A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to authorize the Commission for Public Health to designate as an accepted on‑site subsurface wastewater system  any wastewater system that is shown by the certified documentation of an independent, third‑party engineering or testing laboratory to be functionally equivalent to  an accepted on‑site subsurface wastewater system.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 130A‑343(h) reads as rewritten:
"(h)	Designation of Innovative Systems As Accepted Systems. – A manufacturer of an innovative wastewater system that has been in general use in this State for more than five years may petition the Commission to have the system designated as an accepted wastewater system as provided in this subsection. The manufacturer shall provide the Commission with the data and findings of all prior evaluations of the performance of the system. In addition, the manufacturer shall provide the Commission with information sufficient to enable the Commission to fully evaluate the performance of the system in this State for at least the five‑year period immediately preceding the petition. The Commission shall designate a wastewater system as an accepted wastewater system only if it finds that there is clear, convincing, and cogent evidence (i) to confirm the findings made by the Department at the time the Department approved the system as an innovative wastewater system and (ii) that the system performs in a manner that is equal or superior to a conventional wastewater system under actual field conditions in this State. The Commission shall specify the circumstances in which use of the system is appropriate and any conditions and limitations related to the use of the system."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 130A‑343 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"(h1)	Designation of Functionally Equivalent Systems As Accepted Systems. –  A manufacturer of a wastewater system that is functionally equivalent to an accepted wastewater system may petition the Commission to have the system designated as an accepted wastewater system as provided in this subsection. The manufacturer shall provide the Commission with the data necessary to show that the wastewater system is functionally equivalent to a system that is designated as an accepted system. In addition, the manufacturer shall provide the Commission with specifications of the wastewater system and a certified statement from an independent, third‑party professional engineer or testing laboratory that, based upon verified documentation, the system is functionally equivalent to an accepted wastewater system. The Commission shall designate a wastewater system as an accepted wastewater system if it finds that there is clear, convincing, and cogent evidence that the system is functionally equivalent to the accepted wastewater system, and this designation shall not be conditioned on the manufacturer of the wastewater system having operational systems installed in the State, unless the functionally equivalent accepted system has been designated an accepted system for less than five years. The Commission shall specify the same circumstances in which use of the functionally equivalent system is appropriate as apply to the appropriate use of the accepted system. Further, the Commission shall specify the same conditions and limitations related to the use of the functionally equivalent system as apply to the use of the accepted system. Within the meaning of this subsection, a wastewater system is functionally equivalent to an accepted wastewater system if, based on the certification of the independent, third‑party professional engineer or testing laboratory, the performance characteristics of the wastewater system that is the subject of the petition satisfy all of the following requirements:
(1)	The materials of which the wastewater system is constructed are equal to or superior in physical properties and chemical durability compared to the materials of which the accepted wastewater system is constructed.
(2)	The dimensions of the wastewater system are equal to or greater than the dimensions of the accepted wastewater system.
(3)	The wastewater system is analogous in its method and manner of function for the conveyance and application of effluent to the accepted wastewater system.
(4)	The structural integrity of the wastewater system is equal to or superior to the structural integrity of the accepted wastewater system.
(5)	The available infiltrative surface area per linear foot of the bottom of the wastewater system is equal to or greater than the available infiltrative surface area per linear foot of the bottom of the accepted wastewater system.
(6)	The storage capacity per linear foot that the wastewater system provides is equal to or greater than the storage capacity per linear foot that the accepted wastewater system provides."
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to wastewater systems that are designated by the Commission for Public Health on or after that date.