A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to clarify the regulation of gravel under state stormwater laws, as recommended by the environmental review commission.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.(a)  G.S. 143‑214.7(b2) reads as rewritten:
"(b2)	For purposes of implementing stormwater programs, "built‑upon area" means impervious surface and partially impervious surface to the extent that the partially impervious surface does not allow water to infiltrate through the surface and into the subsoil. "Built‑upon area" does not include a slatted deck or the water area of a swimming pool."
SECTION 1.(b)  The Environmental Management Commission shall amend its rules to be consistent with the definition of "built‑upon area" set out in subsection (b2) of G.S. 143‑214.7, as amended by Section 1(a) of this act.
SECTION 2.  Unless specifically authorized by the General Assembly, neither the Environmental Management Commission nor the Department of Environment and Natural Resources have the authority to define the term "gravel" for purposes of implementing stormwater programs. Any rule adopted by the Environmental Management Commission or the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that defines the term "gravel" for purposes of implementing stormwater programs is not effective and shall not become effective.
SECTION 3.  Of funds available to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for the 2013‑2015 biennium, the Department shall use up to the sum of one hundred ten thousand dollars ($110,000) to contract with the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University to conduct the study required by this section. The Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University shall conduct a study to determine the extent to which different aggregate surfaces are pervious, impervious, or partially pervious. The study shall include variables such as different types of aggregate, different types of underlying soil, different levels of compaction, different types of soil preparation and aggregate installation, different depths of aggregate, and any other variables that may significantly affect whether an aggregate surface is pervious, impervious, or partially pervious. The Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University shall submit an interim report on the results of the study to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Environmental Review Commission no later than September 1, 2014. The Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at North Carolina State University shall submit a final report on the results of the study to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Environmental Review Commission no later than January 1, 2015.
SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law. Subsection (b2) of G.S. 143‑214.7, as amended by Section 1(a) of this act, applies to projects for which permit applications are received on or after that date.