WSR 18-13-109

PROPOSED RULES

DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY

[Order 16-09—Filed June 20, 2018, 7:11 a.m.]

Original Notice.

Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 18-09-105.

Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: Air quality fee rule, chapter 173-455 WAC, consolidates most of the air quality related fees into one chapter. This makes it easier for the regulated community to find what fees they may need to pay.

General regulations for air pollution sources, chapter 173-400 WAC, establishes the regulatory framework to ensure healthy air quality in Washington and that we meet federal air quality standards.

Hearing Location(s): Hearing 1 on July 25, 2018, at 10 a.m., at the Wenatchee Red Lion Hotel, 1225 North Wenatchee Avenue, Wenatchee, WA 98801, presentation, question and answer session followed by the formal public hearing; and hearing 2 on July 26, 2018, at 10 a.m., at the Best Western Plus Lake Front Hotel, 3000 West Marina Drive, Moses Lake, WA 98837, presentation, question and answer session followed by the formal public hearing.

Date of Intended Adoption: October 17, 2018.

Submit Written Comments to: Jean-Paul Huys, Department of Ecology, Air Quality Program, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600, submit comments by mail, online, or at the hearing(s); or online at http://ac.ecology.commentinput.com/?id=rU53f, by August 3, 2018.

Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Hanna Waterstrat, phone 360-407-7668, people with speech disability may call TTY at 877-833-6341, people with impaired hearing may call Washington relay service at 711, email hanna.waterstrat@ecy.wa.gov, by July 5, 2018.

Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: Ecology proposes to amend chapters 173-455 and 173-400 WAC to:


•	Revise the registration program structure, including requiring all sources to register.
•	Increase fees to more fully cover the costs of the air quality source registration program.
•	Revise the fee process to create an equitable distribution of fees across all sources, and establish a process to revise fees without going through rule making.
•	Align chapters 173-400 and 173-455 WAC.
•	Match hourly rate charge in WAC 173-455-050, 173-455-100(2) and 173-455-130 with the current ecology hourly billing rate (currently $95).
•	Identify, and where appropriate, make needed edits in chapters 173-455 and 173-400 WAC to increase clarity and readability.

The proposed revisions to chapters 173-455 and 173-400 WAC will:


•	Require all sources to register.
•	Revise the existing annual fee structure for the registration program to establish:


º	Six registration tiers.
º	An annual fee for each source based on its tier assignment.
º	Registration tiers based on total emissions of PM10, VOC, CO, NOx and SO2, that ecology will assign by August 1 of the year before the new fee schedule goes into effect, with a sixty day period to appeal an assignment.
º	Cap on the fees for tier 6 (synthetic minor source).


•	Phase in the new fee structure in 2019, 2020, and 2021.
•	Remove registration fee amounts from the rule in 2022 and beyond, and establish a process for determining annual fees outside of rule making:


º	Set fees annually or biennially based on a budget.
º	Post a draft budget and tier fee schedule on our web site by August 1 of the year before the new fee schedule goes into effect.
º	Hold a sixty day public comment period on the draft fee schedule.
º	Finalize and post the final budget and fee schedule by December 1 of the year before the new fee schedule goes into effect.


•	Update the hourly rate charge in WAC 173-455-050, 173-455-100(2) and 173-455-130 to match current ecology billing rates.
•	Edit chapters 173-455 and 173-400 WAC to improve clarity and readability.

Reasons Supporting Proposal:


•	The existing registration program structure does not require all sources of air pollution to register. Under this rule making, we propose requiring all sources to register. Lack of registration hampers and complicates the program because it fails to collect fees from an estimated one hundred forty-eight sources. The remaining three hundred eighty-seven sources currently registered in the program are currently covering the administrative costs for ecology to regulate all five hundred thirty-five sources.
•	Existing registration program fees fund approximately fifty percent of the estimated cost of operating the program. The rule making would better align fees to more fully cover program costs.
•	The current fee process for the registration program does not equitably distribute fees across all registered sources. The rule making would increase fairness. Establishing a process to determine fees outside of rule making simplifies the process and allows us to recover our costs through more frequent, more predictable, and smaller fee increases.

Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 70.94 RCW, RCW 70.94.151, 70.94.153, and 70.94.892.

Statute Being Implemented: Chapter 70.94 RCW.

Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.

Name of Proponent: Department of ecology, governmental.

Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Jean-Paul Huys, Lacey, 360-407-6827; Implementation and Enforcement: Ecology, Central Regional Office, Union Gap, 509-575-2490 or Ecology, Eastern Regional Office, Spokane, 509-329-3400.

A school district fiscal impact statement is not required under RCW 28A.305.135.

A cost-benefit analysis is required under RCW 34.05.328. A preliminary cost-benefit analysis may be obtained by contacting Jean-Paul Huys, Department of Ecology, Air Quality Program, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600, phone 360-407-6827, people with speech disability may call TTY 877-833-6341, people with impaired hearing may call Washington relay service 711, email jean-paul.huys@ecy.wa.gov.

The proposed rule does impose more-than-minor costs on businesses.

Small Business Economic Impact Statement

Relevant Information for State Register Publication

Proposed amendments to chapter 173-455 WAC, Air quality fee rule and chapter 173-400 WAC, General regulations for air pollution sources

This small business economic impact statement (SBEIS) presents the:


•	Compliance requirements of the proposed rule.
•	Results of the analysis of relative compliance cost burden.
•	Consideration of lost sales or revenue.
•	Cost-mitigating action taken by ecology, if required.
•	Small business and local government consultation.
•	Industries likely impacted by the proposed rule.
•	Expected net impact on jobs statewide.

A small business is defined by the Regulatory Fairness Act (chapter 19.85 RCW) as having fifty or fewer employees. Estimated costs are determined as compared to the existing regulatory environment, the regulations in the absence of the rule. The SBEIS only considers costs to "businesses in an industry" in Washington state. This means that impacts, for this document, are not evaluated for nonprofit or government agencies.

The existing regulatory environment is called the "baseline" in this document. It includes only existing laws and rules at federal and state levels.

This information is excerpted from ecology's complete set of regulatory analyses of the proposed rule. For complete discussion of the likely costs, benefits, minimum compliance burden, and relative burden on small businesses, see the regulatory analyses (Ecology publication no. 18-02-022, June 2018).

COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS OF THE PROPOSED RULE, INCLUDING PROFESSIONAL SERVICES:

Baseline: The baseline for our analyses generally consists of requirements in existing rules and laws. This is what allows us to make a consistent comparison between the state of the world with and without the proposed amendments.

For this rule making, the baseline includes: The Washington Clean Air Act (chapter 70.94 RCW), which authorizes ecology to:


•	Classify air contaminant sources that may cause or contribute to air pollution and require these sources to register or report to ecology.
•	Collect fees to cover the costs to [of] operating the registration, and to cover costs to review carbon dioxide mitigation plan components.

Chapter 173-455 WAC, Air quality fee rule, consolidates most of the air quality related fees into one chapter.

Chapter 173-400 WAC, General regulations for air pollution sources, establishes the regulatory framework to ensure that healthy air quality exists in Washington, including meeting federal air quality standards.

Proposed rule amendments: For this rule making, the proposed rule amendments that differ from the baseline and are not specifically dictated in the authorizing statute or elsewhere in law or rule include:


•	Changing registration coverage and reporting.
•	Setting a new registration fee structure and schedule for 2019 – 2021.
•	Establishing a process to update the registration fee schedule in 2022 and beyond.
•	Updating hourly rates for managing carbon dioxide mitigation.
•	Allowing ninety days for payment of fees.
•	Housekeeping changes.

Changing registration coverage and reporting:

Baseline: Ecology's current rule (WAC 173-400-100) explicitly lists source categories required to register. Registered sources are required to submit air emissions inventories annually.

Proposed: All air pollutant emissions sources would be required to register, but emissions inventories are due annually or as requested by ecology. This requirement is intended to reduce the frequency of reporting for small sources, but retain ecology's ability to get an emissions report if necessary.

Expected impact: Under the proposed amendments, one hundred forty-eight additional facilities would need to register. These facilities would incur registration fees (see 2.3.2), as well as the costs of registration activities such as filling out a form and providing an emissions inventory. The state would benefit through more equitable distribution of fees and broad-based long-term funding of the registration program.

Setting a new registration fee structure and schedule for 2019 – 2021:

Baseline: The fee structure, under the baseline, sets fees for periodic sources (sources that file emissions inventories with ecology once every three years) based on source emissions category and emission rates. Table 1 summarizes the emissions that define various types of periodic source[s], and associated fees.

