[an error occurred while processing this directive]

The California Water Boards' Annual Performance Report - Fiscal Year 2009-10

ENFORCE: ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS

Display a PDF version of this page for easy printing
GROUP: ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS ALL PROGRAMS
MEASURE: PENALTIES ALL PROGRAMS
MESSAGE:   Substantial penalties were assessed in FY 09-10. Of that amount, almost 38% has thus far been collected.
KEY STATISTICS FOR FY 2009-10
Penalties Assessed: $18,570,406
Penalties Collected: $6,462,202
SEP/Projects Approved: $494,687

MEASUREMENTS


WHAT THE MEASURE IS SHOWING

During fiscal year 2009-2010 a significant number of Administrative Civil Liability actions were issued under all programs in part as the result of the recently created Office of Enforcement. This large number of actions assessed a significant amount in penalty liability of which approximately 37% has thus far been resolved. Of the liability amount thus far resolved, 7% contributed to approved compliance and supplemental environmental projects and 93% was collected as direct payments into the Cleanup and Abatement Account or into the Waste Discharge Permit Fund. It also significant to point out the large number of cases that remain in progress

WHY THIS MEASURE IS IMPORTANT

California law and the Water Boards enforcement policy establish the circumstances for which violations must receive a penalty and in what amount. In certain cases, the Water Boards have the discretion of imposing administrative civil liabilities after considering certain factors. For other types of violations, mandatory minimum penalties must be imposed and settlement conditions for those violations are also limited. The Regional Boards must consider whether the discharger should be allowed to satisfy some or all of the monetary assessment by completing or funding one or more compliance or supplemental environmental projects or by depositing the penalty amount in a specified fund. Preparing each case for prosecution requires a significant amount of time and resources. This measure describes a significant workload for the enforcement program.

TECHNICAL CONSIDERATIONS

GLOSSARY

Supplemental Environmental Project

Supplemental environmental projects are defined as environmentally beneficial projects which a defendant/respondent agrees to undertake in settlement of an enforcement action, but which the defendant respondent is not otherwise legally required to perform. Environmentally beneficial means a SEP must improve, protect, or reduce risks to public health, of the environment at large. While in some cases a SEP may provide the alleged violator with certain benefits, there must be no doubt, that the project primarily benefits the public health or the environment


Compliance Project

A Compliance Project (CP) is a project designed to address problems related to the violation and bring the discharger back into compliance in a timely manner. CPs can only be considered where they are authorized by statute.  At this time, CPs are authorized by statute only in connection with MMPs if the POTW serves a small community with a financial hardship.

( Updated 12/6/10 ) This page is being tracked by Google Analytics

 
 

.