Section 24-701
§ 24-701 Short Title. This chapter shall be known and may be cited as
the "New York city community right-to-know law."
Section 24-702
§ 24-702 Definitions. For the purpose of this chapter the following
terms shall mean:
(a) "chemical name": the scientific designation of a chemical in
accordance with the nomenclature system developed by the International
Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry or the Chemical Abstracts Service
(CAS) rules of nomenclature.
(b) "citywide facility inventory database": a compendium of
information filed by responsible parties with the department in
accordance with this chapter regarding the location of hazardous
substances.
(c) "commissioner": the commissioner of the department of
environmental protection.
(d) "department": the department of environmental protection.
(e) "disposal": the placing of any hazardous substance into any land
or water so that such hazardous substances or any constituent thereof
may be released into the environment.
(f) "emergency response agencies": the departments of fire, police,
environmental protection, health, transportation and sanitation, and the
division of emergency medical services of the health and hospitals
corporation.
(g) "emergency response personnel": any member of the departments of
fire, police, environmental protection, health, transportation and
sanitation, the division of emergency services of health and hospitals
corporation and any other government agency participating in response
measures undertaken in connection with a fire, or a spill, or release or
threatened release of a hazardous substance into the environment. For
purposes of this chapter, the term "response measures" shall include
actions taken by a city agency within the meaning of subdivision (f) of
section 24-603.
(h) "extremely hazardous substance": a substance on a list of
extremely hazardous substances promulgated pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section
11002(a).
(i) "facility": all buildings, equipment, structures, and other
stationary items that are located on a single site or on contiguous or
adjacent sites and that are owned, leased or operated by the same
person, or by any person which controls, or is controlled by or under
common control with, such person, including any building, structure,
installation or area involved in the processing, storage, handling,
treatment, placement, disposal or use of any hazardous substance.
(j) "facility inventory form": a standard written form, developed by
the department for completion by a responsible party at each privately
or publicly owned facility in the city of New York.
(k) "hazardous substance": any chemical which is a physical hazard or
a health hazard and which is listed on the hazardous substance list or
special health hazard list. For purposes of this chapter, the term
"hazardous substance" shall not include the following: (1) any food,
food additive, color additive, drug, or cosmetic regulated by the
federal food and drug administration; (2) any substance present as a
solid in any manufactured item to the extent exposure to the substance
does not occur under normal conditions of use; (3) any substance to the
extent it is used for personal, family, or household purposes, or is
present in the same form and concentration as a product packaged for
distribution and use by the general public; (4) any substance to the
extent it is used in routine agricultural operations or is a fertilizer
held for sale by a retailer to the ultimate consumer; (5) any hazardous
waste as such term is defined by the solid waste disposal act, as
amended by the resource conservation and recovery act of nineteen
hundred seventy-six, as amended (42 U.S.C. section 6901, et seq.); (6)
tobacco or tobacco products; (7) wood or wood products; (8) articles,
which for purposes of this subdivision shall mean manufactured items
which (i) are formed to a specific shape or design during manufacture;
(ii) which have an end use function or functions dependent in whole or
in part upon their shape or design during end use; and (iii) which do
not release, or otherwise result in exposure to, a hazardous substance,
under normal conditions of use; (9) food, drugs, cosmetics, or alcoholic
beverages in a retail establishment which are packaged for sale to
consumers; (10) foods, drugs, or cosmetics intended for personal
consumption by employees while in the work place; (11) any consumer
product or hazardous substance, as those terms are defined in the
consumer product safety act (15 U.S.C. section 2051, et seq.) and
federal hazardous substances act (15 U.S.C. section 1261, et seq.)
respectively, where the employer can demonstrate it is used in the
workplace in the same manner as normal consumer use, and which use
results in a duration and frequency of exposure which is not greater
than exposures experienced by consumers; or (12) any drug, as that term
is defined in the federal food, drug, and cosmetic act (21 U.S.C.
section 301, et seq.), when it is in solid, final form for direct
administration to a patient.
(l) "hazardous substance list": a list of hazardous substances which
the commissioner shall by regulation establish in accordance with
section 24-703 of this chapter. The commissioner shall at the minimum
include on the original list, those hazardous substances contained on
the following existing list of dangerous substances: the New Jersey
Right to Know, Hazardous Substance List developed pursuant to the Worker
and Community Right to Know Act (New Jersey Administrative Code, stat.
