A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to make various changes to laws governing matters related to the environment and natural resources.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

North Carolina On‑Site Wastewater Contractors and Inspectors Certification Board/grant of authority to hold real property
SECTION 1.  G.S. 90A‑74 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90A‑74.  Powers and duties of the Board.
The Board shall have the following general powers and duties:
(1)	To adopt rules in the manner prescribed by Chapter 150B of the General Statutes to govern its actions and to implement the provisions of this Article.
(2)	To determine the eligibility requirements for persons seeking certification pursuant to this Article.
(3)	To establish grade levels of certifications based on design capacity, complexity, projected costs, and other features of approved on‑site wastewater systems.
(4)	To develop and administer examinations for specific grade levels of certification as approved by the Board. The Board may approve applications by recognized associations for certification of its members after a review of the requirements of the association to ensure that they are equivalent to the requirements of the Board.
(5)	To issue, renew, deny, restrict, suspend, or revoke certifications and to carry out any of the other actions authorized by this Article.
(6)	To establish, publish, and enforce rules of professional conduct of persons who are certified pursuant to this Article.
(7)	To maintain a record of all proceedings and make available to persons certified under this Article, and to other concerned parties, an annual report of all Board action.
(8)	To establish reasonable fees for application, certification, and renewal, and other services provided by the Board.
(9)	To conduct investigations to determine whether violations of this Article or grounds for disciplining persons certified under this Article exist.
(10)	To adopt a common seal containing the name of the Board for use on all certificates and official reports issued by the Board.
(10a)	To employ staff necessary to carry out the provisions of this Article and to determine the compensation, duties, and other terms and conditions of employment of its staff.
(10b)	To employ professional, clerical, investigative, or special personnel necessary to carry out the provisions of this Article.
(10c)	To acquire, hold, convey, rent, encumber, alienate, and otherwise deal with real property in the same manner as a private person or corporation, subject only to the approval of the Governor and Council of State. The rents, proceeds, and other revenues and benefits of the ownership of real property shall inure to the Board. Collateral pledged by the Board for any encumbrance of real property shall be limited to the assets, income, and revenues of the Board.
(11)	To conduct other services necessary to carry out the purposes of this Article."

ESTABLISH A MAXIMUM FEE FOR THE AUTHORIZED ONSITE WASTEWATER EVALUATOR PROGRAM
SECTION 1A.  G.S. 90A‑75 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90A‑75.  Expenses and fees.
(a)	Expenses. – All salaries, compensation, and expenses incurred or allowed for the purposes of carrying out this Article shall be paid by the Board exclusively out of the funds received by the Board as authorized by this Article. No salary, expense, or other obligations of the Board may be charged against the General Fund of the State. Neither the Board nor any of its members or employees may incur any expense, debt, or financial obligation binding upon the State.
(b)	Contributions. – The Board may accept grants, contributions, devises, and gifts that shall be kept in the same account as the funds deposited in accordance with this Article and other provisions of the law.
(c)	Fees. – All fees shall be established in rules adopted by the Board. The Board shall establish fees sufficient to pay the costs of administering this Article, but in no event shall the Board charge a fee at an annual rate in excess of the following:
(1)	Application for basic certification	$150.00
(2)	Application for each grade level	$50.00
(3)	Certification renewal	$100.00
(4)	Reinstatement of revoked or suspended
Certification	$500.00
(5)	Application for on‑site wastewater
system inspector	$200.00
(6)	Application for authorized on‑site
wastewater evaluator	$300.00.
(c1)	Use of Fees. – All fees collected pursuant to this Article shall be held by the Board and used by the Board for the sole purpose of administering this Article.
(d)	Audit. – The Board is subject to the oversight of the State Auditor under Article 5A of Chapter 147 of the General Statutes."

Allow division of coastal management to accept electronic payments
SECTION 2.  G.S. 113A‑119 reads as rewritten:
"§ 113A‑119.  Permit applications generally.
(a)	Any person required to obtain a permit under this Part shall file with the Secretary and (in the case of a permit sought from a city or county) with the designated local official an application for a permit in accordance with the form and content designated by the Secretary and approved by the Commission. The applicant must submit with the application an electronic payment, check, or money order payable to the Department or the city or county, as the case may be, constituting a fee set by the Commission pursuant to G.S. 113A‑119.1.
…."

