Air pollution fines would benefit local areas under Michigan bill - MLive.com

Air pollution fines would benefit local areas under Michigan bill - mlive.com

LANSING, MI — A bill wending its way through the Michigan Legislature would redirect civil penalties paid by companies who violate air pollution laws to communities affected by those contaminants rather than into the state’s general fund.

On Thursday, Sept 21, the House natural resources committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 26, which would amend Michigan’s air pollution laws to create a new fund that would distribute money from some environmental fines to nonprofits, schools, colleges and local governments.

The bill is sponsored by Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, who introduced it in mid-January. It passed the state Senate on June 14 on a party-line vote.

Supporters drew skeptical questions about pollution enforcement procedures from Republicans on the House panel and the bill is being opposed by Michigan business groups.

The committee did not vote on the bill Thursday.

Chang said the legislation comes out of conversations with residents in Detroit who want to see air pollution enforcement fines benefit affected neighborhoods.

“Right now, our laws do not provide a mechanism to ensure that the fines paid actually are directed to mitigating the harm in the community polluted by the company,” Chang said.

“If this bill becomes law, we will be able to — in a way that does not have a dramatic impact on industry — make a big positive impact for neighborhoods in my district and many of yours.”

The legislation sets up an Air Quality Enforcement and Mitigation (AQEM) Fund at the state Treasury and requires all civil and administrative fines collected under Part 55 of the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA) to be deposited into it.

The fund would pay local entities 70 percent of those funds through a grant program, and EGLE would retain 30 percent of those funds for training, air monitoring and inspections.

Eligible uses for the money would include air pollution mitigation efforts such as vegetative buffers, indoor filtration systems and diesel engine retrofit or replacement programs. Other uses could include health assessments and community training programs.

Grant guidelines would be developed by an advisory committee. Disadvantaged, or “ environmental justice” communities on the frontlines of the pollution, would be given priority in grant distribution by using state and federal justice screening tools.

The bill is supported by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), the state’s environmental regulatory agency.

The legislation would not give EGLE any additional authority to issue new pollution violations, said Travis Boeskool, EGLE deputy director.

Boeskool said EGLE annually refers between five and 10 percent of legal violation notices to “escalated enforcement,” a process sparked by the number and severity of certain violations which often results in an administrative consent order and potentially civil penalties.

According to Chang, the general fund received about $1.2 million in 2020 and 2021 from those.

“It’s just changing where that money ends up,” Boeskool said.

Related: Stellantis to pay $284k air pollution fine

However, business groups argued Thursday that the new funding destination would create an incentive to increase fines and pollution enforcement.

John Boothroyd, government relations manager at Michigan Sugar Company, argued the money EGLE would get for administration and training purposes “does create a reason to, in subjective cases, find a reason to move towards a fine.”

Boothroyd argued the company’s Bay City processing facility has received numerous violations related to nuisance odors — although, according to EGLE, it has not been fined for odors.

The Michigan Manufacturers Association (MMA) and the Michigan Chamber of Commerce echoed Boothroyd’s concern about the fund incentivizing increased enforcement. Both organizations also argued that the state’s screening tool to identify which communities would be eligible to receive funding is not ready to be deployed.

The state is still developing its MiEJScreen, which is an interactive map that identifies communities that may be disproportionately affected by environmental hazards. According to EGLE, a similar federal tool would be used until the state’s draft tool is finished.

Mike Alaimo, director of environmental and energy affairs for the chamber, said the state’s environmental justice tool uses different criteria than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tool, such as the amount of brownfield sites per capita in an area, “that ultimately we believe doesn’t match the intent of how we want to identify EJ communities.”

Simone Sagovac of the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition argued that recent supplemental environmental projects required of certain polluters in recent years in response to violation enforcement has made a real difference in certain parts of metro Detroit. Examples include air filters in elementary schools in industrialized areas, and window and ventilation system upgrades in homes along the I-75 corridor.

“But this has occurred only in special circumstances,” she said.

“While small programs don’t solve our air emissions problem, the community projects made possible by directing funds are helping people,” Sagovac said.

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