34:5A-1 et seq.) as in effect in December of nineteen hundred
eighty-seven.
(m) "health hazard": a chemical for which there is statistically
significant evidence based on at least one study conducted in accordance
with the established scientific principles that acute or chronic health
effects may occur in exposed persons. The term "health hazard" includes
chemicals which are carcinogens, toxic or highly toxic agents,
reproductive toxins, irritants, corrosives, sensitizers, hepatotoxins,
nephrotoxins, neurotoxins, agents which act on the hematopoietic system,
and agents which damage the lungs, skin, eyes, or mucous membranes.
(n) "material safety data sheet" (MSDS): written or printed material
concerning a hazardous substance which is identical in form and content
to the data sheet described at 29 C.F.R. part 1910.1200 and required
under subdivision (a) of section three hundred eleven of the emergency
planning and community right-to-know act of nineteen hundred eighty-six
(42 U.S.C. section 11001, et seq.).
(o) "mixture": a combination of two or more substances not involving a
chemical reaction.
(p) "person": any individual, trust, firm, partnership, corporation,
joint stock company, association, joint venture or government entity.
(q) "physical hazard": a chemical for which there is scientifically
valid evidence that it is a combustible liquid, a compressed gas,
explosive, flammable, an organic peroxide, an oxidizer, pyrophoric,
unstable (reactive) or water-reactive.
(r) "regulated toxic substance": a substance on a list of regulated
toxic substances promulgated pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section 7412 (r).
(s) "responsible party": an owner, operator, manager, or corporate
officer of the person who owns, leases or operates a facility, provided
that if such facility is leased, the responsible party shall be the
lessee of the facility or his or her representative.
(t) "risk management plan": a plan filed by a responsible party with
the commissioner pursuant to section 24-718 of this chapter.
(u) "special health hazard list": a list of hazardous substances that
the commissioner may develop through regulation which would consist of
substances that have been proven to be carcinogenic, mutagenic or
teratogenic, as established by at least one study conducted in
accordance with established scientific principles, and thereby pose a
special hazard to health and safety.
(v) "treatment": any method, technique, or process, including
neutralization, designed to change the physical, chemical, or biological
character or composition of any hazardous substance so as to neutralize
such substance or so as to render such substance nonhazardous, safe to
transport, amendable to recovery, amendable to storage, or reduced in
volume. Such term includes any activity or processing designed to change
the physical form or chemical composition of a hazardous substance so as
to render it nonhazardous.
Section 24-703
§ 24-703 Hazardous substance list. The commissioner by regulation
shall develop a list of hazardous substances, complying with the
requirements of section 24-702(j) of this chapter, within six months
from enactment of this section provided that if the commissioner
determines than any substance on the required base list, as established
by section 24-702(j) of this chapter, should not be placed on the final
promulgated list, then the commissioner shall submit a written statement
to the council indicating the reason why an amendment is necessary, at
least sixty days before the date the list is to take effect. The council
may within thirty days following receipt of the commissioner's statement
requesting an amendment either: (i) approve or disapprove such amendment
or (ii) determine that an additional ten days is needed to study such
amendment by the adoption of an appropriate resolution. Upon approval by
the council, such amendment shall take effect immediately. If the
council disapproves such amendment, the commissioner shall not be
precluded from resubmitting such amendment to the council at a later
date. If the council does not approve or disapprove such amendment
within such thirty day period, such amendment shall take effect on the
thirty-first day after submission to the council unless the council had
determined by resolution that an additional ten days is needed to study
such amendment, in which case, the amendment shall take effect on the
forty-first day after such submission to the council unless the council
has approved or disapproved such amendment prior to such forty-first
day. Except for the substances contained on the special health hazard
list developed pursuant to the requirements of section 24-704 of this
chapter, any substance contained on the hazardous substance list shall
be reported to the commissioner, if such hazardous substance has been
present at a facility in an amount which exceeds five hundred pounds.
For the reporting period ending on March first, nineteen hundred
eighty-nine, any mixture present in a facility in an amount which
exceeds five hundred pounds, shall be reported if it contains in a
concentration of one percent or more any hazardous substance listed on
the New Jersey Special Health Hazards List, a subcategory of the New
Jersey Right-to-Know Hazardous Substance List (New Jersey Administrative
Code, stat. 34: 5A-1 et seq.) as in effect in December, nineteen hundred
eighty-seven. For the reporting period ending March first, nineteen
hundred ninety, any mixture present in a facility shall be reported in
an amount which exceeds five hundred pounds if it contains in a
concentration of one tenth of one percent or more of any such hazardous
substance. For the reporting period ending on March first, nineteen
hundred ninety-one, the commissioner shall by regulation establish a
threshold reporting quantity for each hazardous substance and hazardous
substances in mixture that are included on the New Jersey Special Health
Hazards List shall be reported in the same concentration as required in
the previous year. If the commissioner fails to set a specific threshold
reporting quantity by March first, nineteen hundred ninety-one, then
each of the hazardous substances without a specific threshold reporting
quantity shall be reported to the commissioner if ten or more pounds are
present at a facility.
Section 24-704
§ 24-704 Special health hazard list. (a) The commissioner may develop
by regulation a special health hazard list to consist of substances
otherwise included on the hazardous substances list but which, because
of their proven carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, or teratogenicity, pose a
special hazard to health and safety. For those substances contained on
this list, any amount stored or existing at a facility shall be reported
to the commissioner.
(b) The commissioner shall be authorized to include within the
regulations specific requirements for the special health hazards list,
in addition to those established in section 24-705 of this chapter, for
the reporting, handling and labeling of these substances, as he or she
deems necessary.
Section 24-705
§ 24-705 Facility inventory form. (a) The commissioner by regulation
shall develop a facility inventory form within six months of enactment
of this chapter. This form shall, at a minimum require the following
information:
(1) the name and business address of the owner and operator of the
facility, and if the facility is owned or operated by a legal entity,
the name and business address of an appropriate executive officer;
(2) the name and address of the facility;
(3) the telephone number of the facility and its owner or operator;
(4) the names, titles, and daytime and nightime telephone numbers of
at least two persons designated as emergency contacts for the facility;
(5) the chemical name or the common name of each hazardous substance
present at the facility as provided on the material safety data sheet
and the CAS identification number for each hazardous substance;
(6) an estimate, in ranges of the maximum amount and average daily
amount, of the number of days located at the facility, and the specific
location of each hazardous substance present at the facility at any time
during the preceding calendar year;
(7) a brief description of the manner of storage of each hazardous
substance present at the facility; and
(8) an indication of whether the responsible party elects to withhold
location information of a specific hazardous substance from disclosure
to the public pursuant to subdivision (b) of this section.
(b) A person submitting information for a facility pursuant to this
chapter may request the commissioner to withhold from disclosure to the
public the location of any specific hazardous substance required to be
reported on a facility inventory form.
Section 24-706
§ 24-706 Facility inventory reporting. (a) A responsible party of a
facility shall file a completed facility inventory form for such
facility with the department for each substance on the hazardous
substance list or the special health hazard list present within a
facility that has been present in the preceding calendar year in a
quantity which exceeds the threshold reporting quantity established
under section 24-703 of this chapter, on or before March first of each
year, beginning in nineteen hundred eighty-nine. A responsible party of
a facility shall also be required to file with the department a facility
inventory update, on a form approved by the department through
regulation, if a previously unreported hazardous substance is added at a
facility or if an already reported quantity of a hazardous substance
increases by twenty-five percent or more, within thirty days of the
occurrence of such event.
(b) A responsible party of a facility shall also be required to file a
completed material safety data sheet for each hazardous substance at the
facility with the department and with the fire department on or before
March first of each year, beginning in nineteen hundred eighty-nine.
(c) A responsible party shall make copies of all information filed
with the department pursuant to this section available at the facility
to emergency response personnel undertaking response measures at such
facility.
(d) On or before December thirty-first, nineteen hundred ninety-three,
the commissioner shall by rule establish a schedule of fees that shall
be paid upon the filing of the facility inventory form required by this
chapter. Such fees shall be based on the amount of hazardous substances
present, the number of different hazardous substances present and the
type of hazardous substances present, including the presence or absence
of substances classified as extremely hazardous in rules and regulations
promulgated by The United States environmental protection agency
pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section 11001, et seq.
