C.R.S. § 25-8-502: Application - fees - funds created - public participation - rules - definitions.

(1) For the purposes of this section:

(a) "Animal feeding operation" or "CAFO" means a lot or facility, other than an aquatic animal production facility, where:

(I) Animals, other than aquatic animals, have been, are, or will be stabled or confined and fed or maintained for a total of forty-five days or more in any twelve-month period; and

(II) Crops, vegetation, forage growth, or post-harvest residues are not sustained in the normal growing season over any portion of the lot or facility.

(b) "Categorical effluent standards" means those standards established by the federal environmental protection agency pursuant to section 307 (b) of the federal act.

(c) "Discharge" means the discharge of pollutants, and includes land application.

(d) "Gallons per day" is based on design capacity of the facility, not flow.

(e) "Land application" is any discharge being applied to the land for treatment purposes.

(f) "Municipal separate storm sewer system" or "MS4" means a conveyance or system of conveyances, including roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, catch basins, curbs, gutters, ditches, man-made channels, or storm drains, that is:

(I) Owned or operated by a state, city, town, county, district, association, or other public body created by or pursuant to state law having jurisdiction over disposal of sewage, industrial wastes, storm water, or other wastes, including special districts under state law such as a sewer district, flood control district, drainage district, or similar entity, or a designated and approved management agency under section 208 of the federal act that discharges to state waters;

(II) Designed or used for collecting or conveying storm water;

(III) Not a combined sewer; and

(IV) Not part of a publicly owned treatment works.

(g) "Significant industrial discharger" means an industrial discharger that meets one or more criteria established by the federal environmental protection agency pursuant to section 307 (b) of the federal act.

(1.1) For each regulated activity listed in this subsection (1.1), the division may assess an annual permit fee and a nonrefundable permit application fee for new permits, which nonrefundable permit application fee is in an amount that equals fifty percent of the annual permit fee. The full amount of the application fee is credited toward the annual permit fee. All such fees must be in accordance with the following schedules:

(a) The animal agriculture sector includes annual fee schedules for regulated activities associated with animal feeding operations as follows:

(I) General permit: The division shall assess a CAFO an annual permit fee not to exceed seven hundred fifty dollars plus nine cents per animal unit, based on the CAFO's permitted capacity.

(II) Individual permit: The division shall assess a CAFO an annual permit fee not to exceed one thousand five hundred dollars plus nine cents per animal unit, based on the CAFO's permitted capacity.

(III) The division shall assess an unpermitted CAFO an annual administrative fee, not to exceed six cents per animal unit, based upon the CAFO's registered capacity, to cover the direct and indirect costs associated with the environmental agriculture program, including inspections, compliance assurance, compliance assistance, and associated regulatory interpretation and review.

(IV) (A) Repealed.

(B) The division shall assess on each housed commercial swine feeding operation an annual permit fee, not to exceed twenty-six cents per animal, based on the operation's working capacity, to offset the direct and indirect costs of the program created in section 25-8-501.1.

(C) As used in this subsection (1.1)(a)(IV), "working capacity" means the number of swine the housed commercial swine feeding operation is capable of housing at any one time.

(b) to (f) Repealed.

(1.2) and (1.3) Repealed.

(1.4) The division may establish an interim fee that must be consistent and equitable with the fees contained in subsection (1.1) of this section in any case where a facility other than those listed must be permitted. This interim fee applies until the date of adjournment sine die of the next regular session of the general assembly following imposition of the interim fee.

(1.5) Repealed.

(1.6) There is hereby created the animal feeding operations fund, which consists of all fees collected for regulated activities associated with the animal agriculture sector in paragraph (a) of subsection (1.1) of this section, as well as all fees collected for services provided by the division associated with the animal agriculture sector in subsection (1.3) of this section. The division shall transmit the fees to the state treasurer, who shall credit them to the animal feeding operations fund. Any unexpended and unencumbered moneys remaining in the animal feeding operations fund at the end of any fiscal year remain in the animal feeding operations fund and shall not be transferred or revert to the general fund or any other fund. The general assembly shall annually appropriate the moneys in the animal feeding operations fund to the department of public health and environment for the direct and indirect costs associated with the permitting and oversight of animal feeding operations under this article.

(1.7) (a) The department of public health and environment shall report annually to:

(I) The senate agriculture and natural resources committee and the house of representatives agriculture, water, and natural resources committee, or their successor committees, on:

(A) The environmental agriculture program. The report must include the number of permits processed, the number of inspections conducted, the number of enforcement actions taken, and the costs associated with all program activities during the preceding year. The department shall submit the report on or before March 31 of each year.

(B) Repealed.

(II) The joint budget committee by November 1 of each year regarding the fee revenue received from each sector specified in subsection (1.1)(a) of this section, including expenditures by fund source and revenues by fund and sector based on the November 1 request.

(b) The reporting required by this section is exempt from section 24-1-136, C.R.S.

(1.8) Repealed.

(2) (a) A complete and accurate application for all discharges shall be filed with the division not less than one hundred eighty days prior to the date proposed for commencing the discharge.

