Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Notice E Notice topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
DAQ proposes switching draft permit notices from newspapers to website e-notice
Summary
The Division of Air Quality proposed revising state rules so draft air quality permits are posted on the DAQ website rather than requiring newspaper publication, citing EPA policy changes and declining newspaper circulation; DAQ said it will supplement e-notices with targeted outreach for rural communities and stakeholder mailing lists.
Ashley Hoskin, a presenter with the Division of Air Quality, told the committee the division proposes to revise rule language so draft air-permit notices would appear on the DAQ website rather than always being published in newspapers. Hoskin said the EPAfinal rule in 2016 authorized electronic noticing (e-notice) and that many permitting authorities already post draft permits online.
"Electronic posting of such notices has been demonstrated to be an effective, convenient, and cost-efficient way to provide public notice," Hoskin said, and DAQ staff said a shift to consistent e-notice would speed public notice and reduce agency costs.
The proposal would align three rules so the same noticing method applies across draft-permit types (listed in the presentation as 15A NCAC 02Q .0307, 02Q .0521 and 02Q .0710). Hoskin emphasized that the change would not affect other noticing processes that remain statutorily required: for example, notice-and-sign posting where applicants must publish in a local paper and post signage for sites in areas without zoning, a process established under GS 143-215.108AB.
Committee members pressed staff about how DAQ would reach rural communities and people who do not rely on the internet. Hoskin said DAQ currently maintains a stakeholder mailing list and that enhanced outreach for larger projects may include sharing notices with local radio, television, churches and libraries and asking local media to run stories. "We are definitely looking into that and plan to include that information in the RAIA," Hoskin said when asked about rural outreach strategies.
Hoskin also reviewed the timeline the division proposed: draft rules to the Air Quality Committee in May, a request to the full EMC in July to proceed to comment and hearing, a public comment period and hearings from August through October, EMC adoption in November and Rules Review Commission approval in December, with tentative effective date in January 2027.
The presentation did not result in a committee vote on the concept itself; DAQ staff said more formal action will be requested when the draft rule text and fiscal analysis are ready for the EMC's consideration.