Section 24-707
§ 24-707 Compilation of Citywide Facility Inventory Data. (a) The
commissioner, on or before July first, nineteen hundred eighty-eight,
shall develop and publish in the City Record plans for a comprehensive
notification program for all facilities as described in this chapter.
(b) The commissioner shall produce a citywide facility inventory
database, on or before September first, nineteen hundred eighty-nine.
(c) The commissioner shall maintain and update, the citywide facility
inventory database, and shall, on an annual basis produce the data from
such database in printed form.
(d) For those substances which have been exempt from reporting
pursuant to section 24-708(c), the commissioner shall acquire from the
fire department, data regarding the issuance of permits or licenses for
the manufacture, storage or transporting of fossil fuels, petroleum
products, and combustible or flammable substances so that these
locations can be included in the citywide facility inventory database.
Section 24-708
24-708 Exemptions. The following persons, facilities and hazardous
substances shall be exempt from the requirements of section 24-706 and
24-711: (a) facilities where the only hazardous substances, except for
those substances on the special health hazard list pursuant to section
24-704, were present during the preceding calendar year in mixtures in
which the total content of the hazardous substance was of one percent or
less by weight or volume per container unless such hazardous substance
was present at the facility in an aggregate amount of five hundred
pounds or more; (b) owners or tenants of residential buildings that
contain no commercial or manufacturing enterprise; or (c) fossil fuels,
petroleum products, and combustible or flammable chemicals or materials,
the manufacture, transportation, or storage of which is subject to the
jurisdiction of the fire department pursuant to title twenty-seven of
the code.
Section 24-709
§ 24-709 Trade Secrets. (a) Any person required under section 24-706
to submit information to the department may withhold from such submittal
the specific chemical identity of a hazardous substance, including the
chemical name and other specific identification, if such information has
been withheld as a trade secret pursuant to section three hundred
twenty-two of the emergency planning and community right-to-know act of
nineteen hundred eighty-six (42 U.S.C. section 11001, et seq.), article
forty-eight of the public health law or article twenty-eight of the
labor law. No person shall be entitled to withhold such trade secret
information from such submittal unless such person demonstrates to the
satisfaction of the commissioner that such information has been so
determined to be a trade secret and that such person has taken
reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of such information
and intends to continue to take such measures. The commissioner may
grant a temporary extension of not more than thirty days from the
reporting requirements of section 24-706 for the purpose of allowing
such person to make such demonstration.
(b) With respect to any information not withheld as a trade secret in
the manner described by subdivision (a) of this section, the
commissioner may withhold from disclosure, pursuant to article six of
the public officers law, (i) specific chemical identities, including
chemical names and other specific information, which are trade secrets
which if disclosed would cause substantial injury to the competitive
position of a commercial enterprise or (ii) methods or processes
described in plans filed pursuant to section 24-718 of this chapter
entitled to protection as trade secrets. The commissioner shall
promulgate by rule a procedure for implementing the provisions of this
subdivision. The subdivision shall not be construed to affect, limit or
modify in any manner the reporting requirements of section 24-706.
(c) 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, in a
response to an emergency caused by the presence or release of a
hazardous substance, the commissioner shall make trade secret
information about such hazardous substance available, upon request, to
emergency response personnel responding to such an emergency.
2. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, for the
purpose of medical diagnosis or treatment of an individual exposed to a
hazardous substance, where the commissioner has withheld any information
from disclosure pursuant to subdivision (b) of this section, the person
submitting such information to the department shall upon request
disclose such information to medical personnel, including doctors and
nurses, treating such an individual.
(d) Except as is necessary for the internal administration of the
department or as is otherwise provided by subdivision (c) of this
section, or by federal, state or local law, no person shall disclose to
any other person any information, record or portions thereof received by
the department pursuant to this chapter and determined by the
commissioner to be a trade secret pursuant to subdivision (b) of this
section. Each person having access to such information or records,
including persons receiving such information or records pursuant to
subdivision (c) of this section, shall, in a written confidentiality
agreement with the person submitting such information to the department,
agree that he or she will not use the information, record or portion
thereof for any purpose other than internal administration of the
department, response to an emergency caused by the presence or release
of a hazardous substance, or medical diagnosis or treatment. In the case
of a medical emergency, a written confidentiality agreement is not
required as a precondition of disclosure pursuant to subdivision (c) of
this section, but shall be entered into by the person receiving the
information as soon as circumstances permit.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be constructed to affect, limit or
modify in any manner the disclosure of any information to a health
professional to the extent such disclosure is required or authorized
pursuant to section three hundred twenty-three of the emergency planning
and community right-to-know act of nineteen hundred eighty-six (42
U.S.C. section 11001, et seq.).
