SECTION 1: Chapter 92A1/2 is hereby amended to insert after Section 6 the following:-
Section 6A
The general court hereby creates and establishes a commission to be known as the Merrimack River District Commission:
There shall be a commission established to review the state of health of the Merrimack River and its tributaries in order to improve and restore water quality and to make recommendations to the general court regarding changes that may be appropriate to ensure the present and future health of these public waterways. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, in conducting this review, the commission shall seek to determine the infrastructure, equipment, communication systems, funding, and necessary programs to establish the baseline health goal for the river for environmental, economic, recreational, and aesthetic purposes. The review shall include, but not be limited to: wastewater from municipal and industrial sources, combined sewer overflow (CSO) discharge standards, discharge flow data collection and distribution, monitoring of water quality standards and criteria, notification system for alerts to the public, optimal research technology, cost and cost-sharing among communities, grant and other funding opportunities as well as anticipated time frames for achieving benchmark goals.
The goal of the commission is to address issues of pollution in the Merrimack River in order to make the river as clean as possible so the public can use and enjoy the river with a viable plan to implement the recommendations of the commission.
The commission shall be chaired by the director of the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission or a designee. The commission shall include 1 member of the Department of Environmental Protection, 1 member of the Department of Public Health, 1 member of the Department of Emerging Technologies, 1 member of the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and 1 member of the Department of Conservation and Recreation to be appointed. Mayors and town managers along the Merrimack River may each designate a member of the commission. All stakeholders who operate or manage sewers and combined sewer overflow locations along the river shall be permitted to appoint 1 member to the commission. Further, the following organizations shall be permitted to appoint 1 member to the commission: The Merrimack River Watershed, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay, Environmental League of Massachusetts, Conservation Law Foundation, Sierra Club, Massachusetts River Alliance, and the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation at University of Massachusetts – Lowell or a designee. Members shall receive no compensation for their services but may receive reimbursement for the reasonable expenses incurred in carrying out their responsibilities as members of the commission. The Department of Environmental Protection shall furnish reasonable staff and other support for the work of the commission.
The commission shall have the authority to select and contract with independent consultants to assist with leading and managing public hearings, conducting and analyzing data and information, completing a final report and any other activities to satisfy the purpose of the commission’s goal of developing and implementing a viable plan to improve the river quality. The state shall fully fund the cost of consultants including all data collection and reports.
In addition to reports from any hired consultants, before issuing its recommendations, the commission shall conduct a series of public hearings to receive testimony and collect data from agencies of the commission and environs to better understand the health of the river. The hearings shall be held in locations that provide opportunities for residents from all geographic districts bordering the Merrimack River to attend.
Both the experts hired for consultation purposes and the public testimony shall inform the commission’s recommendations to the general court.
All recommendations of the commission shall be considered a matter of public record so that the information is accessible to local residents, elected and appointed officials, advocates, and the general public at no cost.
One copy of the commission’s recommendations, together with any proposed legislation, shall be filed with the Clerk of the Senate and one copy shall be filed with the Clerk of the House of Representatives within one year of the initiation of the commission and annually if the commission endures for longer than one year.