This bill proposes the addition of a new section, 22-11-22b, to the Code of West Virginia, 1931, aimed at enhancing civil administrative penalties for violations related to individual or general construction stormwater permits and General Water Pollution Control Permits, particularly for larger projects. The bill outlines a framework for the Department of Environmental Protection to establish legislative rules that would allow for increased penalties, including doubling penalties for projects impacting between 100 to 500 acres and imposing penalties that are five to ten times greater for projects of 500 acres or more. It also introduces a definition for "accumulative impact" and emphasizes the need for larger penalties to effectively deter repeat violations in larger projects.

Additionally, the bill stipulates that penalties will be further increased based on the number of violations, with specific multipliers applied for varying scales of violations. It ensures that any existing civil administrative penalties that conflict with the new legislative rules will be superseded by the new regulations. The overarching goal of this legislation is to strengthen enforcement mechanisms to protect water quality and prevent environmental degradation from large-scale construction activities.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 22-11-22b