Section 24-710
§ 24-710 Access to hazardous substance information. (a) The
commissioner shall upon request make available to emergency response
personnel the information filed pursuant to section 24-706, the data
compiled pursuant to section 24-707, and the risk management plan filed
pursuant to section 24-718.
(b) The commissioner shall make available to the public, in such form
and manner as may be prescribed by regulation, the information filed
pursuant to section 24-706 and the data compiled pursuant to section
24-707, during normal working hours, at the location or locations
designated by the commissioner. Within thirty days after the annual
completion of the compilation of citywide facility inventory data
pursuant to section 24-707 of this chapter, the commissioner shall
publish a notice in the City Record that such information shall be
available for inspection by the public at the location or locations
specified in the notice.
(c) Any person may submit a written request to the commissioner for
any information filed with the department pursuant to section 24-706 of
this chapter with respect to a specific facility. The commissioner shall
make the requested information available to the person making the
request within ten business days after the receipt of the request.
Section 24-711
§ 24-711 Labeling requirements. Within thirty days after a facility
inventory form is first required to be filed for a facility, all
hazardous substances present at such facility shall be clearly marked
with a label showing the chemical name and CAS identification number of
the hazardous substance. The information set forth on the label shall be
in accordance with a recognized hazardous substances labeling system,
accepted by the commissioner. In the case of a substance protected under
the "trade secrets" provision contained in section 24-709 of this
chapter, the label should bear the specific code assigned by the
commissioner for such substance.
Section 24-712
§ 24-712 Inspections of a facility. (a) The department, upon providing
prior notice, shall have the authority to inspect any facility during
normal business hours. However, whenever there is a reason to believe
that a facility is in violation of the requirements of this chapter, the
department shall be authorized to inspect the facility without prior
notice. Any reasonable party who refuses to allow an authorized employee
or representative of the department to conduct an inspection of the
facility after appropriate credentials are presented shall be in
violation of this chapter and shall be subject to the penalties provided
in subdivision c of section 24-713 of this chapter.
(b) Within twenty business days of receipt of a written complaint in
such form as may be prescribed by the commissioner, alleging a violation
of any of the provisions of this chapter, the department shall
investigate such complaint and shall inform the complainant of the
results of such investigation.
Section 24-713
§ 24-713 Violations. (a) Any person who knowingly or recklessly makes
any false statement, representation or certification on a facility
inventory form, risk management plan, or any other document filed with
the department, or on any label required, pursuant to this chapter,
shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine of not more than two
thousand dollars, or imprisonment of up to one year, or both. In
addition to its application to any other person, the penalty provided
for in this subdivision shall be deemed a special fine for a corporation
within the meaning of section 80.10 of the penal law of the state of New
York.
(b) Any person who violates the requirements of sections 24-706,
24-711 or 24-718 of this chapter shall be liable for a civil penalty, as
follows: (1) for a first violation, in an amount of not less than five
hundred nor more than five thousand dollars; (2) for a second violation,
in an amount of not less than three thousand five hundred nor more than
ten thousand dollars; and (3) for each subsequent violation, in an
amount of not less than seven thousand five hundred nor more than twenty
thousand dollars. For purposes of this section, the second and any
subsequent violation shall only occur after notice of the first
violation has been properly served and an opportunity to cure said
violation has been provided to the violator, provided that such
opportunity to cure shall not exceed thirty days. For purposes of this
section, a second or subsequent violation shall occur where a person
violates section 24-706, 24-711 or 24-718 of this chapter within five
years of having been found to have violated this chapter. Such penalties
may be recovered in a civil action brought in the name of the
commissioner or in a proceeding before the environmental control board.
In determining the civil penalty, the hearing officer or judge shall
consider any evidence presented by the defendant showing a good faith
effort to comply with relevant requirements of this chapter, the nature
and seriousness of the defendant's violation of the chapter, whether the
violation was voluntarily disclosed, previous violations, if any, of
this chapter and any other evidence found to be relevant.
