H765 - Regulatory Reform Act of 2015, Sec. 4.14: On-Site Wastewater Amendments and Clarifications (SL 2015-286)

Overview: Sec. 4.14 of S.L. 2015-286 amends the statutes governing on-site wastewater systems to:

• Provide for an "engineered option permit" by which a licensed professional engineer may prepare signed and sealed drawings, specifications, plans, and reports for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of an on-site wastewater system without requiring the oversight or approval of a local health department, and make conforming changes. The engineered option permit may not be utilized until such time as rules adopted by the Commission for Public Health (Commission) become effective.
• Authorize licensed soil scientists and licensed professional geologists to evaluate soil conditions and site conditions for proposed on-site wastewater systems.
• Require permitted systems with a design flow of less than 1,500 gallons per day to be operated by a certified Subsurface Water Pollution Control System Operator and authorize the Commission to establish standards, in addition to the requirement for a certified Subsurface Water Pollution Control System Operator, for systems with a design flow of 1,500 gallons or more per day.
• Direct the Commission, in consultation with stakeholders, to study and report on minimum on-site wastewater system inspection frequency as established in the Administrative Code to evaluate the feasibility and desirability of eliminating duplicative inspections of on-site wastewater systems.
• Direct the Commission, in consultation with stakeholders, to study and report on the period of validity for improvement permits and authorizations for wastewater system construction and evaluate the costs and benefits of a range of periods of validity.
• Provide that any improvement permit or authorization for wastewater system construction that is in effect on October 22, 2015, which is scheduled to expire on or before July 1, 2016 will remain in effect until July 1, 2016.

This section became effective October 22, 2015. The Commission must adopt temporary rules for implementing the provisions that make statutory amendments by June 1, 2016, and adopt permanent rules for implementing the provisions that make statutory amendments by January 1, 2017.