Section 1-301 - Duties and powers of Secretary and county officials; qualifications of county officials other than health officer; report on enforcement activities.
§ 1-301. Duties and powers of Secretary and county officials; qualifications of county officials other than health officer; report on enforcement activities.
(a) Enforcement of provisions of article.- The Secretary shall carry out and enforce the provisions of this article and the rules and regulations adopted under this article.
(b) Delegation of duties, powers, and functions.- The Secretary may delegate duties, powers, and functions as provided in this article to a health officer for a county or to another county official authorized to administer and enforce environmental laws.
(c) Qualifications of county officials other than the health officer.- In those counties where a county official other than the health officer is authorized to administer and enforce State environmental laws under this section, the county shall establish minimum qualifications for that county official that include standards of education and experience related to environmental issues.
(d) Report on enforcement activities.-
(1) (i) On or before October 1 of each year, the Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General, shall submit to the Legislative Policy Committee, in accordance with § 2-1246 of the State Government Article, a report on enforcement activities conducted by the Department during the previous fiscal year.
(ii) The report shall:
1. Include the information required under this subsection and any additional information concerning environmental enforcement that the Secretary decides to provide;
2. Be available to the public as soon as it is forwarded to the Legislative Policy Committee;
3. Include information on the total number of permits and licenses issued by or filed with the Department at any time and still in effect as of the last date of the fiscal year immediately preceding the date on which the report is filed;
4. Include information concerning specific enforcement actions taken with respect to the permits and licenses during the immediately preceding fiscal year; and
5. Include information on the type and number of contacts or consultations with businesses concerning compliance with State environmental laws.
(iii) The information required in the report under paragraph (3) of this subsection shall be organized according to each program specified.
(2) The report shall state the total amount of money as a result of enforcement actions, as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year:
(i) Deposited in the Maryland Clean Air Fund;
(ii) Deposited in the Maryland Oil Disaster Containment, Clean-Up and Contingency Fund;
(iii) Deposited in the Nontidal Wetland Compensation Fund;
(iv) Deposited in the Maryland Hazardous Substance Control Fund;
(v) Recovered by the Department from responsible parties in accordance with § 7-221 of this article; and
(vi) Deposited in the Maryland Clean Water Fund.
(3) (i) The report shall include the information specified in subparagraphs (ii), (iii), (iv), and (v) of this paragraph for each of the following programs in the Department:
1. Ambient air quality control under Title 2, Subtitle 4 of this article;
2. Oil pollution under Title 4, Subtitle 4 of this article;
3. Nontidal wetlands under Title 5, Subtitle 9 of this article;
4. Asbestos under Title 6, Subtitle 4 of this article;
5. Lead paint under Title 6, Subtitle 8 of this article;
6. Controlled hazardous substances under Title 7, Subtitle 2 of this article;
7. Water supply, sewerage systems, and refuse disposal systems under Title 9, Subtitle 2 of this article;
8. Water discharges under Title 9, Subtitle 3 of this article;
9. Drinking water under Title 9, Subtitle 4 of this article; and
10. Wetlands under Title 16, Subtitle 2 of this article.
(ii) For each of the programs set forth in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, the Department shall provide the total number or amount of:
1. Final permits or licenses issued to a person or facility, as appropriate, and not surrendered, suspended, or revoked;
2. Inspections, audits, or spot checks performed at facilities permitted;
3. Injunctions obtained;
4. Show cause, remedial, and corrective action orders issued;
5. Stop work orders;
6. Administrative or civil penalties obtained;
7. Criminal actions charged, convictions obtained, imprisonment time ordered, and criminal fines received; and
8. Any other actions taken by the Department to enforce the requirements of the applicable environmental program, including:
A. Notices of the removal or encapsulation of asbestos under § 6-414.1 of this article; and
B. Actions enforcing user charges against industrial users under § 9-341 of this article.
(iii) In addition to the information required in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, for the Lead Paint Program under Title 6, Subtitle 8 of this article, the report shall include the total number or amount of:
1. Affected properties registered; and
2. Inspectors or other persons accredited by the Department, for whom accreditation has not been surrendered, suspended, or revoked.
(iv) In addition to the information required in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, for the Controlled Hazardous Substances Program under Title 7, Subtitle 2 of this article, the report shall include the following lists, updated to reflect the most recent information available for the immediately preceding fiscal year:
1. Possible controlled hazardous substance sites compiled in accordance with § 7-223(a) of this article;
2. Proposed sites listed in accordance with § 7-223(c) of this article at which the Department intends to conduct preliminary site assessments; and
3. Hazardous waste sites in the disposal site registry compiled in accordance with § 7-223(f) of this article.
(v) In addition to the information required in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, for the Drinking Water Program, the report shall include the total number of:
1. Actions to prevent public water system contamination or to respond to a Safe Drinking Water Act emergency under §§ 9-405 and 9-406 of this article; and
2. Notices given to the public by public water systems under § 9-410 of this article.
[1982, ch. 240, § 2; 1987, ch. 177; ch. 306, § 3; 1997, ch. 579; ch. 635, § 9; ch. 636, § 9; 2010, ch. 469.]