Table 1: Baseline Periodic Registration Fee Table


Yearly periodic registration fee	$450	$700	$1,000
Category	Small Periodic Source	Medium Periodic Source	Large Periodic Source
Air Contaminant	Emission Rates
	Tons per year	Tons per year	Tons per year
Carbon monoxide	5 to < 15	15 to < 30	30 to < 100
Lead	0.005 to < 0.3	0.3 to < 0.45	0.45 to < 0.6
Nitrogen oxides	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Particulate matter (TSP or total suspended particulates)	1.25 to < 6	6 to < 12	12 to < 25
Particulate matter10	0.75 to < 3.5	3.5 to < 7	7 to < 15
Particulate matter2.5	0.5 to < 2	2 to < 5	5 to < 10
Sulfur dioxide	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Volatile organic compounds	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Toxic air pollutant	˃ de minimis emissions (see WAC 173-460-150)	—	—

The current fee structure also sets fees for sources required to submit emissions inventories annually. The fees for these sources (called annual sources) include the following three components:


•	A flat fee;
•	A complexity fee based on a point-based complexity rating; and
•	An emissions fee based on tons of emissions.

Under the current rule, each annual source is assigned a complexity rating of one, three, or five based on the estimated amount of time ecology will need to review and inspect the source.

Table 2 summarizes the emissions thresholds above, which facilities [are] currently required to register with ecology. Table 3 summarizes the current amounts charged for each of the three components of the fees for annual sources. The current fees for annual sources are higher than fees for periodic sources.

Table 2: Baseline Annual Registration Emission Rate Threshold Table


Air Pollutant	Emission Rate (tons per year)
Carbon monoxide	100
Lead	0.6
Fluorides	3
Nitrogen oxides	40
Particulate matter	25
Particulate matter10	15
Particulate matter2.5	10
Reduced sulfur compounds (including H2S)	10
Sulfur dioxide	40
Sulfuric acid mist	7
Total reduced sulfur (including H2S)	10

Table 3: Baseline Annual Registration Fee Components


Component	Fee Rate
Flat fee	$1,057 per year
Complexity	$469 per complexity rating point
Emissions	$16 per ton

Proposed: The proposed rule amendments replace the current fees with a fee structure that includes six tiers of sources, based on emissions of the following five pollutants:


•	Particulate matter (PM10);
•	Volatile organic compounds (VOC);
•	Carbon monoxide (CO);
•	Sulfur oxides (SOx); and
•	Nitrogen oxides (NOx).

Table 4 shows how source emissions are broken into six tiers.

Table 5 provides the proposed fees for each tier for 2019, 2020, and 2021. Under the proposed rule, mint distillers would pay $200 per year in 2019 – 2021. Beyond 2021, they will pay fees based on total emissions like all other sources.

Table 4: Proposed Registration Fee Tiers


Tier	Annual Emissions
Tier 1	Annual Emissions ≤ 0.01 tons/year
Tier 2	0.01 tons per year < Annual Emissions ≤ 10 tons per year
Tier 3	10 tons per year < Annual Emissions ≤ 20 tons per year
Tier 4	20 tons per year < Annual Emissions ≤ 70 tons per year
Tier 5	70 tons per year < Annual Emissions
Tier 6	Synthetic minor source (as defined in WAC 173-400-030) that emits or has potential to emit at or above eighty percent of the threshold for a major source (as defined in WAC 173-401-200).

Table 5: Proposed Fees


Tier	Fee 2019	Fee 2020	Fee 2021
1	$200	$200	$200
2	$400	$575	$700
3	$700	$1,000	$1,300
4	$1,100	$1,300	$1,500
5	$5,000	$5,500	$7,000
6	$7,000	$7,500	$8,000

Expected impact: Under the proposed amendments, some facilities would pay higher fees than under the baseline, while others would pay lower fees. The structure of the proposed fees itself is significantly more straightforward than under the baseline, and would likely result in clearer expectations for fees.

Ecology designed the proposed amendments to set fees to cover ninety-five percent of program costs by 2021, which is more than the current coverage of fifty-four percent of costs. This change would result in benefits to other air quality program functions, since ecology would no longer have to use equivalent tax and fee-payer funds to support the registration program. The proposed fee schedule for 2019 – 2021 also better reflects the program costs incurred by each source, resulting in a fairer distribution of cost coverage burden.

It is important to note that the state clean air act authorizes fees for the funding of the registration program.

Establishing a process for setting the registration fee schedule for 2022 and beyond:

Baseline: Currently, the fee structure and fee amounts are set in rule. That rule requires ecology to go through rule making to make changes. The rule requires ecology to use the fees to cover the cost of implementing the registration program. However, at this time, they cover only fifty-four percent of the fee-eligible costs of the registration program.

Proposed: The proposed amendments retain the assessment of annual fees to cover the costs of the registration program. They clarify the list of program components covered in the fee structure and establish a public process for assessing fees in 2022 and beyond. This process requires ecology to:


•	Prepare a budget of annual implementation costs, and comparing [compare] it to the previous year's revenue.
•	Adjust fees to fund the registration program budget, as a uniform percentage across all sources.
•	Post the draft budget analysis and draft registration fee schedule on ecology's web site no later than August 1 of the year before the fee schedule goes into effect.
•	Hold a sixty day public comment period before any fee changes.

Expected impact: The proposed amendments would enable ecology to avoid rule making to update fee schedules which would result in significant reductions in expenditure of time and money, as well as reducing the long delay in updating the fees. Including a new public process for updating fees in the amended rule would allow ecology to retain the transparency and public engagement that rule making provides.

The ability to update fees annually starting in 2022 gives ecology more certainty in its ability to fund the registration program as authorized in statute. This additional certainty would potentially be counteracted by the uncertainty for sources resulting from the changes in fees each year based on ecology's updated budget analysis. However, the public process created under the proposed amendments would provide transparency in the fee-setting process.

Updating hourly rates for managing carbon dioxide mitigation:

Baseline: The existing set of fees for sources requiring carbon dioxide mitigation plans are provided in Table 6.

Table 6: Baseline Fees for Carbon Dioxide Mitigation Program


Activity	Fee
Application review	$65 per hour with $500 cap
Mitigation plan approval
Payment to third party	$100
Purchase of CO2 credits	$65 per hour
Direct investment	$65 per hour
Routine compliance monitoring
Payment to third party	$100 annually until full amount is paid
Purchase of CO2 credits	$65 per hour
Applicant controlled project	$65 per hour

Proposed: The proposed amendments raise the hourly rate for sources requiring carbon dioxide mitigation plans to $95 per hour, as shown in Table 7.

Table 7: Baseline Fees for Carbon Dioxide Mitigation Program


Activity	Fee
Application review	$95 per hour with $500 cap
Mitigation plan approval
Payment to third party	$100
Purchase of CO2 credits	$95 per hour
Direct investment	$95 per hour
Routine compliance monitoring
Payment to third party	$100 annually until full amount is paid
Purchase of CO2 credits	$95 per hour
Applicant controlled project	$95 per hour

Expected impact: Ecology is not currently managing any carbon dioxide mitigation plans. Moreover, ecology has never managed such a plan. Sources requiring a carbon dioxide mitigation plan pay their fees to agencies managing approval and monitoring of plans. These are currently the energy facility site evaluation council and local clean air agencies. These agencies set their own fees. Consequently, ecology's proposed amendment would increase incremental fees, there would be zero resulting cost.

Allowing ninety days for payment of fees:

Baseline: Currently, facilities must pay fees within thirty days of receiving a billing statement from ecology.

Proposed: Under the proposed rule, facilities would be required to pay fees within ninety days of receiving their billing statement from ecology.

Expected impact: Sixty more days to pay the fee would allow facilities more time to budget for the fees.

Housekeeping changes:

Baseline: In implementing the requirements of chapter 173-455 WAC, ecology has determined that some parts of the rules were unclear or poorly organized.

Proposed: The proposed amendments clarify and organize language and requirements to improve clarity and facilitate compliance. Other changes are necessary to make rules consistent with the substantive proposed changes outlined in the previous sections.

Expected impact: No behavioral impact is expected. We do expect facility owners and operators will find it easier to figure out if the rule applies to them and how to comply. This may reduce the transaction costs for those facilities.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: EQUIPMENT: Compliance with the proposed rule, compared to the baseline, is not likely to impose additional costs of equipment.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: SUPPLIES: Compliance with the proposed rule, compared to the baseline, is not likely to impose additional costs of supplies.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: LABOR: The proposed amendments require one hundred forty-eight additional facilities to register. These facilities would incur registration fees (see 3.2.2), as well as the costs of registration activities such as a form and emissions inventory.

The amount of time necessary to complete registration depends on the individual performing registration tasks. We assumed this work would be done by facility employees ranging from administrative staff to engineers, and take between two and eight hours of applied work. Our estimate of annual registration labor costs is provided in Table 8.

Table 8: Annual Registration Labor Costs


Employee Type	Wage1 (2018-dollars)	Total Cost per Source (low)	Total Cost per Source (high)	Number of Sources	Total Annual Cost (low)	Total Annual Cost (high)
Office and administrative support occupations	$19.38	$38.77	$155.07	148	$5,738	$22,951
Industrial engineers	$52.06	$104.11	$416.44	148	$15,408	$61,633

1 US Bureau of Labor Statistics (2016). May 2016 Wages by Area and Occupation. Washington State.

Our assumption gave us an overall range of $6 thousand to $62 thousand per year. In twenty year present value, this annual cost is equivalent to approximately $100 thousand to $1 million over the next 20 years, depending on level of expertise and experience necessary.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: Compliance with the proposed rule, compared to the baseline, is not likely to impose additional costs of professional services.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS: Where applicable, ecology estimates administrative costs ("overhead") as part of the cost of labor and professional services, above.

