Substitute House Bill No. 5154 expands the authority of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) to issue general permits for activities that may otherwise require individual permits, provided that DEEP determines these activities cause minimal environmental effects both separately and cumulatively. This determination must be included in the public notice for the general permit. However, the bill specifies that general permitting does not apply to certain solid waste activities already covered by individual permits, including resource recovery facilities, biomedical waste facilities, solid waste disposal areas, and municipal solid waste composting facilities.

Additionally, the bill introduces an automatic renewal process for individual permits to operate solid waste facilities. If a permittee submits a sufficient application for renewal and DEEP does not issue a notice of tentative determination within 90 days after a technical review, the permit will be deemed renewed. The application for renewal must be submitted on a form prescribed by the commissioner and accompanied by the applicable fee. The bill also clarifies that the commissioner retains the authority to review all aspects of the permittee's existing operations and the renewal application. The changes outlined in the bill will take effect on July 1, 2026.