Md. Code Regs. 26.11.32.20

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 22, November 1, 2024

Section 26.11.32.20 - Violations

A. Except as otherwise provided in this regulation, failure to meet a requirement of this chapter or a condition of an applicable ACP agreement constitutes a single, separate violation of this chapter for each day until the requirement or condition is satisfied.

B. False reporting of information contained in an ACP application, or supporting documentation or amendments to the application, constitutes a single, separate violation of the requirements of this chapter for each day that the approved ACP is in effect.

C. Each exceedance during the applicable compliance period of the VOC content specified for an ACP product in the ACP agreement constitutes a single, separate violation of the requirements of this chapter for each ACP product which exceeds the specified VOC content that is sold, supplied, offered for sale, or manufactured for use in the State.

D. Each of the following actions constitutes a single, separate violation of the requirements of this chapter for every day after the applicable deadline until the requirement is satisfied:

(1) Failure to report data or failure to report data accurately in writing to the Department regarding the VOC content, LVP content, enforceable sales, or other information required by deadlines specified in the applicable ACP agreement;

(2) False reporting of information submitted to the Department for determining compliance with the ACP requirements;

(3) Failure to completely implement the reconciliation of shortfalls plan set forth in the ACP agreement, within 30 working days from the date of written notification of a shortfall by the Department; or

(4) Failure to completely reconcile the shortfall as specified in the ACP agreement, within 90 working days from the date of written notification of a shortfall by the Department.

E. False reporting or failure to report the required information set forth in this regulation, or the sale or transfer of invalid surplus reductions, constitutes a single, separate violation of the requirements of this chapter for each day during the time period for which the surplus reductions are claimed to be valid.

F. Except as provided in §G of this regulation, an exceedance of the ACP limit for a compliance period that the ACP is in effect constitutes a single, separate violation of the requirements of this chapter for each day of the applicable compliance period. An exceedance of the ACP limit is determined as follows:

(1) If the responsible ACP party has all required information for the applicable compliance period specified in the ACP agreement, then a determination whether an exceedance has occurred is made using the enforceable sales records and VOC content for each ACP product, as reported by the responsible ACP party for the applicable compliance period; and

(2) If the responsible ACP party does not have all the required information specified in the ACP agreement for an applicable compliance period, the determination of whether an exceedance of the ACP limit has occurred is made as follows:

(a) For the missing data days, calculate the total maximum historical emissions;

(b) For the remaining portion of the compliance period which is not missing data days, calculate the emissions for each ACP product using the enforceable sales records and VOC content that were reported for that portion of the applicable compliance period;

(c) The ACP emissions for the entire compliance period is the sum of the total maximum historical emissions, determined under §F(2)(a) and (b) of this regulation;

(d) Calculate the ACP limit for the entire compliance period using the ACP standards applicable to each ACP product and the enforceable sales records specified in §F(2)(b) of this regulation;

(e) The enforceable sales for each ACP product during missing data days, as specified in §F(2)(a) of this regulation, is zero; and

(f) An exceedance of the ACP limit has occurred when the ACP emissions exceeds the ACP limit.

G. Calculation of ACP Limit Violations.

(1) If a violation specified in §F of this regulation occurs, the responsible ACP party may establish the number of violations as calculated according to the following equation: NEV = (ACP emissions - ACP limit) x 1 Violation/40 Pounds where:

(a) NEV = number of ACP limit violations;

(b) ACP emissions = the ACP emissions for the compliance period; and

(c) ACP limit = the ACP limit for the compliance period.

(2) The responsible ACP party may determine the number of ACP limit violations under this section only if it has provided all required information for the applicable compliance period, as specified in the ACP agreement approving the ACP.

(3) By choosing this option, the responsible ACP party waives any and all legal objections to the calculation of the ACP limit violations under this section.

H. A cause of action against a responsible ACP party under this regulation accrues when a violation occurs.

I. The responsible ACP party is fully liable for violation of a requirement of this chapter, even if the responsible ACP party contracts with or otherwise relies on another person to comply with some or all of the requirements of this chapter.

Md. Code Regs. 26.11.32.20