COSTS OF COMPLIANCE: OTHER: Under the proposed amendments, fees for some sources would increase as compared to the baseline. We determined 2019 – 2021 tiers for currently covered sources based on 2016 total emissions. We then compared the fees charged to those tiers under the proposed amendments to estimated baseline fees based on the most recent fee charged to each source in 2017. Fees for 2018 were assumed to be unchanged from 2017. The resulting minimum, median and maximum fee increases are provided in Table 9. All fees are conservatively assumed to be annual, and all calculations are in 2018 dollars.

Table 9: Distribution of Fee Increases in 2019 – 2021


	2019	2020	2021
Minimum	$99	$122	$194
Median	$396	$122	$242
Maximum	$6,926	$7,342	$7,749

Note that fee increase distributions do not change linearly, because fees for some facilities would decrease in 2019 and/or 2020, then increase in 2020 and/or 2021.

When estimating the quantifiable impacts of proposed rule amendments, ecology calculates twenty year present values. This process discounts future streams of costs and benefits to comparable current values, using average historic discount rates. The current average historic rate is 1.07 percent.

We assumed there would be six percent growth in fees each biennium (based on potential wage growth).

Some facilities may experience fee reductions in early years, but see fee increases in later years that result in net increase in twenty year present value costs. Looking at the five hundred seven facilities likely to experience net increases in twenty year present value costs, compared to the baseline, the costs of the proposed amendments were estimated to be approximately $6.4 million over the next twenty years.

Table 10 summarizes the distribution of twenty year present value fee increases by facility.

Table 10: Twenty Year Present Value Fee Increases


Minimum	$2,586
Median	$6,864
Max	$169,755

COMPARISON OF COMPLIANCE COST FOR SMALL VERSUS LARGE BUSINESSES: Ecology calculated the estimated per-entity costs to comply with the proposed amendments, based on the costs estimated in Chapter 3. In this section, ecology summarizes compliance cost per employee at affected businesses of different sizes.

We selected a random representative sample of covered sources, finding that the average affected small business likely to be covered by the proposed amendments employs approximately twelve people. The largest ten percent of affected businesses employ an average of nearly eighty-seven thousand people. Employment numbers are based on the highest identifiable operation ownership level, and the lowest identifiable employment number if a range was identified.

Based on quantifiable fee increase estimates from Chapter 3 and fee reduction estimates from Chapter 4, we estimated the impacts to compliance costs per employee in 2019 – 2021 shown in Table 13. The disproportionate impacts found are likely to continue in subsequent years.

Table 13: Ratio of Compliance Cost Impacts Per Employee


	Average Fee Decrease per Employee			Average Fee Increase per Employee
	2019	2020	2021	2019	2020	2021
Small Businesses	$66.19	$119.58	$105.32	$149.16	$130.57	$173.82
Largest 10% of Businesses	~$0.00	N/A	N/A	$0.01	~$0.00	$0.01

For facilities for which fees would decrease under the proposed amendments, small businesses would likely see a per-employee fee reduction, while the largest businesses would see none or near zero. This is a positive disproportion in favor of small businesses.

For facilities for which fees would increase under the proposed amendments, small businesses would see a significantly larger per-employee increase than the largest businesses would.

Finally, for the one hundred forty-eight sources that would need to incur registration labor costs, small businesses (averaging sixteen employees) are over one thousand times smaller than the largest ten percent of businesses (averaging twenty-one thousand employees at the highest ownership level). The annual cost of $150 to $400 per source would inherently be disproportionately larger for small businesses, even if they employed the lowest wage labor and took the least time to complete registration tasks.

We conclude that the proposed amendments are likely to have disproportionate impacts on small businesses, and therefore ecology must include elements in the proposed amendments to mitigate this disproportion, as far as is legal and feasible.

CONSIDERATION OF LOST SALES OR REVENUE: Businesses that would incur costs could experience reduced sales or revenues if the fee changes would significantly affect the prices of the goods they sell. The degree to which this could happen is strongly related to each business's production and pricing model (whether additional lump-sum costs significantly affect marginal costs), as well as the specific attributes of the markets in which they sell goods, including the degree of influence of each firm on market prices, as well as the relative responsiveness of market demand to price changes.

The proposed amendments affect a wide variety of businesses. Those industries that are more able to control their pricing, likely due to geographic restrictions in various types of construction, for example, may trade off price increases for reduced sales (which may or may not result in reduced revenue). Industries with greater competition, such as various wholesale industries, may not be as able to control their pricing, and would not see associated impacts to sales and revenue.

MITIGATION OF DISPROPORTIONATE IMPACT: Equitability was a significant consideration during this rule making, and the proposed amendments decrease fees for small businesses in greater proportion (per employee) than for large businesses, where fees are proposed to decrease.

The baseline rule includes an extreme hardship exemption specifically for small businesses. This is retained in the proposed amendments. In addition, the proposed amendments phase in (delay compliance timetables) during the three years for which numeric fees are specified.

The process established in the proposed amendments to develop subsequent fee schedules using a public process allows small businesses to be involved in fee development, and particularly allows ecology to allow for an up-to-date economic environment and address small business concerns as they develop. The proposed amendments also potentially reduce reporting requirements for some small sources, and while a small source is not necessarily owned by a small business, it may be more likely to be.

SMALL BUSINESS AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONSULTATION: Ecology involved small businesses and local government in its development of the proposed rule amendments by:


•	Communicating through the ECY-AQ-RULE-AND-SIP-UPDATES listserv.
•	Email communication specific to the rule making, through the AO#16-09 AQ Fees General Distribution List, including the seven local air agencies and eight business associations.
•	Registration fees and process workgroup meetings on March 21, 2017; April 26, 2017; May 24, 2017; June 27, 2017; November 20, 2017; February 7, 2018; and February 28, 2018.
•	Postcards sent to approximately five hundred thirty-five registration program source addresses.
•	Approximately thirty letters sent to tribal contacts.

NAICS CODES OF INDUSTRIES IMPACTED BY THE PROPOSED RULE:


1119	2381	3219	3315	4234	4246	4452	5173	5419
2123	2389	3241	3331	4238	4249	4812	5179	8111
2361	3114	3253	3366	4239	4441	4861	5182	8122
2373	3118	3273	4233	4245	4442	4931	5413	8123

IMPACT ON JOBS: Under the proposed amendments' fee increases and decreases relative to the baseline, the Washington state economy could experience the loss of approximately:


•	One full-time employee (FTE) equivalent in 2019.
•	Two FTE equivalents in 2020.
•	Three FTE equivalents in 2021.
•	By 2037, this would level off to a loss of approximately one FTE per year.

A copy of the statement may be obtained by contacting Jean-Paul Huys, Department of Ecology, Air Quality Program, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600, phone 360-407-6827, people with speech disability may call TTY 877-833-6341, people with impaired hearing may call Washington relay service 711, email jean-paul.huys@ecy.wa.gov.

June 19, 2018

Polly Zehm

Deputy Director

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 16-12-099, filed 5/31/16, effective 7/1/16)

WAC 173-400-060Emission standards for general process units.

General process units are required to meet all applicable provisions of WAC 173-400-040 and, no person shall cause or allow the emission of particulate material from any general process operation in excess of 0.23 grams per dry cubic meter at standard conditions (0.1 grain/dscf) of exhaust gas. Test methods (((in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025))) from 40 C.F.R. Parts 51, 60, 61, and 63 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025) and any other approved test procedures in ecology's "Source Test Manual - Procedures For Compliance Testing" as of September 20, 2004, will be used to determine compliance.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 16-12-099, filed 5/31/16, effective 7/1/16)

WAC 173-400-100Source classifications.

