(1) (a) On or before October 1 of each
year, the division through the executive director shall report to the commission on
the effectiveness of this article 8 and shall include in such report any
recommendations the division may have with respect to any regulatory or
legislative changes that may be needed or desired. The report must include the
then-current monitoring information that has been obtained pursuant to section 25-8-303.
(b) The executive director shall also submit the report to the house of
representatives agriculture, water, and natural resources committee and the senate
agriculture and natural resources committee, or their successor committees.
Notwithstanding section 24-1-136 (11)(a)(I), this reporting requirement continues
indefinitely.
(2) The annual report described in subsection (1) of this section must include
information on the division's:
(a) Implementation of the discharge permitting program established in part 5
of this article 8;
(b) Inspections performed;
(c) Enforcement actions under this article 8;
(d) Establishment of any new rules and standards;
(e) Assessment of any emerging trends that the division perceives in issues
pertaining to water quality;
(f) Ratio of general fund appropriations to cash fund appropriations that
were authorized for the state fiscal year immediately preceding the date of the
report;
(g) Revenue and expenditures, including for the division's general
administration needs, the division's administration of the clean water and drinking
water programs, and the division's allocation of any increased fees established
through section 25-8-210 for services that the division provides. The department
shall present this information as part of the department's annual SMART Act
presentation pursuant to section 2-7-203.
(h) Timing in considering and issuing permits, including the number of years
administratively continued permits have been pending, categorized by years
pending, and a narrative description of the division's plan for processing
administratively continued permits that have been administratively continued for
longer than five years.
(3) (a) For a report that the division submits on or before October 1, 2025, the
report must include the total permit fee revenue received in the previous twelve
months, and the division's direct and indirect costs to administer the permits, for
the following sector-specific permits, reviews, or determinations:
(I) The commerce and industry sector pursuant to section 25-8-502 (1.1)(b);
(II) The construction sector pursuant to section 25-8-502 (1.1)(c);
(III) The pesticide sector pursuant to section 25-8-502 (1.1)(d);
(IV) The public and private utilities sector pursuant to section 25-8-502
(1.1)(e);
(V) The municipal separate storm sewer system sector pursuant to section
25-8-502 (1.1)(f);
(VI) The reviews performed pursuant to section 25-8-502 (1.2) for requests
for certification under section 401 of the federal act;
(VII) The preliminary effluent limitation determinations performed pursuant
to section 25-8-502 (1.3)(b); and
(VIII) The wastewater site applications and design reviews performed
pursuant to section 25-8-502 (1.3)(c).
(b) This subsection (3) is repealed, effective July 1, 2026.
(4) (a) For the report that the division submits in 2025, the report must
include:
(I) A description of the fee structure proposed or included in rules that the
commission has proposed or adopted pursuant to section 25-8-210 (1)(a);
(II) If the rules proposed or adopted pursuant to section 25-8-210 (1)(a)
modify a fee structure set forth in statute, the reasons for the change in the fee
structure; and
(III) A summary of options for setting a cap on the amount of fee increases
and the department of public health and environment's recommendations on
setting a cap based on stakeholder feedback.
(b) The report that the division submits in 2026 must include a detailed
discussion of how the division has prioritized reducing the water quality permit
backlog, implemented recommendations from permittees for permitting efficiency,
and increased the number of safe drinking water program inspections.
(c) This subsection (4) is repealed, effective July 1, 2027.
(5) (a) On or before October 1, 2026, and for each year thereafter, the report
described in subsection (1) of this section must provide an overall understanding of
the state of implementation of the dredge and fill discharge authorization program
described in section 25-8-205.1. For this purpose, the division shall develop a
twelve-month reporting period. At a minimum, the report must include:
(I) Program staffing and budget over the twelve-month reporting period;
(II) General authorization program components over the twelve-month
reporting period, including:
(A) The total number of preconstruction notifications or coverage verification
requests received during the twelve-month reporting period;
(B) The total number of projects authorized to proceed during the twelve-month reporting period;
(C) The total number of projects authorized to proceed during the twelve-month reporting period that included special conditions;
(D) The total number of projects authorized to proceed under section 25-8-205.1 (5)(d) during the twelve-month reporting period;
(E) The total number of projects denied general authorization coverage
during the twelve-month reporting period and a summary of the reasons for denials;
(F) The range of time and average time required to process preconstruction
notifications and coverage verification requests from receipt to final decision
during the twelve-month reporting period; and
(G) The total number of full-time employees tasked with processing
preconstruction notifications, coverage verification requests, and technical
assistance during the twelve-month reporting period; and
(III) Individual authorization program components, including:
(A) The total number of authorization applications received during the
twelve-month reporting period;
(B) The total number of projects authorized to proceed during the twelve-month reporting period;
(C) The total number of projects denied authorization coverage during the
twelve-month reporting period and a summary of the reasons for denials;
(D) The total number of applications awaiting action at the end of the twelve-month reporting period;
(E) The range of time and average time required to process individual
authorization applications from receipt to final decision during the twelve-month
reporting period; and
(F) The total number of full-time employees tasked with processing
individual authorizations during the twelve-month reporting period.
(b) On a quarterly basis, the division shall report to the joint budget
committee the number of individual dredge and fill authorizations and notices of
authorization that the division projects to issue for the fiscal year. The division shall
submit these reports so that they coincide with quarterly budget forecasts.