Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Chapter 111 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 142A, as appearing in the 1984 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 142A. The department of environmental quality engineering, in this section and in sections one hundred and forty-two B to one hundred and forty-two E, inclusive, hereinafter called the department, may from time to time, subject to the approval of the governor and council, after a hearing, adopt or amend regulations to prevent pollution or contamination of the atmosphere, effective upon filing with the state secretary as provided in section thirty-seven of chapter thirty, or at such later date as may be specified by the department. Such filing shall create a presumption, which may be rebutted, of compliance with the requirements of section two of chapter thirty A in the adoption or amendment of such regulations. Any municipality, corporation or person, which, after due notice, continues to violate any such regulation: (a) shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars for the first offense and not more than ten thousand dollars for every succeeding offense, or (b) shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than five thousand dollars for each such violation. Each day such violation continues shall be a separate offense. The civil penalty may be assessed in an action brought on behalf of the commonwealth in any court of competent jurisdiction.

SECTION 2. Section 142B of said chapter 111, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the fifth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

The department shall have power to order any person, corporation, or political subdivision having control of an air contamination source, other than an employee, to stop or abate violation of any of the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to this section or of any of the rules and regulations adopted under the provisions of section one hundred and forty-two A and standards adopted under section one hundred and forty-two A and regulations adopted under section one hundred and forty-two D. Said order shall inform the alleged violator in writing of his right to request, within ten days, a hearing under the provisions of chapter thirty A, but if no such request is made within ten days, said person, corporation, or political subdivision shall be deemed to have consented to the order. If said person, corporation, or political subdivision requests a hearing, the commissioner of environmental quality engineering, in this section and section one hundred and forty-two E called the commissioner, or his designee, shall within a reasonable time hold a hearing under the provisions of said chapter thirty A. The commissioner may reissue such order as is warranted and all orders, permits, or other determinations of the commissioner, except those consented thereto, shall be subject to judicial review as provided in chapter thirty A. Any person, corporation, or political subdivision violating any order of the department (a) shall be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars for the first offense and not more than ten thousand dollars for every succeeding offense, or (b) shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars for each such violation. The civil penalty may be assessed in an action brought on behalf of the commonwealth in any court of competent jurisdiction. For the purpose of this paragraph each subsequent day or part thereof of violation of such an order, whether such violation be continuous or intermittent, shall be construed as a separate and succeeding offense. The superior court sitting in equity, on petition of the department or any person authorized by the department shall have jurisdiction to enforce any such order and to restrain violations of any rules or regulations adopted pursuant to this section until such rules and regulations have been complied with.