statutory scheme for approving small-scale wind projects differentiates between the certification process itself and post-certification enforcement action. Title 35-A M.R.S. § 3456(1) sets out the certification process, stating: “A person may not construct or operate a wind energy development . . . without first obtaining a certification from [DEP]” that the project meets certain noise, shadow, and setback requirements. The last sentence of this subsection states, “A person proposing a wind energy development subject to certification under this section . . . may not begin construction until the certification is received.” Id. Subsection 3 specifies that enforcement is undertaken “[f]ollowing certification . . . and during construction and operation.” Id. § 3456(3). [¶13] In June 2009, DEP completed its certification process when it notified Fox Island that its project had been reviewed and approved. Section 3456(2) provides that DEP “shall issue its certification within 185 days of its acceptance of a request for certification . . . .” Fox Island submitted its application on March 24, 2009, and DEP’s approval on June 5, 2009, was well within the 185-day limit. [¶14] Pursuant to its certification-granting authority, DEP imposed certain conditions on Fox Island’s project. One of those conditions—condition #8—required Fox Island, within sixty days of a DEP noncompliance determination, to “submit, for [DEP] review and approval, a revised operation 8 protocol that demonstrates that the project will be in compliance . . . .” That the certification came with strings attached is not uncommon, and such practice is expressly authorized by section 3456.8 [¶15] Following certification of its project in June 2009, Fox Island began construction. A plain reading of section 3456 indicates that, at this point, the certification process that is a prerequisite to initiating construction had concluded. Fox Island completed construction and began operations in October 2009. [¶16] Then, on November 23, 2010, DEP issued a formal noncompliance letter to Fox Island related to the noise infractions on July 17 and 18, 2010, and demanded that Fox Island submit a revised operation protocol pursuant to condition #8 of the certification. See 38 M.R.S. § 347-A(1)(B) (“Before initiating a civil enforcement action . . . [DEP] shall issue a notice of violation . . . cit[ing] the applicable law, rule and term or condition of the license, permit or order alleged to have been violated; and provide time periods for the alleged violator to take necessary corrective action and to respond to the notice.”). DEP’s letter concluded, “Provided that [Fox Island implements the revised protocol] in a manner that ensures compliance with [DEP] noise standards and permit conditions, [DEP] can resolve this matter without further action.” See id. (“[T]he notice may 8 Title 35-A M.R.S. § 3456(2) (2014), provides that “Certification may be conditioned on specific requirements.” 9 state that further enforcement action will not be pursued if compliance is achieved within the time period specified in the notice or under other appropriate circumstances.”) (emphasis added). [¶17] By way of the June 30, 2011, CCO, DEP accepted Fox Island’s revised protocol as compliant with condition #8 of the certification, and also required Fox Island to implement noise reduction mechanisms under certain wind conditions. That DEP was able to reach an agreement with Fox Island and did not have to go to court to enforce Fox Island’s revised operations protocol does not render the CCO any less an enforcement action by DEP. Indeed, the CCO was very similar to a consent decree, which is a common DEP enforcement mechanism. See id. § 347-A(4). Further, DEP’s action here was based on complaints regarding Fox Island’s operations, and not on DEP’s own initiative to modify or renew the certification. [¶18] DEP and Fox Island argue that because the revised operation protocol was referenced in the original certification in special condition #8, the CCO approving it was merely an “amendment” of the initial certification and was therefore part of the certification process as well. We disagree. This characterization is contrary to a plain reading of the statute, pursuant to which the certification process was over when DEP granted Fox Island’s application on June 5, 2009. That the certification contained conditions with which Fox Island 10 had to comply does not give DEP authority to “amend” the certification process many months or even years later. Nor does the initial attachment of conditions mean that any subsequent DEP action to bring a project into compliance with those conditions is not “enforcement.” Section 3456 clearly sets an end date for the certification process because it provides that Fox Island could not have constructed, much less operated, its wind energy project until the certification process had been completed. [¶19] Requiring Fox Island to comply with the certification’s original stated conditions is an enforcement action, not an amendment to the certification. The “certification amendment” view posited by DEP and Fox Island would result in the imposition of new “enforceable standards” pursuant to DEP’s certification authority. However, this view would render the “enforceability” of these new standards meaningless, because they could never be enforced, only amended through the imposition of further standards. If we were to accept this argument, the certification process would never have an end point as long as there were conditions initially imposed upon the project. [¶20] For these reasons, the CCO was a judicially reviewable enforcement action commenced many months after certification was complete. 11