(b) The application shall contain such relevant plans, specifications, water quality data, and other information related to the proposed discharge as the division may reasonably require. Prior to submitting an application for a permit, the applicant may request and, if so requested, the division shall grant a planning meeting with the applicant. At such meeting, the division shall advise the applicant of the applicable permit requirements, including the information, plans, specifications, and data required to be furnished with the permit application.

(c) The division shall begin the review of an application within forty-five days after the receipt of the application and shall notify the applicant within ninety days after receipt of the application whether the application is complete. If the division determines that an application is incomplete, the division may request that the applicant submit additional information. If additional information is requested by the division and submitted by the applicant, the division shall have fifteen days after the date the additional information is submitted to determine whether the additional information satisfies the request and to advise the applicant if, and in what respects, the additional information does not satisfy the request. A final decision that an application is not complete shall be considered final agency action upon issuance of such decision to the applicant and shall be subject to judicial review. A petition for review of such decision shall be given priority scheduling by the court.

(3) (a) The division shall evaluate complete permit applications to determine whether the proposed discharge will comply with all applicable federal and state statutory and regulatory requirements.

(b) The division shall give public notice of a complete permit application and the division's preliminary analysis of the application as provided in subsection (4) of this section. The notice shall advise of the opportunity for interested persons to submit written comments on the permit application and the division's preliminary analysis or to request, for good cause shown, a public meeting on the application and analysis. A request for a public meeting shall be made within thirty days after the initial public notice of the permit application and the division's preliminary analysis. If a public meeting is requested and the division, in its discretion and for good cause shown, grants the request, the division shall hold the public meeting not more than seventy-five days after the initial public notice. The division shall provide notice as provided in subsection (4) of this section of the public meeting not less than thirty days prior to the date of the meeting.

(c) The period for public comment shall close thirty days from the date of notice of the permit application and the division's preliminary analysis thereof; except that, if a public meeting is held on the application and analysis, the period for public comment shall close sixty days from the date of notice of the application.

(d) On or before December 31, 2026, the commission shall adopt rules establishing procedures whereby the division, prior to giving public notice of a complete permit application for an individual permit and the division's preliminary analysis of the application pursuant to subsection (3)(b) of this section, may provide a period of public notice and review of a preliminary draft prepared by the division. If a period of public notice and review is required by rules of the commission, the period of public notice and review may not exceed fourteen days, and the purpose of the review is limited to identifying errors in the division's preliminary draft. The division shall make available on the division's public website any documents provided by the division during a period of public notice and review.

(4) Public notice of every complete permit application and the division's preliminary analysis thereof shall be circulated in a manner designed to inform interested and potentially interested persons of the application and analysis. Procedures for the circulation of such public notice or a notice regarding a public meeting concerning an application and analysis shall be established by the commission and shall include at least the following:

(a) Notice shall be given by at least one publication in a newspaper of general circulation which is distributed within the geographical areas of the proposed discharge.

(b) Notice shall be mailed to any person or group upon request.

(c) The division shall add the name of any person or group upon request to a mailing list to receive copies of notices for all discharge permit applications within the state or within a certain geographical area.

(d) The division shall also, during the period from the date of the initial public notice of the application and analysis to the close of the public comment period, maintain in the office of the county clerk and recorder of the county in which the proposed discharge, or a part thereof, is to occur a copy of its preliminary analysis and a copy of the permit application with all accompanying data for public inspection.

(5) (a) (I) Except as provided in this subsection (5), if the division has not finally issued or denied a permit within one hundred eighty days after receipt of the permit application, unless this time limit is waived or extended by the applicant or if the division determines at any time after receiving an application that it cannot issue a permit prior to the expiration of an existing permit, the division shall issue a temporary permit or the existing permit shall be extended pursuant to the operation of section 24-4-104, C.R.S.

(II) The deadlines established pursuant to subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (a) for a determination on a permit application shall be extended by:

(A) The number of days which an applicant takes to submit information requested by the division pursuant to paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of this section plus the fifteen days provided for the division to evaluate such additional information; and

(B) Forty-five days, if a public meeting is held pursuant to subsection (3) of this section.

(b) All temporary permits shall contain such conditions as are necessary to protect public health and shall not be less restrictive than required by state and federal effluent guidelines unless a schedule of compliance or a variance is set forth therein. A temporary permit shall be issued for a period not to exceed two years and shall expire as provided in the issuance or denial of the final permit. Issuance of a temporary permit shall be final agency action for the purposes of section 24-4-106, C.R.S.

(6) Repealed.

(7) (a) On or before December 31, 2027, the division shall propose rules to the commission that establish a time frame during which the division will either grant or deny applications for each type of permitting action. On or before June 30, 2028, the commission shall adopt rules based on the division's proposal. The rules must establish the time frames for permitting actions, including:

(I) The issuance of new individual permits and new general permits;

(II) The renewal of general permits and individual permits;

(III) The granting or denying of requests for permit modifications; and

(IV) The determination of preliminary effluent limitations.

(b) Repealed.