(1) Source classification list. In counties without a local air pollution control authority, or for sources under the jurisdiction of ecology, the owner or operator of each source within the following source categories shall register the source with ecology:

(a) Agricultural chemical facilities engaging in the manufacturing of liquid or dry fertilizers or pesticides;

(b) Agricultural drying and dehydrating operations;

(c) Any category of stationary source that includes an emissions unit subject to a new source performance standard (NSPS) under 40 C.F.R. Part 60 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025), other than subpart AAA (Standards of Performance for New Residential Wood Heaters);

(d) Any stationary source((,)) that includes an emissions unit subject to a National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) under 40 C.F.R. Part 61 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025), other than:

(i) Subpart M (National Emission Standard for Asbestos); or

(ii) Sources or emission units emitting only radionuclides, which are required to obtain a license under WAC 246-247-060, and are subject to 40 C.F.R. Part 61, subparts H and/or I, and that are not subject to any other part of 40 C.F.R. Parts 61, 62, or 63, or any other parts of this section;

(e) Any source, or emissions unit subject to a National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories (((Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standard))) under 40 C.F.R. Part 63 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025) that is not subject to chapter 173-401 WAC;

(f) Any source, stationary source or emission unit with an emission rate of one or more pollutants equal to or greater than an "emission threshold" defined in WAC 173-400-030;

(g) Asphalt and asphalt products production facilities;

(h) Brick and clay manufacturing plants, including tiles and ceramics;

(i) Casting facilities and foundries, ferrous and nonferrous;

(j) Cattle feedlots with operational facilities which have an inventory of one thousand or more cattle in operation between June 1st and October 1st, where vegetation forage growth is not sustained over the majority of the lot during the normal growing season;

(k) Chemical manufacturing plants;

(l) Composting operations, including commercial, industrial and municipal, but exempting residential composting activities;

(m) Concrete product manufacturers and ready mix and premix concrete plants;

(n) Crematoria or animal carcass incinerators;

(o) Dry cleaning plants;

(p) Materials handling and transfer facilities that generate fine particulate, which may include pneumatic conveying, cyclones, baghouses, and industrial housekeeping vacuuming systems that exhaust to the atmosphere;

(q) Flexible vinyl and urethane coating and printing operations;

(r) Grain, seed, animal feed, legume, and flour processing operations, and handling facilities;

(s) Hay cubers and pelletizers;

(t) Hazardous waste treatment and disposal facilities;

(u) Ink manufacturers;

(v) Insulation fiber manufacturers;

(w) Landfills, active and inactive, including covers, gas collections systems or flares;

(x) Metal plating and anodizing operations;

(y) Metallic and nonmetallic mineral processing plants, including rock crushing plants;

(z) Mills such as lumber, plywood, shake, shingle, woodchip, veneer operations, dry kilns, pulpwood insulating board, or any combination thereof;

(aa) Mineralogical processing plants;

(bb) Other metallurgical processing plants;

(cc) Paper manufacturers;

(dd) Petroleum refineries;

(ee) Petroleum product blending operations;

(ff) Plastics and fiberglass product fabrication facilities;

(gg) Rendering plants;

(hh) Soil and groundwater remediation projects;

(ii) Surface coating manufacturers;

(jj) Surface coating operations including: Automotive, metal, cans, pressure sensitive tape, labels, coils, wood, plastic, rubber, glass, paper and other substrates;

(kk) Synthetic fiber production facilities;

(ll) Synthetic organic chemical manufacturing industries;

(mm) Tire recapping facilities;

(nn) Wastewater treatment plants;

(oo) Any source that has elected to opt-out of the operating permit program by limiting its potential-to-emit (synthetic minor) or is required to report periodically to demonstrate nonapplicability to EPA requirements under Sections 111 or 112 of Federal Clean Air Act.

(2) Equipment classification list. In counties without a local authority, the owner or operator of the following equipment shall register the source with ecology:

(a) Boilers, all solid and liquid fuel burning boilers with the exception of those utilized for residential heating;

(b) Boilers, all gas fired boilers above 10 million British thermal units per hour input;

(d) Degreasers of the cold or vapor type in which more than five percent of the solvent is comprised of halogens or such aromatic hydrocarbons as benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene or xylene;

(e) Ethylene oxide (ETO) sterilizers;

(f) Flares utilized to combust any gaseous material;

(g) Fuel burning equipment with a heat input of more than 1 million Btu per hour; except heating, air conditioning systems, or ventilating systems not designed to remove contaminants generated by or released from equipment;

(h) Incinerators designed for a capacity of one hundred pounds per hour or more;

(i) Ovens, burn-out and heat-treat;

(j) Stationary internal combustion engines and turbines rated at five hundred horsepower or more;

(k) Storage tanks for organic liquids associated with commercial or industrial facilities with capacities equal to or greater than 40,000 gallons;

(l) Vapor collection systems within commercial or industrial facilities;

(m) Waste oil burners above 0.5 mm Btu heat output;

(n) Woodwaste incinerators;

(o) Commercial and industrial solid waste incineration units subject to WAC 173-400-050(4);

(p) Small municipal waste combustion units subject to WAC 173-400-050(5).

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 11-06-060, filed 3/1/11, effective 4/1/11)

WAC 173-400-101Registration issuance.

(1) General. Any person operating or responsible for the operation of an air contaminant source for which registration and reporting are required shall register the source emission unit with the permitting authority. The owner or operator shall make reports containing information ((as may be)) required by the permitting authority concerning location, size and height of contaminant outlets, processes employed, nature and quantity of the air contaminant emission and such other information as is relevant to air pollution and available or reasonably capable of being assembled.

(2) Registration form. Sources shall provide registration information ((shall be provided on forms supplied)) in a manner and time prescribed by the permitting authority and shall ((be completed and returned)) complete and return them within the time specified on the form. Sources shall list each emission unit((s)) within the facility ((shall be listed)) separately unless the permitting authority determines that the facility may combine certain emission units ((may be combined)) into process streams for purposes of registration and reporting.

(3) Signatory responsibility. The owner, operator, or their designated management representative shall sign the registration form for each source. The owner or operator of the source ((shall be)) is responsible for notifying the permitting authority of the existence of the source, and for the accuracy, completeness, and timely submittal of registration reporting information and any accompanying fee.

(4) Operational and maintenance plan. Owners or operators of registered sources within ecology's jurisdiction shall maintain an operation and maintenance plan for process and control equipment. The plan shall reflect good industrial practice and shall include a record of performance and periodic inspections of process and control equipment. In most instances, a manufacturer's operations manual or an equipment operation schedule may be considered a sufficient operation and maintenance plan. The source owner or operator shall review and update the plan ((shall be reviewed and updated by the source owner or operator)) at least annually. The source owner or operator shall make a copy of the plan ((shall be made)) available to ecology upon request.

(5) Report of closure. The owner or operator shall file a report of closure ((shall be filed)) with the permitting authority within ninety days after operations producing emissions permanently cease at any applicable source under this section.

(6) Report of change of ownership. A new owner or operator shall report to the permitting authority within ninety days of any change of ownership or change in operator.

(7) Operating permit program source exemption. Permit program sources, as defined in RCW 70.94.030(18), are not required to comply with the registration requirements of WAC 173-400-100 through 173-400-104.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 11-06-060, filed 3/1/11, effective 4/1/11)

WAC 173-400-102Scope of registration and reporting requirements.

(((1) Administrative options. A source in a listed source category that is located in a county without an active local authority will be addressed in one of several ways:

(a) The source will be required to register and report once each year. The criteria for identifying these sources are listed in subsection (2) of this section.

(b) The source will be required to register and report once every three years. The criteria for identifying these sources are listed in subsection (3) of this section.

(c) The source will be exempted from registration program requirements. The criteria for identifying these sources are listed in subsection (4) of this section.

(2) Sources requiring annual registration and inspections. An owner or operator of a source in a listed source category that meets any of the following criteria shall register and report once each year:

(a) The source emits one or more air pollutants at rates greater than the "emission threshold" rates defined in WAC 173-400-030;

(b) Annual registration and reporting is necessary to comply with federal reporting requirements or emission standards; or

(c) Annual registration and reporting is required in a reasonably available control technology determination for the source category; or

(d) The director of ecology determines that the source poses a potential threat to human health and the environment.

(3) Sources requiring periodic registration and inspections. An owner or operator of a source in a listed source category that meets any of the following criteria shall register and report once every three years:

(a) The source emits one or more air pollutants at rates greater than the emission rates listed in subsection (5) of this section and all air pollutants at rates less than the "emission threshold" rates defined in WAC 173-400-030; or

(b) More than de minimis amounts of one or more toxic air pollutants listed in WAC 173-460-150.

(4) Sources exempt from registration program requirements. Any source included in a listed source category that is located in a county without an active local air authority is not required to register if:

(a) The source emits pollutants below emission rates specified in subsection (5) of this section; and

(b) The source or emission unit does not emit more than de minimis amounts of toxic air pollutants specified in WAC 173-460-150.

(5) Criteria for defining exempt sources. The following emission rates will be used to identify listed sources that are exempt from registration program requirements:


Pollutant	Tons/Year
Carbon Monoxide. . . .	5.0
Lead. . . .	0.005
Nitrogen oxides. . . .	2.0
PM-10. . . .	0.75
PM-2.5. . . .	0.5
Total suspended particulates. . . .	1.25
Sulfur dioxide. . . .	2.0
Volatile organic compounds (VOC). . . .	2.0))

(1) Applicability. This section applies to sources subject to WAC 173-400-100 located in a county without a local air pollution control authority.

(2) A source that is not subject to new source review under WAC 173-400-110(5) must register with ecology.

(3) Emissions inventory report.

(a) An owner or operator must submit an emissions inventory report in a manner specified by ecology:

(i) Annually when mandated by an order of approval or a regulatory order; or

(ii) Upon request from ecology.

(b) An emissions inventory report must include the information required by ecology, an order of approval, or regulatory order:

(i) Emission sources;

(ii) Types and amounts of raw materials and fuels used;

(iii) Types, amounts and concentrations of air contaminants emitted;

(iv) Data on emission units and control devices;

(v) Data on emission points;

(vi) Other information related to the registration program as requested by ecology.

