The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutMINUTES - 04122011 - SD.3RECOMMENDATION(S): 1. RECEIVE staff report regarding proposed revised fees to fund expenses of the Contra Costa County Certified Unified Program Agency (“CUPA”). 2. OPEN public hearing regarding the proposed CUPA fees and other related fees, receive testimony, and CLOSE the public hearing. 3. APPROVE Resolution No. 2011/151, adopting the attached Fee Schedule effective immediately upon adoption. FISCAL IMPACT: There will be no impact to the General Fund. Revenue from the CUPA Fees will fund the Fiscal Year 2010-2011 costs of three CUPA programs and the Community Warning System, and the Fiscal Year 2009-2010 costs of two other CUPA programs. APPROVE OTHER RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE Action of Board On: 04/12/2011 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER Clerks Notes: VOTE OF SUPERVISORS Contact: Randy Sawyer,335-3210 I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. ATTESTED: April 12, 2011 David J. Twa, County Administrator and Clerk of the Board of Supervisors By: , Deputy cc: Tasha Scott, Demetria Gary, Randy Sawyer SD. 3 To:Board of Supervisors From:William Walker, M.D., Health Services Director Date:April 12, 2011 Contra Costa County Subject:Hearing to Consider Adoption of Revised Fees for the Certified Unified Program Agency BACKGROUND: The Hazardous Materials Programs (“HMP”) Division of the Health Services Department administers the Contra Costa County Certified Unified Program Agency ("CUPA"). The CUPA operates the Hazardous Materials Business Plan (HMBP) Program, Hazardous Waste Generator (HWG) Program, Underground Storage Tank (UST) Program, California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP) Program and Aboveground Petroleum Storage Act (APSA) Program. As directed by the Board in the early 1990s, all of the activities of the CUPA are funded through fees and penalties. The Staff Report on the Determination and Apportionment of CUPA Fees, dated April 12, 2011 ("Report"), attached as Attachment 2, describes the CUPA programs, legal authorities for and standards applicable to the apportionment of the CUPA Fees, the process used to set the fee amounts and the manner of apportionment. As can be seen in the proposed fee schedule attached as Exhibit A to the Report, staff has proposed fees that will increase for many regulated business but decrease for others. The fee adjustments in the HMBP and HWG programs are necessitated because of increases in expenses incurred, changes in the total number of businesses subject to regulation and shifts in the numbers of businesses in different fee categories from Fiscal Year 2008-2009 to Fiscal Year 2009-2010. Based on the way that fees for these programs are allocated, staff calculated fees that would rise for most payors but decrease for some others. With respect to expenses, while salary and benefit costs in these programs actually decreased by about 11 percent collectively from Fiscal Year 2008-2009 to Fiscal Year 2010-2011, some other cost categories show increases, including these programs’ shares of indirect administration costs (an increase from a collective $199,019 in Fiscal Year 2008-2009 to $278,064 in Fiscal Year 2009-2010). Uncollected fees, as well, jumped dramatically, from approximately $99,763 in Fiscal Year 2008-2009 to $227,831 in Fiscal Year 2009-2010. The failure of some businesses to pay unfortunately creates a burden on all payors, as these amounts become part of the cost to be funded the following year. An additional factor causing an increase in costs in Fiscal Year 2009-2010 was the absence of any fee carryover in the HWG Program and a smaller fee carryover ($378,204, as opposed to $662,000 the previous year) in the HMBP Program, attributable solely to lower than projected expenses of the Community Warning System. The previous year, carryovers in those two programs totaled $1,076,714, allowing for significant decreases in the HMBP and HWG fees that the Board approved in 2009. In the UST Program, the proposed annual permit fee will increase by about 50 percent, and fees for miscellaneous tank inspections will increase by about 35 percent. These increases are necessary to help cover a revenue shortfall in this program of close to $500,000. The shortfall came about as the result of a base rate used to calculate fees that turned out to be too low to cover the program’s expenses in Fiscal Year 2009-2010. In the APSA Program, fees would decrease for small tank facilities (capacities less than 100,000 gallons) but increase for larger facilities. These changes resulted, in part, from staff’s computation of revised inspection times at the facilities, based on field experience by the CUPA’s Hazardous Materials Specialists in the