N.J. Admin. Code § 7:1E-6.8

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 11, June 3, 2024

Section 7:1E-6.8 - Civil administrative penalties for violations of rules adopted pursuant to the Act

(a) Civil administrative penalties for offenses described in (c)2 below shall not be assessed until the time allotted under the applicable schedule for upgrading approved by the Department has expired.

(b) Civil administrative penalties for offenses described in (c)2 below shall apply to major facilities only. All other civil administrative penalties shall apply to all persons.

(c) The Department shall determine the amount of the civil administrative penalty for offenses described in this section on the basis of the provision violated and the frequency of the violation. Violations identified as minor or non-minor in accordance with N.J.S.A. 13:1D-125 et seq. are set forth in this section. The Department will provide a grace period for any violation identified as minor, in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:1E-6.9. The number of each of the following paragraphs corresponds to the number of the corresponding subchapter in N.J.A.C. 7:1E.

1. The violations of N.J.A.C. 7:1E-1, General Provisions, and the civil administrative penalties for each violation are as set forth in the following table, unless modified by (d) below. In no case shall the assessed penalty be less than zero or more than the statutory limit.

Citation	Minor<3>	Minor Days<4>
N.J.A.C. 7:1E-1.11(a)	NM

Base Penalty for each Violation
Gallons	Penalty
>0-9	$	500
10-55	$	1,000
56-499	$	2,000
500-999	$	3,000
1,000-4,999	$	5,000
5,000-9,999	$	7,500
10,000-19,999	$	10,000
20,000-29,999	$	15,000
30,000-39,999	$	20,000
40,000-49,999	$	25,000
50,000-59,999	$	30,000
60,000-69,999	$	35,000
70,000-79,999	$	40,000
80,000-89,999	$	45,000
90,000-99,999	$	50,000
100,000-149,999	$	75,000
150,000-199,999	$	100,000
200,000-299,999	$	200,000
300,000-399,999	$	400,000
400,000-499,999	$	800,000
500,000-599,999	$	1,000,000
600,000-699,999	$	2,000,000
700,000-799,999	$	3,000,000
800,000-899,999	$	4,000,000
900,000-999,999	$	5,000,000
1,000,000-1,999,999	$	6,000,000
2,000,000-2,999,999	$	7,000,000
3,000,000-3,999,999	$	8,000,000
4,000,000-4,999,999	$	9,000,000
5 million or greater	$	10,000,000

The base penalty shall be reduced or increased by applying the following factors<1>:

Area of Impact:

Into waters of the State	-30% increase from base
Off the facility but not into waters of the State	-No change from base
Contained on the facility and not into waters of the state	-30% reduction from base

Discharge History (Number of discharges not contained on the facility within the previous 12 months):

Five or more discharges	-100% increase from base
1-4 discharges	-50% increase from base
Zero discharges	-No change from base

<1> The penalty for each violation is calculated by summing the base penalty and the resultant percentage of the base penalty for each of the applicable factors.

2. The violations of N.J.A.C. 7:1E-2, Prevention and Control of Discharges at Major Facilities, and the civil administrative penalty amounts for each violation are as set forth in the following table, unless revised pursuant to (d) below:

Data in image

3. The violations of N.J.A.C. 7:1E-3, Transmission Pipelines, and the civil administrative penalty amounts for each violation, are as set forth in the following table, unless modified pursuant to (d) below:

Data in image

4. The violations of N.J.A.C. 7:1E-4, Plans, and the civil administrative penalty amounts for each violation, are as set forth in the following table, unless modified pursuant to (d) below:

Data in image

5. The violations of N.J.A.C. 7:1E-5, Notification, Response and Reporting, and the civil administrative penalty amounts for each violation, are as set forth in the following table, unless modified pursuant to (d) below:

Data in image

<2> The column headed Category of Offense" is descriptive in nature and to he used for easy reference only. The rule language cited in the column headed "Citation" shall determine the specific violation.

<3> The column headed "Minor" contains the designation of whether a violation is considered minor or non-minor pursuant to the Compliance Grace Period Law ( P.L. 1995, c.296; N.J.S.A. 13:ID-125 to 133) and will he considered for a grace period in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:lE-6.9. The designation "M" is for a minor violation, and "NM" is for a non minor violation.

<4> The column headed "Minor Days" establishes, for those violations designated as minor, the number of calendar days the violator will be given to correct the violation and achieve compliance, in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:1E-6.9.

(d) The Department may modify the amount of a civil administrative penalty under (c) above, based upon any or all of the following:

1. Mitigating or extenuating circumstances;

2. The implementation of prevention measures in addition to those minimally required by applicable statute or rule;

3. The full payment by the violator of a specified part of the civil administrative penalty assessed if made within a time period established by the Department in an administrative order or notice of civil administrative penalty assessment and provided that the violator waives the right to request an adjudicatory hearing on the civil administrative penalty; or

4. Any other circumstances or conditions acceptable to the Department.

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:1E-6.8

Amended by R.1996 d.252, effective 6/3/1996.
See: 27 N.J.R. 2337(a), 27 N.J.R. 2882(a), 28 N.J.R. 2858(a).
Amended by R.1996 d.462, effective 10/7/1996.
See: 28 N.J.R. 2730(a), 28 N.J.R. 4424(b).
Amended by R.2000 d.352, effective 8/21/2000.
See: 31 N.J.R. 3561(a), 32 N.J.R. 3091(a).
In (b), deleted ", exclusive of registration requirements"; and in (c), rewrote the tables in 2, 4 and 5.
Amended by R.2001 d.355, effective 10/1/2001.
See: 33 N.J.R. 1255(a), 33 N.J.R. 3518(a).
Rewrote (c).
Amended by R.2007 d.93, effective 4/2/2007.
See: 38 N.J.R. 4285(a), 39 N.J.R. 1253(a).
In (a), deleted "and 4" preceding "below"; and rewrote the tables in (c).
Administrative correction and change.
See: 46 N.J.R. 438(a).