News Release (C-15-98)

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For Immediate Release (C-3-98) Contact: Communications Office (916) 324-9670 September 30, 1998

Permit Plan Signing Ceremony

SACRAMENTO - Peter M. Rooney, Secretary for Environmental Protection, today joined local and regional permitting heads in signing a multi-agency partnership agreement establishing the use of a facility compliance plan in lieu of individual environmental permits.

Senate Bill 1299 (Peace, 1995) established a pilot program for facility permitting that replaces individual environmental permits with a single, comprehensive compliance assurance plan. It will be implemented in four communities throughout California.

"The pilot program will enable us to collectively evaluate the concept of a single facility compliance plan as a new model for environmental regulation in California," said Secretary Rooney.

Currently, industrial facilities must obtain environmental permits from a broad range of agencies, oftentimes each with its own requirements which can differ considerably in terms of monitoring, permit term, financial requirements, fees, etc. This plan will provide cost savings without abrogating the California Environmental Quality Act or other state and national environmental regulations.

Said Secretary Rooney at the signing, "The Facility Compliance Plan will provide Kern County applicants more flexibility, less duplication, and greater regulatory certainty. As stewards of our State's invaluable resources we can work closely to ensure that both jobs and environmental protections co-exist. In this way we can ensure we leave our children a California in better shape than when we received it."

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1998 Releases | Archived Press Releases