Senate Bill 92 was passed by the General Assembly in June and signed into law by Governor Jack Markell on August 16. It was sponsored in the Senate by Sen. David McBride, and in the House by Rep. Michael Mulrooney, Rep. Quinn Johnson, and Rep. Debra Heffernan.
Improving upon Delaware’s 2003 “chronic violators” statute, the new law gives the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) clearer authority to designate polluters as chronic violators, which triggers enhanced financial penalties for future emissions and more stringent permitting and reporting requirements. Penalties have been increased from a maximum of $10,000 per day to a maximum of $10,000 per illegal emission per day.
• Clarifies the definition of chronic violator status that applies to parties that demonstrate either an inability or an unwillingness to comply with Delaware law, or to parties that appear to treat environmental penalties simply as a business expense rather than an environmental threat it must correct.
• Broadens the standards and criteria DNREC uses to declare a chronic violator to include parties that have not adequately funded or modernized their operations, maintenance, training programs and risk management reviews and to parties that have not used recognized and generally accepted engineering and other industry practices to ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
• Updates DNREC’s authority to amend and modify chronic violator regulations and enhances administrative penalties for violators. It significantly increases financial penalties from the current maximum of $10,000 per day to $10,000 for each separate release of each identifiable pollutant per day. This increased penalty could be substantially higher and acts as a more effective deterrent.