<div class="chunk-title">Sec. 26-317. - Special operating expenses.</div>
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            <p class="incr0">
               (a)
               
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               <span class="ital">Purpose of this section.</span> The facility operator shall be assessed the following tax for such reasonable expenses
               that the county may incur for the following emergency services:
               
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               (1)
               
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               <span class="ital">Equipment acquisition.</span> The acquisition of special emergency equipment for dealing with hazardous and radioactive
               substances, to include protective clothing, detoxification equipment, breathing apparatus,
               collection apparatus, alarm systems, direct telephone or radio connection equipment,
               Geiger counters, special medical vehicles, and other such equipment as the county
               may reasonably require.
               
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               (2)
               
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               <span class="ital">Equipment maintenance.</span> The cost of necessary maintenance and replacement of equipment as described in subsection
               (a)(1) of this section.
               
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               (3)
               
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               <span class="ital">Evacuation plans.</span> The cost of preparing, testing, disseminating, and implementing both on-site and
               off-site emergency evacuation plans, the cost of keeping such plans current, and the
               cost of carrying them out should the need arise.
               
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               (4)
               
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               <span class="ital">Initial training.</span> The cost of initial training for the county's emergency response personnel, to include
               psychological preparedness training, to deal with emergency situations involving hazardous
               waste/low-level radioactive waste, and the cost of expanding such training as necessary.
               
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               (5)
               
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               <span class="ital">Updating training.</span> The cost of updating such training as described in subsection (a)(4) of this section
               from time to time, and the cost of training new personnel.
               
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               (6)
               
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               <span class="ital">Hospital preparedness.</span> Additional costs to the county's hospitals as a result of the need for special emergency
               units at those hospitals to handle hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive waste
               emergencies.
               
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               (7)
               
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               <span class="ital">Transportation emergency fund.</span> An additional amount to purchase insurance to cover the costs of emergencies caused
               by accidents involving the transportation of hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive
               waste to or from such facilities, for accidents occurring between the site boundary
               and the county line.
               
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               (8)
               
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               <span class="ital">Post-closure emergency fund.</span> An additional amount to purchase insurance to cover the costs of emergency services
               required to handle emergencies caused by hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive
               waste facilities after such facilities have closed.
               
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               (9)
               
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               <span class="ital">Transportation.</span> If not installed and maintained by the facility operator, the costs of installing
               and maintaining signs indicating the designated routes to and from the facility and
               any signs necessary to designate evacuation routes.
               
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               (10)
               
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               <span class="ital">Other.</span> The cost of other emergency services and preparedness which shall be required from
               time to time.
               
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               (b)
               
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               <span class="ital">Monitoring.</span>
               
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               (1)
               
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               <span class="ital">Purpose of section.</span> The purpose of this subsection (b) is to ensure that adequate funds are available
               to fully monitor the environmental and health effects of the location of hazardous
               waste and/or low-level radioactive waste facilities in the county, and to ensure that
               such monitoring is in fact carried out. The county commissioners recognize that the
               state and federal governments have primary responsibility in this area, but they also
               recognize that the resources of these governments are limited, and that the date generated
               by the county monitoring program is intended to supplement and complete the date generated
               by the state and federal monitoring programs.
               
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               (2)
               
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               <span class="ital">Monitoring costs.</span> The facility operators shall be assessed the following tax to compensate for the
               monitoring functions undertaken by the county pursuant to<a href="" data-chunk-id="PTIICOOR_CH26EN_ARTXHAWALVERAWAMA_S26-315MOSA" class="section-link" data-product-id="14529"> section 26-315</a>. These functions shall include:
               
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               a.
               
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               Salaries of county personnel or contracted services needed to carry out any monitoring
               functions.
               
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               b.
               
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               Administrative support costs which are reasonably necessary to fulfill the duties
               of the county monitoring personnel, to include office supplies, secretarial time,
               maintenance of public document room, and other such costs.
               
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               c.
               
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               The costs of training inspection and monitoring personnel and updating such training
               from time to time.
               
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               d.
               
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               Costs incurred in hiring consultants to assist the county in monitoring.
               
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               e.
               
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               A privilege tax of one percent of the gross annual receipts of each subject facility
               should be collected until a total of $1,000,000.00 is reached, for maintaining monitoring
               of the environment and human health effects for perpetuity. This money shall be placed
               into a non-reverting fund, with the interest to accrue to the fund, which shall be
               managed by the county finance office, who shall give an annual accounting of the fund
               to the board of commissioners.
               
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               f.
               
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               Other reasonable costs of monitoring as may be necessary.
               
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            <p class="incr0">
               (c)
               
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               <span class="ital">Other costs.</span> The board of commissioners finds that the following costs are associated with hazardous
               waste and/or low-level radioactive waste facilities and their operations, and that
               the county is not otherwise compensated for such costs; and that such costs shall
               therefore properly be assessed under G.S. 153A-152.1(a) to the facility operators.
               
