The California Air Resources Board (ARB) invites you to participate in a public workshop to discuss updates to ARB’s Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEP) Policy to benefit disadvantaged communities. A SEP is an environmentally beneficial project that a person subject to an enforcement action voluntarily agrees to undertake in settlement of the action and to offset a portion of a civil penalty. Assembly Bill 1071 (2015), requires all boards and departments within the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) to establish a SEP Policy that benefits disadvantaged communities.
The ARB SEP Policy Workshops will be held at the following locations and times (The information presented at each workshop will be identical):
Date: August 9, 2016
Time: 5:00 p.m.- 7:00 p.m.
Location: Air Resources Board
Auditorium, 9530 Telstar Avenue
El Monte, California 91731
Date: August 11, 2016
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: City of Coachella Corporate Yard
53-462 Enterprise Way
Coachella, California 92236
Date: August 23, 2016
Time: 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Elihu M. Harris State Office Building
1515 Clay Street, Room 1
Oakland, California 94612
Date: August 24, 2016
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Comite Civico del Valle
235 Main Street
Brawley, California 92227
Date: August 30, 2016
Time: 2:00p.m. – 4:00p.m.
Location: Central California Environmental Justice Network
4991 E McKinley Avenue, Suite 109
Fresno, California 93727
Date: August 31, 2016
Time: 2:00p.m. – 4:00p.m.
Location: Board of Supervisor’s Multipurpose Room
1400 West Lacy Boulevard
Hanford, California 93230
Date: September 1, 2016
Time: 2:00p.m. – 4:00p.m. (will be webcast)
Location: San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District
34946 Floyer Court
Bakersfield, California 93308
The information presented at each workshop will be identical.
The Bakersfield workshop will be available via webcast for those unable to attend in person. The broadcast can be accessed on the day of the workshop athttp://www.valleyair.org/webstreaming/webcast-meetings.htm.
Information on submitting questions and comments will be provided during the webcast for remote participants. Staff’s presentation and any associated documents will be posted prior to the workshop on ARB’s website athttp://www.arb.ca.gov/enf/seppolicy.htm.
Background
State Law allows companies and individuals who have violated air quality regulations to pay part of a penalty to support a SEP.
In 2015, ARB assessed more than $10 million in penalties and diverted more than $1.5 million of these funds to support SEPs.
Assembly Bill 1071 (Atkins) was adopted in 2015 and requires each board within the CalEPA to establish a policy on SEPs that benefits disadvantaged communities, and allows up to 50 percent of an enforcement penalty to be devoted to a SEP. The policy must be developed through a public process, and each board is required to develop an annual list of SEPs that may be selected for implementation. The policy is required to consider the relationship between the location of the violation and the location of the proposed SEP.
Special Accommodations
If you require special accommodation for the workshop, or need this document in an alternated format (e.g. Braille, large print), or another language, please contact Ms. Victoria Villa, Air Pollution Specialist, either at (626) 575-6772 or by email atvictoria.villa@arb.ca.gov as soon as possible, but no later than 14 business days before the workshop. TTY/TTD/Speech to Speech users may dial 711 for the California Relay Service.
Please check the website http://www.arb.ca.gov/enf/seppolicy.htm for updates, including the workshop notice, presentation and other related documents. Updates will also be sent our via our electronic list serve. To subscribe, please enroll at:http://www.arb.ca.gov/listserv/listserv_ind.php?listname=ej.
ARB welcomes your participation. If you have questions regarding the workshops, please contact Ms. Michelle Shultz Wood either at (626) 459-4338 or by email atsep@arb.ca.gov.