(4) Requesting evaluation of an emissions inventory determination.

(a) Ecology will finalize an emissions inventory by April 30th of each year, or biennially.

(b) A source may request review of an ecology emissions inventory determination by May 31st of each year. The request must include information, such as:

(i) A more recent estimate of annual emissions;

(ii) Documentation on the source(s) of the new data and the calculation methods used to estimate emissions; or

(iii) Other supporting information.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 95-07-126, filed 3/22/95, effective 4/22/95)

WAC 173-400-103Emission estimates.

(((1) Procedure for estimating emissions. In counties without an active local air pollution control authority, registration may include an estimate of actual emissions taking into account equipment, operating conditions, and air pollution control measures. Registration may also include a flowchart of plant processes, operational parameters, and specifications of air pollution control equipment. The emissions estimate shall be based upon actual test data or, in the absence of such data, upon procedures acceptable to ecology. Any emission data submitted to ecology shall be verifiable using currently accepted engineering criteria. The following procedures may be used to estimate emissions from individual sources or emissions units:

(a) Source-specific testing data;

(b) Mass balance calculations;

(d) Other engineering calculations; or

(e) Other procedures to estimate emissions that are acceptable to ecology.

(2) Owner or operator review. Ecology will provide the owner or operator of the source an opportunity to review any emission estimates prepared by ecology. An owner or operator may submit additional information and any justification for not using the methods listed above. This information will be evaluated by ecology to determine whether it is based on currently accepted engineering criteria. If none of the above methods are available or applicable to the source, an appropriate method will be established and approved by ecology on a case-by-case basis.)) (1) This section applies to a source subject to WAC 173-400-100 located in a county without a local air pollution control authority.

(2) Procedure for estimating emissions from a source.

(a) An emissions inventory report may include:

(i) An estimate of actual emissions taking into account equipment;

(ii) Operating conditions;

(iii) Air pollution control measures;

(iv) A flowchart of plant processes;

(v) Operational parameters; and

(vi) Specifications of air pollution control equipment.

(b) An owner or operator must base the emissions estimate on actual test data or, in the absence of test data, on procedures acceptable to ecology.

(c) Emission data submitted to ecology must be verifiable using currently accepted engineering criteria. Sources may use the following procedures to estimate emissions from individual sources or emissions units:

(i) Source-specific testing data;

(ii) Mass balance calculations;

(iii) A published, verifiable emission factor applicable to the source;

(iv) Other engineering calculations; or

(v) Other procedures to estimate emissions acceptable to ecology.

(3) Owner or operator review.

(a) By August 1st of each year, ecology will provide the owner or operator of the source an opportunity to review emission estimates prepared by ecology.

(b) An owner or operator may submit additional information and justification for not using the procedures in subsection (2) of this subsection.

(i) The owner or operator may propose a source-specific appropriate method.

(ii) Ecology will evaluate the information provided to determine whether the owner or operator based it on currently accepted engineering criteria.

(iii) If none of these methods are available or applicable to the source, ecology must establish and approve an appropriate method on a case-by-case basis.

(c) When estimating emissions, ecology must consider updates and revisions made to a source's operations during a calendar year to apply to emissions occurring during the entire calendar year.

(d) Emissions inventory review process.

(i) Ecology must:

(A) Notify each source of their draft emissions inventory by August 1st of each year in connection with notice on the draft tier placement in WAC 173-455-039;

(B) Distribute the notice by electronic means or by means of the United States postal service if ecology does not have an electronic means for the source or the source requests postal service notification.

(ii) Comment deadlines. An owner or operator must provide comments to ecology by:

(A) September 30th to change a tier placement or an emissions inventory determined by WAC 173-455-039 for an upcoming year; or

(B) October 1st or later to update a future emissions inventory.

(iii) Ecology must evaluate the request and make a final determination by:

(A) December 1st if a request was sent by September 30th of that year; or

(B) Within sixty days of receiving a request submitted under (ii)(B) of this subsection.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 11-06-060, filed 3/1/11, effective 4/1/11)

WAC 173-400-104Registration fees.

See chapter 173-455 WAC for ecology's ((registration)) fee schedule for 2019, 2020, 2021, and ecology's process for establishing registration fees for 2022 and beyond.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 16-12-099, filed 5/31/16, effective 7/1/16)

WAC 173-400-105Records, monitoring, and reporting.

The owner or operator of a source shall upon notification by ((the director of)) ecology, maintain records on the type and quantity of emissions from the source and other information deemed necessary to determine whether the source is in compliance with applicable emission limitations and control measures.

(1) Emission inventory. The ((owner(s) or operator(s))) owner and operator of ((any)) an air contaminant source shall submit an inventory of emissions from the source each year. The inventory will include stack and fugitive emissions of particulate matter, PM-10, PM-2.5, sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, total reduced sulfur compounds (TRS), fluorides, lead, VOCs, ammonia, and other contaminants. ((The format)) Sources shall provide registration information in a manner prescribed by the permitting authority for the submittal of these inventories ((will be specified by the permitting authority or ecology)). When ((submittal of)) the permitting authority requests emission inventory information ((is requested)) for a calendar year, the owner or operator shall submit the emissions inventory ((shall be submitted)) no later than ((one hundred five days)) April 1st after the end of the calendar year for which the emissions inventory was requested. The ((owner(s) or operator(s))) owner and operator shall maintain records of information necessary to substantiate any reported emissions, consistent with the averaging times for the applicable standards. The owner or operator may base emission estimates used in the inventory ((may be based)) on the most recent published EPA emission factors for a source category, or other information available to the ((owner(s) or operator(s))) owner and operator, whichever is the better estimate.

(2) Monitoring. Ecology shall conduct a continuous surveillance program to monitor the quality of the ambient atmosphere as to concentrations and movements of air contaminants. As a part of this program, the director of ecology or an authorized representative may require any source under the jurisdiction of ecology to conduct stack and/or ambient air monitoring and to report the results to ecology.

(3) Investigation of conditions. Upon presentation of appropriate credentials, for the purpose of investigating conditions specific to the control, recovery, or release of air contaminants into the atmosphere, personnel from ecology or an authority shall have the power to enter at reasonable times upon any private or public property, excepting nonmultiple unit private dwellings housing one or two families.

(4) Source testing. To demonstrate compliance, ((ecology or)) the permitting authority may conduct or require that the owner or operator of a source conduct a test ((be conducted of the source)) using approved test methods from 40 C.F.R. Parts 51, 60, 61 ((and)), 62, 63, 75 and 1065, as applicable (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025) or procedures contained in "Source Test Manual - Procedures for Compliance Testing," state of Washington, department of ecology, as of September 20, 2004, on file at ecology. The permitting authority may require the operator of a source ((may be required)) to provide the necessary platform and sampling ports for ecology personnel or others to perform a test of an emissions unit. ((Ecology shall be allowed)) The source owner or operator shall allow the permitting authority to obtain a sample from any emissions unit. The permitting authority shall give the operator of the source ((shall be given)) an opportunity to observe the sampling and to obtain a sample at the same time.

(5) Continuous monitoring and recording. Owners and operators of the following categories of sources shall install, calibrate, maintain and operate equipment for continuously monitoring and recording those emissions specified.

(a) Fossil fuel-fired steam generators.

(i) Opacity, except where:

(A) Steam generator capacity is less than two hundred fifty million BTU per hour heat input; or

(B) Only gaseous fuel is burned.

(ii) Sulfur dioxide, except where steam generator capacity is less than two hundred fifty million BTU per hour heat input or if sulfur dioxide control equipment is not required.

(iii) Percent oxygen or carbon dioxide where such measurements are necessary for the conversion of sulfur dioxide continuous emission monitoring data.

(iv) General exception. These requirements do not apply to a fossil fuel-fired steam generator with an annual average capacity factor of less than thirty percent, as reported to the Federal Power Commission for calendar year 1974, or as otherwise demonstrated to ecology or the authority by the owner(s) or operator(s).

(b) Sulfuric acid plants. Sulfur dioxide where production capacity is more than three hundred tons per day, expressed as one hundred percent acid, except for those facilities where conversion to sulfuric acid is ((utilized)) used primarily as a means of preventing emissions to the atmosphere of sulfur dioxide or other sulfur compounds.

(c) Fluid bed catalytic cracking units catalyst regenerators at petroleum refineries. Opacity where fresh feed capacity is more than twenty thousand barrels per day.

(d) Wood residue fuel-fired steam generators.

(i) Opacity, except where steam generator capacity is less than one hundred million BTU per hour heat input.

(ii) Continuous monitoring equipment. The requirements of (e) of this subsection do not apply to wood residue fuel-fired steam generators, but continuous monitoring equipment required by (d) of this subsection shall be subject to approval by ecology.

(e) Owners and operators of those sources required to install continuous monitoring equipment under this subsection shall demonstrate to ecology or the authority, compliance with the equipment and performance specifications and observe the reporting requirements contained in 40 C.F.R. Part 51, Appendix P, Sections 3, 4 and 5 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025).

