Virginia Law

"Administrative proceeding" means an informal fact finding or formal hearing.

"Administrative Process Act" means Chapter 40 (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia.

"Air pollution" means the presence in the outdoor atmosphere of one or more substances that are or may be harmful or injurious to human health, welfare, or safety; to animal or plant life; or to property; or that unreasonably interfere with the enjoyment by the people of life or property.

"Board" means the State Air Pollution Control Board or its designated representative. When used outside the context of the promulgation of regulations, including regulations to establish general permits, pursuant to this chapter, "board" means the Department of Environmental Quality.

"Case decision" means any determination that a named party as a matter of past or present fact, or as a matter of threatened or contemplated private action, either is or is not, or may or may not be (i) in violation of any law or regulations, or (ii) in compliance with any existing requirement for obtaining or retaining a permit or other right or benefit. Case decisions include, but are not limited to, consent orders, consent agreements, orders, special orders, emergency special orders, permits, waivers, and licenses. Case decisions do not include notices of violations, variances, regulations, or inspection reports.

"Confidential information" means secret formulae, secret processes, secret methods, or other trade secrets that are proprietary information certified by the signature of the responsible person for the owner to meet the following criteria: (i) information for which the owner has been taking and will continue to take measures to protect confidentiality, (ii) information that has not been and is not presently reasonably obtainable without the owner's consent by private citizens or other firms through legitimate means other than discovery based on a showing of special need in a judicial or quasi-judicial proceeding, (iii) information that is not publicly available from sources other than the owner, and (iv) information the disclosure of which would cause substantial harm to the owner.

"Consent agreement" means an agreement that the owner or another person will perform specific actions for the purpose of diminishing or abating the causes of air pollution or for the purpose of coming into compliance with the regulations of the board, by mutual agreement of the owner or another person and the department.

"Consent order" means a consent agreement issued as an order. Consent orders may be issued without a formal hearing.

"Department" means an employee or other representative of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality as designated by the director.

"Director" means the Director of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality or a designated representative.

"Disclosure form" means the financial statement required by § 2.2-3114 of the State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act (Chapter 31 (§ 2.2-3100 et seq.) of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia).

"Emergency" means a situation that immediately and unreasonably affects, or has the potential to immediately and unreasonably affect, public health, safety, or welfare; the health of animal or plant life; or property, whether used for recreational, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other reasonable use.

"Emergency special order" means an order of the department issued under the provisions of § 10.1-1309 B of the Code of Virginia, after declaring a state of emergency and without a formal hearing, to owners who are permitting or causing air pollution to cease the pollution. These orders shall become invalid if a formal hearing is not held within 10 days after the effective date.

"Enabling law" or "enabling laws" means provisions of the Constitution and statutes of the Commonwealth of Virginia authorizing the board to make regulations or the department to decide cases or containing procedural requirements therefor, including, but not limited to, the (i) Virginia Air Pollution Control Law and (ii) the Virginia Motor Vehicle Emissions Control Law.

"Evidentiary hearing" means a formal proceeding that provides opportunity for interested persons to submit factual proofs in formal proceedings as provided in § 2.2-4009 of the Administrative Process Act in connection with the making of regulations. Evidentiary hearings do not include the informational inquiries of an informal nature provided in § 2.2-4007.01 B of the Administrative Process Act.

"Federal Clean Air Act" means 42 USC 7401 et seq., 91 Stat 685.

"Formal hearing" means a formal proceeding that provides for the right of private parties to submit factual proofs as provided in § 2.2-4020 of the Administrative Process Act in connection with case decisions. Formal hearings do not include the factual inquiries of an informal nature provided in § 2.2-4019 of the Administrative Process Act.

"Informal fact finding" means an informal conference or consultation proceeding used to ascertain the fact basis for case decisions as provided in § 2.2-4019 of the Administrative Process Act.

"Locality" means a city, town, county, or other public body created by or pursuant to state law.

"Order" means a decision or directive of the department, including special orders, emergency special orders, and other orders of all types, rendered for the purpose of diminishing or abating the causes of air pollution or enforcement of the regulations of the board. Unless specified otherwise in the Virginia Air Pollution Control Law or in the regulations of the board, orders shall be issued only after the appropriate administrative proceeding.

"Owner" means a person, including bodies politic and corporate, associations, partnerships, personal representatives, trustees, and committees, as well as individuals, who owns, leases, operates, controls, or supervises a source.

"Party" means, for the purposes of Part VIII (9VAC5-170-190 et seq.) of this chapter, a person named in the record who actively participates in the administrative proceeding or offers comments through the public participation process. The term "party" also means the department.

"Person" means an individual, a corporation, a partnership, an association, a governmental body, a municipal corporation, or another legal entity.

"Pollutant" means a substance the presence of which in the outdoor atmosphere is or may be harmful or injurious to human health, welfare, or safety; to animal or plant life; or to property; or which unreasonably interferes with the enjoyment by the people of life or property.

"Potential conflict of interest" means a personal interest as defined in § 2.2-3101 of the State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act (Chapter 31 (§ 2.2-3100 et seq.) of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia).

"Public hearing" means, unless indicated otherwise, an informal proceeding, similar to that provided for in § 2.2-4007.01 B of the Administrative Process Act, held to afford people an opportunity to submit views and data relative to a matter on which a decision of the board or the department is pending.

"Public meeting" means an informal proceeding conducted by the department in conjunction with the notice of intended regulatory action to afford people an opportunity to submit comments relative to intended regulatory actions.

"Public participation process" means any element of a board or department decision making process that involves the use of a public meeting, public hearing, or evidentiary hearing.

"Regulations of the board" means regulations adopted by the State Air Pollution Control Board under a provision of the Code of Virginia.

"Source" means one or combination of the following: buildings, structures, facilities, installations, articles, machines, equipment, landcraft, watercraft, aircraft, or other contrivances that contribute, or may contribute, either directly or indirectly to air pollution. An activity by a person that contributes, or may contribute, either directly or indirectly to air pollution, including, but not limited to, open burning, generation of fugitive dust or emissions, and cleaning with abrasives or chemicals.

"Special order" means an order of the department issued:

1. Under the provisions of § 10.1-1309 of the Code of Virginia:

a. To owners who are permitting or causing air pollution to cease and desist from the pollution;

b. To owners who have failed to construct facilities in accordance with or have failed to comply with plans for the control of air pollution submitted by them to, and approved by the department, to construct facilities in accordance with or otherwise comply with the approved plan;

c. To owners who have violated or failed to comply with the terms and provisions of an order or directive issued by the department to comply with the terms and provisions;

d. To owners who have contravened duly adopted and promulgated air quality standards and policies to cease and desist from the contravention and to comply with the air quality standards and policies; and

e. To require an owner to comply with the provisions of the Virginia Air Pollution Control Law and a decision of the department; or

2. Under the provisions of § 10.1-1309.1 of the Code of Virginia, which require that an owner file with the department a plan to abate, control, prevent, remove, or contain a substantial and imminent threat to public health or the environment that is reasonably likely to occur if the source ceases operations.

"Variance" means the temporary exemption of an owner or other person from the regulations of the board, or a temporary change in the regulations of the board as they apply to an owner or other person.

"Virginia Air Pollution Control Law" means Chapter 13 (§ 10.1-1300 et seq.) of Title 10.1 of the Code of Virginia.

"Virginia Motor Vehicle Emissions Control Law" means Article 22 (§ 46.2-1176 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 46.2 of the Code of Virginia.

"Virginia Register Act" means Chapter 41 (§ 2.2-4100 et seq.) of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia.