SENATE BILL REPORT

                  SHB 1033

              As Reported By Senate Committee On:

           Agriculture & Environment, March 27, 1997

                  Ways & Means, April 4, 1997

Title:  An act relating to requirements for grain facilities under the Washington clean air act.

Brief Description:  Revising requirements for grain facilities under the Washington clean air act.

Sponsors:  House Committee on Agriculture & Ecology (originally sponsored by Representatives Schoesler, Honeyford, Sheahan, Grant and Chandler).

Brief History:

Committee Activity:  Agriculture & Environment:  3/26/97, 3/27/97 [DPA-WM].

Ways & Means:  4/4/97 [DP (AE)].

SENATE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE & ENVIRONMENT

Majority Report:  Do pass as amended and be referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

  Signed by Senators Morton, Chair; Swecker, Vice Chair; Fraser, McAuliffe, Newhouse, Oke and Rasmussen.

Staff:  Kari Guy (786-7437)

SENATE COMMITTEE ON WAYS & MEANS

Majority Report:  Do pass as amended by Committee on Agriculture & Environment.

  Signed by Senators West, Chair; Deccio, Vice Chair; Strannigan, Vice Chair; Bauer, Brown, Fraser, Hochstatter, Kohl, Long, Loveland, McDonald, Rossi, Schow, Snyder, Spanel, Swecker and Winsley.

Staff:  Cathy Baker (786-7708)

Background:   The state=s Clean Air Act requires the Department of Ecology or the board of a local air pollution control authority to require renewable permits for the operation of air contaminant sources.  The operating permits apply to all sources where required by the federal Clean Air Act and, with certain limitations, to any source that may cause or contribute to air pollution in such a quantity as to create a threat to the public health or welfare.  For sources or categories of sources not required to obtain an operating permit, the Department of Ecology or local board may classify air contaminant sources that may cause or contribute to air pollution and require registration and reporting for these classes of sources.  Fees are set in rule to compensate for the costs of administering the registration program.

Grain warehouses and grain terminals are required to register with the Department of Ecology and pay an annual fee.  It has been suggested that once a small grain elevator has registered with the Department of Ecology, subsequent registration is unnecessary unless the facility increases the grain capacity.

Summary of Amended Bill:  Once a registration or report has been filed under the air pollution source registration program for a grain warehouse or grain elevator, a registration, report, or fee may not be again required for the warehouse or elevator after January 1, 1997.  This prohibition does not apply if the capacity of the warehouse or elevator listed as part of its grain warehouse or elevator license is increased.  If the licensed capacity is increased, any registration or reporting required under the program for the warehouse or elevator must be made by the date the warehouse or elevator receives grain from the first harvest season that occurs after the increase.

This exemption from reregistration, fees, and reporting does not apply to a facility that handles more than 10 million bushels of grain annually.

Amended Bill Compared to Substitute Bill:  The fee and registration requirements will still apply to facilities that handle more than 10 million bushels of grain annually whether the facility is regulated by the Department of Ecology or a local air authority.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Available.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  The actual amount of fine particulate emissions from grain terminals is very low.  The annual fee and registration provides no new information to the agencies or the public, and does not lead to cleaner air. 

Testimony Against:  The exemption is appropriate for small facilities, but larger facilities should not be exempt whether the facility is regulated by the Department of Ecology or a local air authority.  The threshold for large facilities should be decreased from 10 million bushels moved annually to five million bushels.

Testified:  Representative Schoesler, original prime sponsor; Joe Williams, Department of Ecology; Jonathan Schlueter, Pacific Northwest Grain and Feed Association.