            </p>
            		
            <p class="incr1">
               (1)
               
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               <span class="ital">Recordation.</span> It should be a matter of public record that property is located within a five-mile
               radius of a hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive waste facility, operating
               or closed. The costs incurred by the register of deeds for placing notations to that
               effect on all deeds, grants, indexes, plats, and other relevant affected documents
               shall therefore be assessed to the facility operators.
               
            </p>
            		
            <p class="incr1">
               (2)
               
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               <span class="ital">Public information.</span> The location of a waste facility is a matter of which the public should be completely
               informed and concerning which the public should have ready access to the relevant
               information. Therefore, the following costs shall be assessed to the facility operators:
               
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               a.
               
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               <span class="ital">Consultation with adjoining landowners.</span> The costs of advising adjoining landowners as to their legal rights with respect
               to the facility, and as to health precautions.
               
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               b.
               
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               <span class="ital">Consultation with farmers.</span> The costs of advising farmers in the surrounding area as to health precautionary
               measures in the event of accidents or spills for their livestock and crops.
               
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               c.
               
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            <p class="content3">
               <span class="ital">School educational programs.</span> Costs incurred, to the extent not already provided for by county or state school
               budgets, in presenting instructional materials to county school children on the facility,
               its potential hazards, and emergency preparedness.
               
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               d.
               
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               <span class="ital">Health information.</span> Costs incurred by the county health department in disseminating information concerning
               the facility and its effect on public health.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (3)
               
            </p>
            		
            <p class="content2">
               <span class="ital">Construction and maintenance of road.</span> To the extent that the county is not otherwise compensated therefore by the federal
               or state governments, costs incurred in improving or maintaining existing roads and
               rights-of-way, acquiring new rights-of-way, and construction access roads, building
               parking areas, erecting warning signs or signals, and other such expenses as the county
               may demonstrate are associated with it.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (4)
               
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               <span class="ital">Loss of ad valorem taxes.</span> To the extent that off-site contamination, regardless of negligence on the part of
               the facility operator, reduces ad valorum revenues to the county, the loss to the
               county shall be compensated by the facility operators.
               
            </p>
            		
            <p class="incr1">
               (5)
               
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               <span class="ital">Annual legal advice.</span> The cost to the county of an annual review of these ordinances and other laws and
               regulations in the field of waste management.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (6)
               
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            <p class="content2">
               <span class="ital">Attorney's fees.</span> The cost to the county of reasonable legal representation in all cases arising out
               of the operation of the facilities in the county, or arising out of challenges to
               this article, provided that:
               
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            <p class="incr2">
               a.
               
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               The county is the prevailing party; or
               
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               b.
               
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               The county has had substantial justification for its position, and has not litigated
               vexatiously.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (7)
               
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            <p class="content2">
               <span class="ital">Bonding.</span> The costs to the county of arranging suitable bonding or insurance or other financial
               security arrangements to cover the costs arising out of the location of facilities
               within the county.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (8)
               
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            <p class="content2">
               <span class="ital">Other.</span> Other costs the county may incur, and which the county may demonstrate are associated
               with the operation of the facilities, and for which the county is not otherwise compensated.
               
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               (d)
               
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               <span class="ital">How tax calculated.</span> The tax shall be calculated as follows:
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (1)
               
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               <span class="ital">Annual.</span> The annual tax shall be calculated by adding together the above enumerated expenses
               at the end of the calendar year.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (2)
               
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               <span class="ital">Quarterly payments.</span> The facility operator may arrange to make estimated quarterly payments in advance.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (3)
               
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               <span class="ital">More than one facility.</span> If there is more than one hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive waste facility
               in the county subject to this article, the total tax for each facility shall be prorated
               among the various facility operators according to the percentage of the total weight
               of such wastes each operator has generated, treated, stored, or disposed of in the
               county for that calendar year.
               
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            <p class="incr1">
               (4)
               
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            <p class="content2">
               <span class="ital">Negotiation.</span> Should the facility operators have reason to believe that this tax would prohibit
               or have the effect of prohibiting the operation or continued operation of the facilities,
               he shall specify in writing in a report to the hazardous waste and/or low-level radioactive
               waste management board, setting forth the grounds for such belief with partiality,
               and stating the level of tax which would enable such operation. The hazardous waste
               and/or low-level radioactive waste management board is empowered to negotiate the
               total tax, provided that:
               
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            <p class="incr2">
               a.
               
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            <p class="content3">
               All such negotiations shall include at least one public meeting;
               
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               b.
               
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               Any decision be reported in writing to the county commissioners, with the reasons
               therefor; and
               
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            <p class="incr2">
               c.
               
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               Such agreement must be approved by the county commissioners before becoming final.
               
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            <p class="historynote0">
               (Code 1993, Â§ 26-112; Ord. of 7-11-1989(2), Â§ 12)
               
            </p></div>