first six months of the program in Fiscal Year 2009-2010. The reduction in inspection time resulted in lower expenses and less revenues needed to fund the program. Without this reduction in expenses, fees likely would have increased in all categories. No change is proposed to the formula used to set fees in the CalARP Program. The actual CalARP Program fees charged to an individual business may be increased or decreased, based on the risk presented by that facility and the portion of the total risk of all of the facilities. The proposed fees also set forth a variety of miscellaneous service fees, charged by the hour for various services that the CUPA provides to regulated businesses. New this year is a fee ($135 per hour) for use of the Community Warning System, charged to businesses that do not pay for the system as part of their annual permit fee, and a $60 initial permit processing fee to be charged to businesses that become subject to regulation by the CUPA or change ownership. Fees are also proposed for services provided by the Hazardous Materials Incident Response Team (IR Team) to persons and entities that are not regulated by the CUPA. These services are provided countywide by Hazardous Materials Specialists pursuant to the Hazardous Materials Area Plan. Fees of $175 per hour per specialist during regular business hours and $199 per specialist for non-business hours were calculated based on the salary and benefit rate of a specialist ($111.92 per hour) and proportional amounts representing other costs of the IR Team (services and supplies, direct administration, indirect administration and county overhead). These fees are authorized pursuant to Health & Safety Code section 101325. CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION: The current fee schedule for the CUPA will remain in place. If the current fee schedule remains in place, the CUPA overall would incur a fee revenue shortfall of approximately 1.5 million, which is roughly 17 percent less than the fee revenue needed to fund these five programs. Fees would be set at the correct level in the CalARP Program, too high for the APSA Program, and too low in the HWG, HMBP and UST programs. If the proposed fees are not approved, the CUPA would need to either borrow against future year revenues – a move that would require future fee increases to cover the shortfalls – or obtain an alternative source of funding. While expense reductions in the CUPA programs are being eyed for future years, cuts at this point would not resolve the shortfall, because the bulk of the expenses to be funded by the proposed fees, and all of the expenses in the HMBP and HWG programs, have already been incurred. CHILDREN'S IMPACT STATEMENT: Not applicable. CLERK'S ADDENDUM CLERK'S ADDENDUM Speakers: Lee Woo from Walnut Creek Dry Cleaning Proprietor , Shawn Zomorroni Danville gas station owner, Ahmad Moheb San Pablo gas station owner. CLOSED the public hearing; and ADOPTED Resolution No. 2011/151 adopting the CUPA Fee Schedule effective immediately; and referred the fee schedule to the appropriate standing committee (as determined by the County Administrator) for further review. Staff will notify today's speakers when this matter is placed on the agenda of the appropriate Board standing committee, that they may attend. ATTACHMENTS Resolution No. 2011/151 Exhibit 1 to Resolution #2011/151 CUPA Staff Report Exhibit 1 Page 1 of 6 CONTRA COSTA COUNTY CERTIFIED UNIFIED PROGRAM AGENCY Fee Schedule Effective April 12, 2011 The following is the schedule of fees applicable to programs administered by the Contra Costa Certified Unified Program Agency (“CUPA”). Fees to fund the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by the Contra Costa County CUPA are authorized by California Health & Safety Code section 25404.5 and Section 15210 of Title 27 of the California Code of Regulations. This fee schedule will apply to all CUPA invoices issued on or after the Effective Date above. Hazardous Materials Business Plan Program Annual Permit Fees Projected Inventory (Lbs. Of Material) # Employees Fee Less than 1,000 N/A $226 1,000 or more but less than 10,000 0 to 19 $314 10,000 or more but less than 100,000 0 to 19 $702 100,000 or more but less than 250,000 0 to 19 $1,005 250,000 or more but less than 500,000 0 to 19 $2,055 1,000 or more but less than 10,000 20 or more $899 10,000 or more but less than 100,000 20 or more $1,218 100,000 or more but less than 250,000 20 or more $2,481 250,000 or more but less than 500,000 20 or more $4,571 500,000 or more but less than 2.5 million N/A $11,547 2.5 million or more but less than 10 million N/A $20,179 10 million or more but less than 100 million N/A $34,922 100 million or more but less than 1 billion N/A $67,834 1 billion or more but less than 5 billion N/A $114,121 5 billion or more N/A N/A Other All oil refineries and class 1 off-site hazardous waste disposal sites N/A $151,523 Miscellaneous Service Fees Fee Exemption Application Review (Per unstaffed remote facility) $268 Page 2 of 6 Hazardous Waste Generator Program Annual Permit Fees Hazardous Waste Generated Fee Less than 5 tons/year $520 5 tons or more but less than 12 tons/year $730 12 tons or more but less than 25 tons/year $1,120 25 tons or more but less than 50 tons/year $1,763 50 tons or more but less than 250 tons/year $4,034 250 tons or more but less than 500 tons/year $12,803 500 tons or more but less than 1,000 tons/year $20,773 1,000 tons or more but less than 2,000 tons/year $35,103 2,000 tons or more/year $78,575 Onsite Treatment • Permit By Rule (Fixed Units) $3,222 • Conditional Authorization $3,222 • Conditional Exemption $644 Underground Storage Tank Program Underground Storage Tank Annual Permit Fee Single tank of 1,000 gallons or less used solely in connection with the occupancy of a residence $596 First tank of 50,000 gallons or less $298* Basic fee for tank of 50,000 gallons or less $1,043 Each tank of 50,000 gallons or more $1,788 * In addition to the basic fee, a surcharge of $298 is applicable to the tank at each site that has the earliest installation date. Underground Storage Tank Miscellaneous Inspections & Other Services Fee Permit Amendment or Transfer $268 Tank or Piping Modification or Repair Plan Review and Inspection • Base Fee • Each additional hour or fraction thereof of staff time beyond 3.5 hours $938 $268 Page 3 of 6 Tank Lining Upgrade Plan Review and Inspection • First tank • Each additional tank • Each additional hour or fraction thereof of staff time beyond 10.5 hours $2,814 $402 $268 Tank Installation Plan Review and Inspection • New tank facility, first tank • New tank facility, each additional tank $4,958 $536 Tank and Piping Removal Plan Review and Inspection • First tank • Each additional tank $1,876 $402 Field Installed Cathodic Protection Plan Review and Inspection $1,340 Tank Lining Inspection • First tank • Each additional tank $1,876 $268 Piping, Under Dispenser Container and Sump Upgrade Plan Review and Inspection • First tank • Each additional tank $3,350 $402 Under Dispenser Container or Sump Repair (Without Piping) Inspection (Single Sump or Single Under Dispenser Container Repair) $938 Phase I EVR Upgrade Plan Review and Inspection (Upgrade includes installation of Spill Containers) $670 Existing Under Dispenser Container Replacement Plan Review and Inspection (Includes Soil Sampling) $938 Temporary Closure Plan Review and Inspection • First tank • Each additional tank $804 $134 Monitoring System Change Plan Review and Inspection $1,072 Cold Start of Monitoring Panel Inspection $804 Penalty The following penalty shall be applied and collectible from parties responsible for the following action, in addition to any penalties that may be imposed under any other underground tank regulation: Failure to file and report a change in ownership or operator of an underground tank. $500/tank Page 4 of 6 California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP) Program Annual Permit Fees applicable to stationary sources will be determined according to the following formula: Fee = (TC/TRF) x RF TC = Total cost of the County’s CalARP program TRF = “Total Risk Factor,” or the sum of the Stationary Source Modified Chemical Exposure Indexes (SSMCEI) of all stationary sources in the County RF = “Risk Factor,” or a stationary source SSMCEI The TRF for the County and RF of a stationary source (SSMCEI) shall be determined pursuant to the Contra Costa County Health Services Department’s California Accidental Release Prevention Program Relative Risk Determination Methodology, attached hereto as Exhibit A and incorporated herein by this reference. Stationary Source Exemption & Other Fees Fee Exemption Application Review (Per regulated substance per process) $705 Exemption Application Review (Per warehouse where regulated substances are stored, if source does not handle any regulated substance in a process) $705 Exemption Review Annual Fee (Assessed on each stationary source that handles regulated substances on site but is exempt from preparing a Risk Management Plan) $70 Reduced Fee for Multiple Stationary Sources • First stationary source • Each additional substantially identical stationary source Full fee 10% of full fee Page 5 of 6 Aboveground Petroleum Storage Act Program Annual Permit Fees Tank Facility Description Fee Facility with storage capacity of 1,320 or more gallons but less than 10,000 gallons $633 Facility with storage capacity of 10,000 or more gallons but less than 100,000 gallons $1,425 Facility with storage capacity of 100,000 or more gallons but less than 1 million gallons $5,700 Facility with storage capacity of 1 million or more gallons but less than 10 million gallons $7,599 Facility with storage capacity of 10 million or more gallons but less than 100 million gallons $11,399 Facility with storage capacity of 100 million or more gallons $18,999 Miscellaneous CUPA Fees Fee Incident Response Fee • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a Hazardous Materials Specialist during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) in connection with the characterization or remediation of site contamination by release of a hazardous substance, material or waste by a business regulated by the CUPA, if (1) the owner, operator or other responsible person in charge of the site, or an emergency services agency, requests assistance from the IR Team and (2) the Hazardous Materials Programs Director or his designee determines that an emergency response is necessary to protect the public health and safety and the environment. • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a CalARP Program Engineer during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) in connection with the characterization or remediation of site contamination by release of a hazardous substance, material or waste by a business regulated by the CUPA, including technical assistance to the IR Team and follow-up work associated with incident investigations, if (1) the owner, operator or other responsible person in charge of the site, or an emergency services agency, requests assistance from the IR Team and (2) the Hazardous Materials Programs Director or his designee determines that an emergency response is necessary to protect the public health and safety and the environment. $268/hr. $141/hr. Overtime Charges • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a Hazardous Materials Specialist performing any service at the request of a regulated business on weekdays between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m., weekends or County holidays. • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a CalARP Engineer performing any service at the request of a regulated business on weekdays between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m., weekends or County holidays. $284/hr. $171/hr. Page 6 of 6 Re-Inspection Fee Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a Hazardous Materials Specialist performing any inspection of a regulated facility beyond the routine or initial inspection and one follow-up inspection. $268/hr. Audit Verification Fee Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a CalARP Engineer following up on the compliance by a regulated business with an audit action plan pertaining to the facility, if the business has not complied with more than 50 percent of the items on the action plan by the stated deadline. $141/hr. Community Warning System Fee Each hour or fraction thereof of CWS use in response to a hazardous materials release by a regulated business that was not subject to the CWS component of the HMBP Program Fee on the Effective Date. Such use will be measured from system activation through the all-clear declaration. $135/hr. Initial Permit Processing Fee For the processing of annual CUPA permits for regulated businesses that become subject to CUPA regulation or change ownership during the permit period. $60 Other Fees (Authority: Health & Saf. Code, § 101325) Incident Response • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a Hazardous Materials Specialist during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) in connection with the characterization or remediation of site contamination by release of a hazardous substance, material or waste, if (1) the owner, operator or other responsible person in charge of the contaminated site, or an emergency services agency, requests assistance from the IR Team and (2) the Hazardous Materials Programs Director or his designee determines that an emergency response is necessary to protect the public health and safety and the environment. This fee does not apply to businesses regulated by the CUPA. • Each hour or fraction thereof of time spent by a Hazardous Materials Specialist on weekdays between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m., weekends or County holidays in connection with the characterization or remediation of site contamination by release of a hazardous substance, material or waste, if (1) the owner, operator or other responsible person in charge of the site, or an emergency services agency, requests assistance from the IR Team and (2) the Hazardous Materials Programs Director or his designee determines that an emergency response is necessary to protect the public health and safety and the environment. This fee does not apply to businesses regulated by the CUPA. $175/hr. $199/hr. 4/12//11