(f) Special considerations. If for reason of physical plant limitations or extreme economic situations, ecology determines that continuous monitoring is not a reasonable requirement, the permitting authority will establish alternative monitoring and reporting procedures ((will be established)) on an individual basis. These will generally take the form of stack tests conducted at a frequency sufficient to establish the emission levels over time and to monitor deviations in these levels.

(g) Exemptions. This subsection (5) does not apply to any emission unit which is:

(i) Required to continuously monitor emissions due to a standard or requirement contained in 40 C.F.R. Parts 60, 61, 62, 63, or 75 (all in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025) or a permitting authority's adoption by reference of ((such)) the federal standards. Emission units and sources subject to those standards shall comply with the data collection requirements that apply to those standards.

(ii) Not subject to an applicable emission standard.

(6) No person shall make any false material statement, representation or certification in any form, notice or report required under chapter 70.94 or 70.120 RCW, or any ordinance, resolution, regulation, permit or order in force pursuant thereto.

(7) Continuous emission monitoring system operating requirements. All continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS) required by 40 C.F.R. Parts 60, 61, 62, 63, or 75 (all in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025), or a permitting authority's adoption of those federal standards must meet the continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS) performance specifications and data recovery requirements imposed by those standards. All CEMS required under an order, PSD permit, or regulation issued by a permitting authority and not subject to CEMS performance specifications and data recovery requirements imposed by 40 C.F.R. Parts 60, 61, 62, 63, or 75 must follow the continuous emission monitoring rule of the permitting authority, or if the permitting authority does not have a continuous emission monitoring rule, must meet the following requirements:

(a) The owner or operator shall recover valid hourly monitoring data for at least 95 percent of the hours that the equipment (required to be monitored) is operated during each calendar month except for periods of monitoring system downtime, provided that the owner or operator demonstrated that the downtime was not a result of inadequate design, operation, or maintenance, or any other ((reasonable)) reasonably preventable condition, and the source conducts any necessary repairs to the monitoring system ((are conducted)) in a timely manner.

(b) The owner or operator shall install a continuous emission monitoring system that meets the performance specification in 40 C.F.R. Part 60, Appendix B in effect at the time of its installation, and shall operate this monitoring system in accordance with the quality assurance procedures in Appendix F of 40 C.F.R. Part 60 (in effect on the date in WAC 173-400-025), and EPA's "Recommended Quality Assurance Procedures for Opacity Continuous Monitoring Systems" (EPA) 340/1-86-010.

(c) An owner or operator must reduce monitoring data commencing on the clock hour and containing at least forty-five minutes of monitoring data ((must be reduced)) to one hour averages. An owner or operator must reduce monitoring data for opacity ((is to be reduced to)) six minute block averages unless otherwise specified in the order of approval or permit. An owner or operator will include all monitoring data ((will be included)) in these averages except for data collected during calibration drift tests and cylinder gas audits, and for data collected subsequent to a failed quality assurance test or audit. After a failed quality assurance test or audit, a source will collect no valid data ((is collected)) until the monitoring system passes a quality assurance test or audit.

(d) An owner or operator will maintain continuous operation of all continuous monitoring systems except for instances of system breakdowns, repairs, calibration checks, and zero and span adjustments required under ((subsection)) (a) of this ((section, all continuous monitoring systems shall be in continuous operation)) subsection.

(i) Continuous monitoring systems for measuring opacity shall complete a minimum of one cycle of sampling and analyzing for each successive ten second period and one cycle of data recording for each successive six minute period.

(ii) Continuous monitoring systems for measuring emissions other than opacity shall complete a minimum of one cycle of sampling, analyzing, and recording for each successive fifteen minute period.

(e) The owner or operator shall retain all monitoring data averages for at least five years, including copies of all reports submitted to the permitting authority and records of all repairs, adjustments, and maintenance performed on the monitoring system.

(f) The owner or operator shall submit a monthly report (or other frequency as directed by terms of an order, air operating permit or regulation) to the permitting authority within thirty days after the end of the month (or other specified reporting period) in which the owner or operator recorded the data ((were recorded)). The owner or operator may combine the report required by this section ((may be combined)) with any excess emission report required by WAC 173-400-108. This report shall include:

(i) The number of hours that the monitored emission unit operated each month and the number of valid hours of monitoring data that the monitoring system recovered each month;

(ii) The date, time period, and cause of each failure to meet the data recovery requirements of (a) of this subsection and any actions taken to ensure adequate collection of such data;

(iii) The date, time period, and cause of each failure to recover valid hourly monitoring data for at least 90 percent of the hours that the equipment (required to be monitored) was operated each day;

(iv) The results of all cylinder gas audits conducted during the month; and

(v) A certification of truth, accuracy, and completeness signed by an authorized representative of the owner or operator.

(8) No person shall render inaccurate any monitoring device or method required under chapter 70.94 or 70.120 RCW, or any ordinance, resolution, regulation, permit, or order in force pursuant thereto.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 12-24-051, filed 11/30/12, effective 12/31/12)

WAC 173-455-036Fee increases.

(1) Ecology must follow the processes in subsection((s)) (2) ((and (3))) of this section for increasing any of the following fees:

(a) ((Air contaminant source registration fees in WAC 173-455-040;

(b))) Carbon dioxide mitigation program fees in WAC 173-455-050;

(((c))) (b) Weather modification fees in WAC 173-455-070;

(((d))) (c) Control technology fees in WAC 173-455-100;

(((e))) (d) New source review fees in WAC 173-455-120;

(((f))) (e) Air pollution standards variance fee in WAC 173-455-130; and

(((g))) (f) Nonroad engine permit fee in WAC 173-455-140.

(2) Ecology may propose fee increases ((in even-numbered years for each year in the upcoming biennium. A workload analysis must support the fee increase. Prior to making any changes, ecology will post the new fees on the agency web site no later than November 30th of the year preceding the date on which the new fees will take place. If directed by RCW 43.135.055, fee increases will only occur after the legislature authorizes the increase.

(3) Ecology may adjust fees by the fiscal growth factor calculated under chapter 43.135 RCW as follows.


	New fee=Existing fee x (1+FGF)
Where FGF means the annual fiscal growth factor calculated under chapter 43.135 RCW (expressed as a decimal)))

for the registration program based on the cost of administering the registration program consistent with RCW 70.94.151(2), and the procedures in WAC 173-455-039 and 173-455-040.

NEW SECTION

WAC 173-455-039Source registration tiers.

(1) A source loses its registration status when a registration fee has not been paid.

(2) Source registration tiers. For the purpose of assessing registration fees, ecology shall assign sources required to register with ecology to one of six tiers based on emissions in Table 1 in (b) of this subsection.

(a) Ecology will use the following emissions inventory for each source:

(i) Emissions in an inventory include particulate matter 10 (PM10), volatile organic compound (VOC), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2).

(ii) If emissions information is unavailable, ecology will use the enforceable emissions limitations for the source and/or will estimate emissions using the source's maximum capacities and production rates.

(b) Ecology will assign a source to a tier based on Table 1.

Table 1

Tiers for Registration Sources


Tier	Annual Emissions
1	Source with annual emissions less than the tons per year in Tier 2.
2	Source with annual emissions between 0.01 and less than or equal to 10 tons per year.
3	Source with annual emissions greater than 10 and less than or equal to 20 tons per year.
4	Source with annual emissions greater than 20 and less than or equal to 70 tons per year.
5	Source with annual emissions greater than 70 tons per year.
6	Synthetic minor source (as defined in WAC 173-400-030) that emits or has the potential to emit at or above 80 percent of the threshold for a major source (as defined in WAC 173-401-200).

(3) Notice of tier placement.

(a) Draft tier placement. Ecology must notify a source of its draft tier placement by August 1st of the year before a new fee goes into effect, or every other year if ecology proposes a biennial budget.

(b) Ecology must provide electronic notice or notice by the United States postal service if ecology does not have an electronic address for a source or the source requests postal notice.

(d) Final tier assignment. Ecology must notify the source of the final tier placement by December 1st of the year before the new fee schedule goes into effect.

(4) Requesting reassignment to a different tier.

(a) A source may submit a request to ecology by September 30th for tier reassignment for the upcoming year if they believe they were assigned to the wrong tier. To request reassignment, the source must provide information sufficient to support a reassignment.

(b) By December 1st of each year or biennially if ecology proposes a two-year budget as provided by WAC 173-455-040 (4)(a)(iii), ecology must notify the source of the final tier determination.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 12-24-051, filed 11/30/12, effective 12/31/12)

WAC 173-455-040((Air contaminant)) Source registration fees.

(((1) Ecology will charge a yearly registration fee to cover the cost of implementing the registration program.

(2) Ecology will determine fee eligibility based on the most current emissions inventory information available for each source.

(3) A registration program source that shut down during the previous year and is not operating in the current year is not subject to a fee for the current calendar year.

