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Senate committee endorses new general permit to streamline water and wastewater connections
Summary
A Senate committee approved S.212 to create a new general permit and consolidate connection-fee categories, with DEC estimating about a $100,000 revenue impact and fiscal staff warning that mapping under Act 181 and repeal of exemptions make precise estimates uncertain.
Brian Redmond, director of the Drinking Water and Groundwater Protection Division at the Department of Environmental Conservation, told a Senate committee that S.212 would create "a new type of general permit for water supply and wastewater connection permits" intended to cut administrative processing time and cost. He said the bill consolidates existing fee categories into three new ones and reduces fees under the proposed schedule.
Why it matters: The committee was focused on the fiscal implications. Redmond said DEC is projecting "roughly around a $100,000 impact," but that number is an early estimate because mapping and designation work under Act 181 will change how many parcels qualify for reduced wastewater fees.
Ted from the fiscal office walked members through the written fiscal note and said the proposal creates three principal impacts: a small administrative fee for municipalities that opt to handle delegated permitting locally, generally lower permit fees under the new general permit (especially for larger projects), and the repeal of current rule-based exemptions, which would reduce state fee revenue. "There are really three impacts here to summarize," he said, and later cautioned that the "negative is probably gonna win out here, but can't tell you an exact" amount until mapping and designation occur.
Committee members pressed staff on when a more accurate revenue estimate would be available. DEC and fiscal staff said they will return once the Land Use Review Board mapping and designation process under Act 181 is further along and when the next fee report (which will include additional divisions) is produced.
The committee moved and approved S.212 version 6.1 as passed by the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee; the chair recorded the result in the transcript. Next steps: DEC and fiscal staff will provide updated revenue estimates to the committee after mapping and the fee-reporting cycle provide clearer data.
Notes: The transcript records program names and the procedural history cited by staff. Members emphasized that the fee numbers are preliminary and likely to be adjusted once the permit is implemented and mapped designations are set.
