California Air Resources Board

CHANGES IN STATE LAW - ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 1855

An act to amend Health and Safety Code Section 41701.5 by adding Section 41701.6 will take effect immediately as an urgency statute. A copy of Assembly Bill No. 1855, Chapter 25, is attached.

Section 41701.6

HSC Section 41701.6: Neither the state board nor any district shall impose a discharge requirement on emissions of visible smoke from any diesel auxliary engine or generator used exclusely to operate a drinking water system which is more stringent than the Ringelmann 2 limit, as published by the United States Bureau of Mines on January 1, 1995, when operated under emergency circumstances, or operated not more than 30 minutes each week, or two hours each month under nonemergency circumstances.

SEC. 3: This act is an urgency statue necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect.

The facts constituting the necessity are: In order that serious threats to public health and safety that are faced by persons who are served by public water systems, which threats are caused by uncertainty regarding the reliability of those systems in an emergency because of restrictions imposed by state laws on the testing and operation of emergency generators, may be alleviated, as soon as possible, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.

Please Note

It is recommended that you read this bill in its entirety and inform your staff and hearing board members, as appropriate, about the changes.

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Assembly Bill No. 1855

CHAPTER 25

        An act to amend Section 41701.5 of, and to add Section 41701.6 to, the Health and Safety Code, relating to air pollution, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

[Approved by Governor April 8, 1996.  Filed with

Secretary of State April 8, 1996.]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1855, Sher.  Air pollution: emission limits. Existing law prohibits, with specified exceptions, the discharge of air contaminants into the atmosphere that exceed a specified shade or opacity. This bill would prohibit the State Air Resources Board or any air pollution control district or air quality management district from imposing a discharge requirement on emissions of visible smoke, as specified, from any diesel engine or generator used exclusively to operate a drinking water system in specified circumstances. The bill would also make technical changes. The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  Section 41701.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

41701.5    (a)  Neither the state board nor any district shall impose a discharge requirement on emissions of visible smoke from diesel pile-driving hammers which is more stringent than the requirements of this section, except as provided in subdivisions (b) and (c).

(b) A district shall issue a permit to the operator of a diesel pile-driving hammer if the operator submits a completed application for a permit to the district and the district determines, on the basis of information provided in the application, that the proposed use will comply with one of the following requirements:

(1)  Meets the Ringelmann 1 limit, as published by the United States Bureau of Mines, and does not exceed that limit for more than four minutes during the driving of a single pile.

(2)  Meets the Ringelmann 2 limit, as published by the United State Bureau of Mines, does not exceed that limit for more than four minutes during the driving of a single pile, and uses kerosene fuel, smoke suppressing fuel additives, and synthetic lubricating oil. A district may establish other requirements for compliance with this paragraph if the requirements are technologically and economically feasible. A district may consider the type of soil in which the pile driving is to occur and the number of blows required to drive a pile in determining the technological and economic feasibility of other conditions to be imposed by the district.

(c)  A permit issued by a district shall be valid until the pile-driving work has been approved or accepted by the person of entity for which the work is being performed. Upon request of an operator or of a person or entity for which the pile-driving work is performed, a district may extend the time period for which the permit is valid if the operator continues to comply with this section.

SEC. 2.  Section 41701.6 is added to the Health and Safety Code to read:

41701.6    Neither the state board nor any district shall impose a discharge requirement on emissions of visible smoke from any diesel auxiliary engine or generator used exclusively to operate a drinking water system which is more stringent than the Ringelmann 2 limit, as published by the United States Bureau of Mines on January 1, 1995, when operated under emergency circumstances, or operated not more than 30 minutes each week, or two hours each month, under nonemergecy circumstances.

SEC. 3.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

        In order that serious threats to public health and safety that are faced by persons who are served by public water systems, which threats are caused by uncertainty regarding the reliability of those systems in an emergency because of restrictions imposed by state laws on the testing and operation of emergency generators, may be alleviated, as soon as possible, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.