SB 812 Summary

• Requires hazardous waste facility operators to submit complete permit renewal applications at least 2 years before expiration and establishes a 36-month deadline for the department to issue final permit decisions, with applications deemed denied if not decided within that timeframe.

• Replaces corrective action order requirements with a process requiring facility operators to submit department-approved cost estimates within 60 days and fund corrective actions or enter compliance schedules within 90 days of approval.

• Establishes the DTSC Community Oversight Committee (13 members) until January 1, 2020, to recommend policy changes increasing public participation and transparency in the department's permitting and enforcement decisions.

• Requires the department to adopt new permit issuance criteria by January 1, 2017, including evaluation of past violations, community vulnerability using CalEnviroScreen, setback distances from sensitive receptors, and financial responsibility.

• Mandates the department implement programmatic reforms by July 1, 2017, to improve environmental justice safeguards, permit decision timeliness, public participation, and legal defensibility of the permitting program.