(c) Any person who without justification refuses to allow an
inspection of a facility pursuant to section 24-712 of this chapter
shall be subject to a civil penalty, returnable before the environmental
control board or in civil court in the name of the commissioner, in an
amount not to exceed twenty thousand dollars.
Section 24-714
§ 24-714 Private right of action. (a) Except as provided in
subdivision (c) of this section, any person may commence an action in a
court of competent jurisdiction on his or her own behalf against a
responsible party of a facility for failure to file any information
required to be filed with the department or fire department pursuant to
section 24-706 of this chapter. Such action shall be brought in the
county in which the alleged violation occurred or where the complainant
resides. The court may impose the civil penalty provided for violation
of this chapter.
(b) No action may be commenced under subdivision (a) of this section
prior to sixty days after the plaintiff has given notice of the alleged
violation to the commissioner and the alleged violator. Notice required
under this subdivision shall be given in such manner as may be
prescribed by the commissioner.
(c) No action may be commenced under subdivision (a) if the
commissioner has commenced and is diligently pursuing an administrative
or civil action concerning the facility which would be the subject of
such action to enforce the reporting requirements of this chapter or to
impose any civil penalty for violation of such reporting requirements.
(d) The court, in issuing any final order in any section brought
pursuant to this section, may award costs of litigation, including
reasonable attorney's and expert witness fees, to the prevailing party
whenever the court determines such an award is appropriate.
(e) In any action brought pursuant to this section, the commissioner,
may intervene as a matter of right.
Section 24-715
§ 24-715 Annual Report. (a) The commissioner shall annually review the
facility inventory forms and material safety data sheets filed with the
department pursuant to this chapter and citywide facility inventory
data. Upon making this annual review, the commissioner shall forward a
report to the mayor and the council no later than October first of each
year. Such annual report shall, at a minimum, provide the following
information: the number of facilities for which facility inventory forms
have been filed pursuant to this chapter; the number of complaints
received; the number of civilian complaints filed; the number of
inspections performed pursuant to this chapter; the number of notices of
violation issued pursuant to this chapter and chapter six of this title;
the number of orders issued by the commissioner pursuant to subdivision
a of section 24-608 of this title and the nature of such orders; the
number of civil actions and administrative proceedings commenced under
this chapter and chapter six of this title and the dispositions thereof;
the number of incidents in which the department participated in response
measures undertaken in connection with hazardous substances; the number
of releases of hazardous substances reported to, or otherwise documented
by the department; the number of emergency response personnel in each
city agency which performs functions in connection with emergencies
involving hazardous substances; and the average response time and cost
of each member of the city's emergency response personnel.
(b) By March first, nineteen hundred ninety the commissioner shall
report to the Council the status of the development of the threshold
reporting quantities for hazardous substances that will become effective
on March first, nineteen hundred ninety-one.
Section 24-716
§ 24-716 Regulations. The commissioner shall have the power to
promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out
the purposes of this chapter.
Section 24-717
§ 24-717 Hazardous Substance Advisory Board. (a) There is hereby
created a "hazardous substance advisory board" hereinafter referred to
as the board. Such board shall consist of seven members who shall be
appointed within ninety days from the enactment of this chapter.
(b) The board shall consist of the commissioner, who shall serve as
the board's chairman, plus four members to be appointed by the mayor and
four to be appointed by the council. Each member shall hold office for a
three year term or until such time as the board shall cease to exist or
until such member shall resign or is removed from office for good cause
shown. Each member appointed shall have a working knowledge of emergency
response procedures or in managing hazardous substances.
(c) Any vacancy on the board shall be filled by appointment pursuant
to subdivision b of this section.
(d) The members of the board shall serve without compensation for
their services as board members except that each shall be allowed
reimbursement for the necessary and actual expenses which such member
shall incur in the performance of his or her duties under this section.
(e) The board shall be authorized and responsible to: (1) serve as a
working forum for the exchange of views, concerns, ideas, information
and recommendations relating to the management of hazardous substances
and the planning of emergency response measures; (2) review existing
hazardous substances emergency response training programs; (3) review
existing requirements for handling extremely hazardous substances
emergency response situations as established under the emergency
planning and community right-to-know act of nineteen hundred eighty-six;
(4) review the annual summary of incident reports as required pursuant
to section 24-715 of this chapter; and (5) assist the commissioner in
the development, review and revision of the hazardous substance list and
corresponding threshold levels where appropriate.