(4) Periodic registration program source eligibility and fees are determined as follows:

(a) A source is a periodic registration program source if all of these statements are true:

(i) A source is included on the source classification list in WAC 173-400-100(1) or the equipment classification list in WAC 173-400-100(2);

(ii) The source emits at least one pollutant in Table 173-455-040 (4)(c) within the rates in the table; and

(iii) The source does not emit any pollutant at a rate higher than those in Table 173-455-040 (4)(c).

(b) The registration fee category and fee for periodic registration program source are determined as follows:

(i) Ecology will determine whether the periodic sources is in the small, medium, or large category based on the source's most current emissions inventory information.

(ii) Ecology will determine whether the source's category based on the emission rate of the air contaminant that falls in the category with the highest fee.

Table 173-455-040 (4)(c)

Periodic Registration Fee Table


Yearly periodic registration fee	$450	$700	$1,000
Category	Small Periodic Source	Medium Periodic Source	Large Periodic Source
Air Contaminant	Emission Rates
	Tons per year	Tons per year	Tons per year
Carbon monoxide	5 to < 15	15 to < 30	30 to < 100
Lead	0.005 to < 0.3	0.3 to < 0.45	0.45 to < 0.6
Nitrogen oxides	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Particulate matter (TSP or total suspended particulates)	1.25 to < 6	6 to < 12	12 to < 25
Particulate matter10	0.75 to < 3.5	3.5 to < 7	7 to < 15
Particulate matter2.5	0.5 to < 2	2 to < 5	5 to < 10
Sulfur dioxide	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Volatile organic compounds	2.0 to < 5	5 to < 14	14 to < 40
Toxic air pollutant	˃ de minimis emissions*	—	—


*	"De minimis emissions" means trivial levels of toxic air emissions that do not pose a threat to human health or the environment. WAC 173-460-150 contains the de minimis emission rate of a toxic air pollutant in pounds per averaging period (year, 24-hour, 1-hour).

(5) Annual registration program source fees are determined as follows:

(a) Ecology will determine the annual registration fee based on the most current emissions inventory information.

(b) A source that is included on the source classification list in WAC 173-400-100(1) or the equipment classification list in WAC 173-400-100(2) is an annual registration program source if it meets any of the following criteria:

(i) The source emits one or more air pollutants in Table 173-455-040 (5)(b) at rates greater than those in the table; or

Table 173-455-040 (5)(b)

Annual Registration Emission Rate Table


Air Pollutant	Emission Rate
Carbon monoxide	100 tons per year
Lead	0.6 tons per year
Fluorides	3 tons per year
Nitrogen oxides	40 tons per year
Particulate matter	25 tons per year
Particulate matter10	15 tons per year
Particulate matter2.5	10 tons per year
Reduced sulfur compounds (including H2S)	10 tons per year
Sulfur dioxide	40 tons per year
Sulfuric acid mist	7 tons per year
Total reduced sulfur (including H2S)	10 tons per year

(ii) Annual registration and reporting is necessary to comply with federal reporting requirements or emission standards; or

(iii) Annual registration and reporting is required in a reasonably available control technology determination for the source category; or

(iv) The director of ecology determines that the source poses a potential threat to human health and the environment.

Annual Registration Fee Components


Component	Fee Rate
Flat fee	$1,057 per year
Complexity	$469 per complexity rating point
Emissions	$16 per ton

(i) Flat fee component. Each source must pay the flat fee component plus the other fees.

(ii) Complexity component. Each source is assigned a complexity rating of 1, 3, or 5 which is based on the estimated amount of time needed by ecology to review and inspect the source. The source's complexity rating is multiplied by the complexity fee rate to determine the complexity portion of the yearly registration fee.

(iii) Emissions component. Billable emissions (in tons per year) include nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter (except total suspended particulate), and volatile organic compounds. The source's billable emissions are multiplied by the emissions fee rate to determine the emissions portion of the yearly registration fee.

(6))) (1) Registration fee. Each source required to register with ecology shall pay an annual fee based on the source registration tier to which it is assigned in WAC 173-455-039.

(2) Source closure. A source that closes or shuts down temporarily must pay its registration fee to maintain active registration status.

(3) Registration fee schedule for years 2019, 2020, 2021.

(a) Table 2 lists annual registration fees for 2019, 2020, and 2021.

Table 2

Registration Fee Schedule for 2019 Through 2021


Tier	Fee 2019		Fee 2020		Fee 2021
1		$200		$200		$200
2		$400		$575		$700
3		$700		$1,000		$1,300
4		$1,100		$1,300		$1,500
5		$5,000		$5,500		$7,000
6		$7,000		$7,500		$8,000

(b) The registration fee for mint distilleries is $200 for 2019, 2020, and 2021. For 2022 and beyond, the registration fee for mint distilleries will be assessed according to their total emissions.

(4) Registration fee schedule for year 2022 and beyond.

(a) Fee schedule:

(i) Starting in 2022, ecology must prepare an annual budget that reflects the cost of the program;

(ii) Ecology will base the budget on the program costs for the previous twelve-month period consistent with RCW 70.94.151(2);

(iii) Ecology may choose to establish fees to cover registration program costs for a two-year period;

(iv) Ecology must compare the revenue from the previous year, or the previous two-year period if appropriate, to the upcoming draft budget. If increases of registration fees are necessary, ecology must evenly distribute the increased program cost as a percentage of the increased costs across all sources subject to the program.

(b) Public notice. Ecology must:

(i) Post the draft budget and draft registration fee schedule on ecology's web site by August 1st of the year before the fee schedule goes into effect.

(ii) Provide a sixty-day public comment period on the draft budget and draft fee schedule.

(iii) Post the final budget and fee schedule on ecology's web site by December 1st of the year before the fee schedule goes into effect.

(5) Registration fees for gasoline dispensing facilities. Gasoline dispensing facilities subject to chapter 173-491 WAC must pay a yearly registration fee of one hundred thirty dollars for each storage tank dispensing gasoline.

(((7))) (6) Fee reductions for economic hardship. If a small business owner ((who is subject to a periodic registration program fee under subsection (4) of this section or a gasoline dispensing facility subject to subsection (6) of this section)), as defined in RCW 19.85.020(3), thinks the registration fee results in an extreme economic hardship, the small business owner may request a fee reduction. The small business owner or operator must provide sufficient evidence to support a claim of an extreme hardship. Ecology may reduce the registration fee ((may be reduced)) by no more than fifty percent.

(((8))) (7) Fee payments.

(a) The owner or operator of a source subject to fees in this section must pay those fees within ((thirty)) ninety days of receipt of ecology's billing statement.

(b) ((A late fee of sixty-eight dollars or ten percent of the fee, whichever is more, may be assessed for any fee not received within the thirty-day period.)) Ecology may assess a penalty equal to three times the amount of the original fee owed to sources knowingly under-reporting emissions, or failing to pay registration fees after the ninety-first day past the due date. Failure to pay all or part of a registration fee may result in an enforcement action.

(c) ((A source)) The owner or operator may request to pay an ecology fee on a payment plan. Ecology will not apply a late fee ((will not apply)) for fees paid by a payment plan ((as long as the following)) if a source meets two conditions ((are met)):

(i) The ((source)) owner or operator requests a payment plan within thirty days of the receipt of ecology's billing statement.

(ii) The ((source)) owner or operator pays the fee on time as outlined in the payment plan.

(((9) Additional registration fee for fossil-fueled electric generating facilities.)) (8) Fossil-fueled electric generating facilities must pay registration fees required in this section in addition to carbon dioxide mitigation program fees required in WAC 173-455-050 if the facility is not subject to chapter 173-401 WAC.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 07-11-018, filed 5/3/07, effective 6/3/07)

WAC 173-455-050Carbon dioxide mitigation program fees.

(1) Statutory authorization. RCW 70.94.892 authorizes ((the department)) ecology to determine, assess, and collect fees sufficient to cover costs to review and approve or deny the carbon dioxide mitigation plan components of an order of approval for a facility. The order of approval will specify the costs necessary to monitor the source's conformance ((related)) to the carbon dioxide mitigation plan.

(2) Fees. The table in this subsection lists the fees for the carbon dioxide mitigation program ((are described in this section and listed in the table below. The fees listed)). These fees are added to the fees established in WAC 173-455-120, when the carbon dioxide mitigation plan requirements are triggered.


Activity		Fee
a. Application review		$((65.00)) 95.00/hr.1 not to exceed $500.00
b. Mitigation plan approval
	i. Payment to third party	$100.002
	ii. Purchase of CO2 credits	$((65.00)) 95.00/hr.3
	iii. Direct investment	$((65.00)) 95.00/hr.4
c. Routine compliance monitoring
	i. Payment to third party	$100.005 annually until full amount paid
	ii. Purchase of CO2 credits	$((65.00)) 95.00/hr.6
	iii. Applicant controlled project	$((65.00)) 95.00/hr.6


1	Estimated using an EE3 per hour rate with a cap.
2	Small fee primarily to check math and that the source is using an EFSEC approved qualified organization.
3	Estimated EE3 per hour rate to check that the credits purchased will be verifiable and from a reputable trading or marketing organization.
4	Estimated using an EE3 per hour rate.
5	Same as rationale for 2 above.
6	Verify and confirm credits with the trading or marketing organization.

