BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Updates are needed to the Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program regulations due to Senate Bill 3 becoming law in 2017. The law reinstituted the Best Management Practices as an alternative for small commercial passenger vessels and ferries (50 to 249 overnight lower berths) that had expired. Citation updates must be made to match SB3 changes.

The Department of Environmental Conservation proposes to adopt regulation changes in Title 18 of the Alaska Administrative Code, dealing with Chapter 69, Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program, including the following:

(1)        18 AAC 69 is proposed to be changed as follows: update citations in 18 AAC 69.018, 18 AAC 69.046, 18 AAC 69.945, and 18 AAC 69.955 to match statutes implemented in SB 3 (2017). SB 3 reauthorized Best Management Practices as an alternative to a wastewater discharge permit for small commercial passenger vessels and state ferries.

You may comment on the proposed regulation changes, including the potential costs to private persons of complying with the proposed changes, by submitting written comments to the Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program at 410 Willoughby Ave., Juneau Alaska 99811-1800. Additionally, the Department of Environmental Conservation will accept comments by electronic mail at DEC.WQ.Cruise@alaska.gov. Comments may also be submitted through the Alaska Online Public Notice System by accessing this notice on the system and using the comment link. The comments must be received not later than 5:00 PM on December 23, 2017.

ADEC published a public notice regarding these proposed changes on November 22, 2017. In the public notice , the Department announced that the public hearing for these proposed regulations would be held if requested. No requests were submitted by the deadline of 5:00pm on November 29 as required in the public notice. Therefore the tentatively scheduled public hearing will not be held.

You may submit written questions relevant to the proposed action to the Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program at DEC.WQ.Cruise@aklaska.gov or to 410 Willoughby Ave., Juneau Alaska 99811-1800. The questions must be received at least 10 days before the end of the public comment period. The Department of Environmental Conservation will aggregate its response to substantially similar questions and make the questions and responses available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System and Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program website.

If you are a person with a disability who needs a special accommodation in order to participate in this process, please contact Natalie Wolfe at (907) 269-0291 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-8973/TTY not later than December 15, 2017, to ensure that any necessary accommodation can be provided.

A copy of the proposed regulation changes is available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System or at http://dec.alaska.gov/water/cruise_ships/Law_and_Regs/2017_update.html and by contacting the Commercial Passenger Vessel Environmental Compliance Program at 907-465-5138.

After the public comment period ends, the Department of Environmental Conservation will either adopt the proposed regulation changes or other provisions dealing with the same subject, without further notice, or decide to take no action. The language of the final regulation may be different from that of the proposed regulation. YOU SHOULD COMMENT DURING THE TIME ALLOWED IF YOUR INTERESTS COULD BE AFFECTED. Written comments received are public records and subject to public inspection.

Statutory authority: AS 46.03.460-490

Statutes being implemented, interpreted, or made specific: AS 46.03.462; AS 46.03.463; AS 46.03.465

Fiscal information: The proposed regulation changes are not expected to require an increased appropriation.