(f) The board shall meet at least four times per year at least once
every quarter, keep a record of its deliberations and determine its own
rules of procedure.
Section 24-718
§ 24-718 Risk management plan. (a) On or before March first of each
year beginning in nineteen hundred ninety-five, a responsible party of a
facility where an extremely hazardous substance or a regulated toxic
substance is present in an amount that equals or exceeds the threshold
planning quantities established by the United States environmental
protection agency in regulations promulgated pursuant to applicable law,
shall file with the commissioner a risk management plan in accordance
with the provisions of this section. Where a substance is classified as
both an extremely hazardous substance and a regulated toxic substance
and different threshold planning quantities have been established, the
lower threshold planning quantity shall apply in determining whether
such a substance is present at a facility in an amount that equals or
exceeds the threshold planning quantities.
(b) Review of risk management plans. (1) Within thirty days after
receipt of a risk management plan, the commissioner shall determine
whether such plan is complete. If the commissioner determines that the
plan is incomplete, then he or she shall notify the responsible party
that the plan is incomplete and identify in what respect the plan is
incomplete. Within fifteen days after such notification, the responsible
party shall file a revised plan consistent with the commissioner's
notification. Within fifteen days after receipt of such revised plan,
the commissioner shall determine whether the revised plan is complete.
(2) Within ninety days after the commissioner's determination that the
responsible party has filed a complete plan, the commissioner shall
approve or make modifications to such plan and shall notify the
responsible party filing such plan in writing of his or her approval or
modifications. The commissioner shall, within a reasonable period of
time prior to approving or making modifications to such plan, submit
such plan to the commissioner of the fire department and the
commissioner of the fire department may recommend modifications to such
plan to the commissioner.
(3) If the commissioner makes modifications to the responsible party's
risk management plan, the responsible party shall incorporate such
modifications into its risk management plan, provided, however, that the
responsible party may, within forty-five days after receipt of such
modifications, submit alternative modifications to the commissioner or
explain why the commissioner's modifications are not necessary. The
commissioner shall within forty-five days review the alternative
modifications or explanation and shall: (i) require the responsible
party to incorporate, by a date certain not to exceed forty-five days,
either the commissioner's modifications, the alternative modifications
or a combination of such modifications into its risk management plan,
(ii) approve the unmodified plan or (iii) disapprove the plan.
(4) The commissioner shall provide a copy of each approved risk
management plan to the emergency response agencies and to other
governmental entities that may request an approved plan.
(c) On or before July first, nineteen hundred ninety-four, the
commissioner, in consultation with the emergency response agencies,
shall by rule establish the contents of a risk management plan, which
shall be designed to prevent the accidental release and to minimize the
consequences of any such release of any extremely hazardous or regulated
toxic substance. The plan shall include but need not be limited to: (1)
a site plan; (2) a safety review of design for new and existing
equipment and processes; (3) an emergency response program, including an
emergency response plan, emergency response training, and emergency
response exercises; (4) standard operating procedures; (5) a preventive
maintenance program for equipment; (6) a training program for equipment
operators, including duration and type of training, and retraining; (7)
accident investigation procedures; and (8) a risk assessment program,
including a hazard analysis and a consideration of the use of alternate
equipment and alternate substances.
(d) Preparation of risk management plan. The risk management plan
shall be prepared by one or more of the following persons: an industrial
hygienist certified by the American Board of Industrial Hygienists, a
professional engineer licensed pursuant to section 7206 of the New York
state education law, a safety professional certified by the Board of
Certified Safety Professionals, or other qualified person authorized by
rule of the commissioner. A plan submitted pursuant to this section
shall contain proof satisfactory to the commissioner of the
qualifications of the person who prepared such plan.
(e) The risk management plan shall be made available to department
personnel at the time of an inspection of a facility for which a plan is
required pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section.
(f) On or before November first, nineteen hundred ninety-four, the
commissioner, in consultation with emergency response agencies, shall
make reasonable efforts to provide information to responsible parties
regarding the requirements of this section and the rules promulgated
hereunder.
To the extent possible under law, Friends of Devin Balkind for Public Advocate has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to New York City Administrative Code. This work is published from: United States.
Special thanks to Benjarmin Kallos and Thom Neale who made this content publicly available as a bulk download.