(3) The department or authority may use RCW 70.94.085 to structure a cost-reimbursement agreement with the applicant.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 12-24-051, filed 11/30/12, effective 12/31/12)

WAC 173-455-100((Control technology fees.)) Fees related to reasonably available control technology (RACT).

(1) General. Ecology may assess and collect a fee as authorized in RCW 70.94.153 or 70.94.154 and described in subsections (2) through (5) of this section.

(2) Fee schedule for reviews authorized under RCW 70.94.153 for the replacement or substantial alteration of control technology.

(a) Notice of construction application. Review and approval of notice of construction application for replacement or substantial alteration of control technology - Ninety-five dollars per hour.

(b) RACT analysis and determination. Review and approval of a RACT analysis and determination for affected emission unit - Ninety-five dollars per hour.

(3) Fee schedule for source-specific determinations where ecology performs RACT analysis and determination ((are performed by ecology)).

(a) Basic RACT analysis and determination fee:

(i) Low complexity (the analysis addresses one type of emission unit) - One thousand five hundred dollars;

(ii) Moderate complexity (the analysis addresses two to five types of emissions units) - Seven thousand five hundred dollars;

(iii) High complexity (the analysis addresses more than five types of emission units) - Fifteen thousand dollars.

(b) Additional charges based on criteria pollutant emissions: In addition to those fees required under (a) of this subsection, ecology will require a fee ((will be required)) for a RACT analysis and determination for an emission unit or multiple emission units of uniform design that, individually or in the aggregate, emit one hundred tons per year or more of any criteria pollutant - Two thousand dollars.

(c) Additional charges based on toxic air pollutant emissions: In addition to those fees required under (a) and (b) of this subsection, ecology will require the following fees ((will be required)) as applicable:

(i) RACT analysis and determination for an emissions unit or multiple emissions units of uniform design that, individually or in the aggregate, emit more than two tons per year but not more than ten tons per year of any toxic air pollutant - One thousand dollars; or

(ii) RACT analysis and determination for an emissions unit or multiple emissions units of uniform design that, individually or in the aggregate, emit more than ten tons per year of any toxic air pollutant - Two thousand dollars.

(((3))) (4) Fee schedule for source-specific determinations where the source performs the RACT analysis ((is performed by the source)) and ecology conducts review and issues a determination ((conducted by ecology)).

(a) Basic RACT review and determination fees:

(i) Low complexity (the analysis addresses one type of emission unit) - One thousand dollars;

(ii) Moderate complexity (the analysis addresses two to five types of emissions units) - Five thousand dollars;

(iii) High complexity (the analysis addresses more than five types of emission units) - Ten thousand dollars.

(b) Additional charges based on criteria pollutant emissions: In addition to those fees required under (a) of this subsection, ecology will require a fee ((will be required)) for a RACT analysis and determination for an emission unit or multiple emissions units of uniform design that, individually or in the aggregate, emit one hundred tons per year or more of any criteria pollutant - One thousand dollars.

(((4) Fee schedule for reviews authorized under RCW 70.94.153 for the replacement or substantial alteration of control technology.

(a) Notice of construction application. Review and approval of notice of construction application (NOCA) for replacement or substantial alteration of control technology - Three hundred fifty dollars.

(b) RACT analysis and determination. Review and approval of a RACT analysis and determination for affected emission unit - Five hundred dollars.))

(5) Fee schedule for categorical RACT determinations. Ecology shall assess fees for categorical RACT determinations (for categories with more than three sources) ((shall be assessed)) as shown below. Ecology shall base the fees described in (a) of this subsection ((shall be based)) on the most complex source within a category. When determining complexity level for the most complex source in the category, the emission rate or number of types of emission units that results in the highest complexity level will determine the fee for the source category. Except as provided in (b) and (d) of this subsection, ecology will determine fees for individual sources in the category ((will be determined)) by dividing the total source category fee by the number of sources within the category.

(a) RACT analysis and determination (RACT analysis performed by ecology with assistance from sources):

(i) Low complexity source category (average source emissions of individual criteria pollutants are all less than twenty tons per year, average source emissions of individual toxic air pollutants are all less than two tons per year, or the analysis addresses one type of emission unit) - Twenty-five thousand dollars;

(ii) Moderate complexity source category (average source emissions of one or more individual criteria pollutants are greater than twenty tons per year and less than one hundred tons per year, average source emissions of one or more individual toxic air pollutants are greater than two tons per year and less than ten tons per year, or the analysis addresses two to five types of emissions units) - Fifty thousand dollars; or

(iii) High complexity source category (average source emissions of one or more individual criteria pollutants exceed one hundred tons per year, average source emissions of one or more individual toxic air pollutants exceed ten tons per year, or the analysis addresses more than five types of emission units) - One hundred thousand dollars.

(b) If ecology is evaluating an emission unit ((is being evaluated)) for more than one categorical RACT determination within a five-year period, ecology will charge the owner or operator of that emission unit one fee and the fee will reflect the higher complexity categorical RACT determination.

(c) Ecology may adjust the fee to reflect workload savings from source involvement in source category RACT determination.

(d) Ecology may approve alternate methods for allocating the fee among sources within the source category.

(6) Small business fee reduction. Ecology may reduce the RACT analysis and determination fee identified in subsections (2) through (5) of this section ((may be reduced)) for a small business.

(a) To qualify for the small business RACT fee reduction, a business must meet the requirements of "small business" as defined in RCW ((43.31.025)) 19.85.020.

(b) To receive a fee reduction, the owner or operator of a small business must include information in an application demonstrating that the business meets the conditions of (a) of this subsection ((have been met. The application must be signed)). One of the following must sign the application:

(i) ((By)) An authorized corporate officer in the case of a corporation;

(ii) ((By)) An authorized partner in the case of a limited or general partnership; or

(iii) ((By)) The proprietor in the case of a sole proprietorship.

(c) Ecology may verify the application information and if the owner or operator has made false statements, deny the fee reduction request and revoke previously granted fee reductions.

(d) For small businesses determined to be eligible for a small business fee reduction under (a) of this subsection, ecology shall reduce the RACT analysis and determination fee ((shall be reduced)) to the greater of:

(i) Fifty percent of the RACT analysis and determination fee; or

(ii) Two hundred fifty dollars.

(e) If due to special economic circumstances, the fee reduction determined under (d) of this subsection imposes an extreme hardship on a small business, the small business may request an extreme hardship fee reduction. The owner or operator must provide sufficient evidence to support a claim of an extreme hardship. The factors which ecology may consider in determining whether an owner or operator has special economic circumstances and in setting the extreme hardship fee include:

(i) Annual sales;

(ii) Labor force size;

(iii) Market conditions which affect the owner's or operator's ability to pass the cost of the RACT analysis and determination fees through to customers; and

(iv) Average annual profits.

In no case will ecology reduce a RACT analysis and determination fee ((be reduced)) to an amount below one hundred dollars.

(7) Fee reductions for pollution prevention initiatives. Ecology may reduce RACT analysis and determination fees for an individual source if that source is using approved pollution prevention measures.

(8) Fee payments. A source shall pay fees specified in subsection (4)(a) of this section ((shall be paid at the time)) when the source submits a notice of construction application((s is submitted to the department.)) to ecology. Sources shall pay other fees specified in subsections (2) through (7) of this section ((shall be paid)) no later than thirty days after receipt of an ecology billing statement. For fees specified in subsection (5) of this section, ecology will mail a billing statement for one-half of the payment from each source ((will be mailed)) when the source category rule-making effort is commenced as noted by publication of the CR-101 form in the Washington State Register. Ecology will mail a billing statement for the second half of the payment ((will be mailed)) when the proposed rule is published in the Washington State Register. ((No)) Ecology will not issue an order of approval or other action approving or identifying a source to be at RACT ((will be issued by the department)) until the source has paid all fees ((have been paid by the source)). A source shall make all fees collected under this regulation ((shall be made)) payable to the Washington department of ecology.

(9) Dedicated account. Ecology shall deposit all control technology fees ((collected by the department)) it collects from air operating permit program sources ((shall be deposited)) in the air operating permit account created under RCW 70.94.015. Ecology shall deposit all control technology fees collected ((by the department)) from ((nonpermit)) nonair chapter 173-401 WAC program sources ((shall be deposited)) in the air pollution control account.

(10) Tracking revenues, time, and expenditures. Ecology shall track revenues on a source-specific basis. For purposes of source-specific determinations under subsections (2) through (4) of this section, ecology shall track time and expenditures on the basis of source complexity categories. For purposes of categorical determinations under subsection (5) of this section, ecology shall track time and expenditures on a source-category basis.

(11) Periodic review. Ecology shall review and, as appropriate, update this section at least once every two years.

AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 07-11-018, filed 5/3/07, effective 6/3/07)

WAC 173-455-130Air pollution standards variance fee.

The department shall charge a fee of ((sixty-five)) ninety-five dollars per hour to process a variance request in accordance with WAC 173-400-180.