ALLOW the department of environmental quality to establish emergency measures and procedures applicable to solid waste management during a state of emergency declared by the governor
SECTION 3.  G.S. 130A‑303 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A‑303.  Imminent hazard.
(a)	The judgment of the Secretary that an imminent hazard exists concerning solid waste shall be supported by findings of fact made by the Secretary.
(b)	In order to eliminate an imminent hazard, the Secretary may, without notice or hearing, issue an order requiring that immediate action be taken to protect the public health or the environment. This order may be directed to a generator or transporter of solid waste or to the owner or operator of a solid waste management facility. Where the imminent hazard is caused by an inactive hazardous substance or waste disposal site, the Secretary shall follow the procedures set forth in G.S. 130A‑310.5.
(c)	When a state of emergency, as defined in G.S. 166A‑19.3, has been declared by the Governor due to a natural disaster such as a pandemic, epidemic, hurricane or flood, or due to a pending disaster, the Secretary, or an authorized representative of the Secretary, may, upon request of a public or private landfill operator, or on the Secretary's own initiative, develop and implement any emergency measures and procedures that the Secretary deems necessary for the proper management of solid waste generated during the declared emergency. All State agencies and political subdivisions of the State shall cooperate with the implementation of the emergency measures and procedures developed pursuant to this section. Such emergency procedures and measures may include any of the following: (i) restrictions on the collection, storage, and transportation of solid waste, (ii) decisions on facility operational conditions such as operational times and waste acceptance, and (iii) any other measures or procedures necessary to allow for the proper disposal of solid waste within impacted communities. Written notice of emergency measures and procedures developed and implemented pursuant to this subsection shall be provided to news media, waste organizations, governmental agencies, solid waste facilities, and any other interested or affected parties as determined by the Secretary. Emergency measures and procedures developed and implemented pursuant to this section shall expire no more than 60 days after a declaration of a state of emergency has expired or been rescinded by the Governor."

Abandoned and Derelict Vessels
SECTION 4.  Subdivision (10) of Section 2.1 of S.L. 2019‑224 reads as rewritten:
"(10)	$1,000,000 to the Wildlife Resource Commission (WRC) to inspect, investigate, and remove abandoned and derelict vessels. Notwithstanding any provision of law in Chapter 75A of the General Statutes, the WRC is authorized to use these and other available funds to inspect, investigate, remove, and dispose of abandoned and derelict vessels. Prior to removing and disposing of a vessel under this subdivision, the WRC shall (i) send written notice to the last known owner of the status of the vessel if an owner can be determined and (ii) post a notice on the vessel advising that the vessel is abandoned. If no response to the written notice to owner or the notice posted on the vessel is received within 30 days indicating intent to recover while taking specific acts to remove the vessel, then the WRC may proceed with removal and disposal of the vessel. The WRC may remove and dispose of abandoned and derelict vessels on private property after receiving written permission from the property owner and following the other procedures set forth in this section. The WRC shall prioritize the use of State funds for the removal of abandoned and derelict vessels located on public waters and lands. As used in this subdivision, the phrase "abandoned and derelict vessel" means a vessel, as defined in G.S. 75A‑2(5), that is left or stored for more than 30 days in one of the following states:
a.	In a wrecked, junked, or substantially damaged or dismantled condition upon any public waters and lands of the State.
b.	At a harbor or anchorage within public waters of the State without the consent of the public agency having jurisdiction thereof.
c.	Docked, grounded, or beached upon the property of another without the consent of the owner of the property."

clarify funding for the Lindsey bridge dam repair and stream restoration project in rockingham county
SECTION 5.  Funds allocated for the Lindsey Bridge Dam Repair and Stream Restoration project by Section 36.3(a) of S.L. 2018‑5 shall be reallocated to provide a directed grant (as defined in Section 6(a) of this act) to the Town of Madison for the Lindsey Bridge Dam Repair and Stream Restoration project.
SECTION 6.(a)  Definitions. – For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1)	Directed grant. – Nonrecurring funds allocated by a State agency to a non‑State entity as directed by an act of the General Assembly.
(2)	Non‑State entity. – As defined in G.S. 143C‑1‑1.
SECTION 6.(b)  Requirements. – Nonrecurring funds appropriated in this section as directed grants are subject to all of the following requirements:
(1)	Directed grants are subject to the provisions of subsections (b) through (k) of G.S. 143C‑6‑23.
(2)	Directed grants of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) or less may be made in a single annual payment in the discretion of the Director of the Budget. Directed grants of more than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) shall be made in quarterly or monthly payments in the discretion of the Director of the Budget. A State agency administering a directed grant shall begin disbursement of funds to a non‑State entity that meets all applicable requirements as soon as practicable, but no later than 100 days after the date this act becomes law.
(3)	Beginning on the first day of a quarter following the deadline provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection and quarterly thereafter, State agencies administering directed grants shall report to the Fiscal Research Division on the status of funds disbursed for each directed grant until all funds are fully disbursed. At a minimum, the report required under this subdivision shall include updates on (i) the date of the initial contact, (ii) the date the contract was sent to the entity receiving the funds, (iii) the date the disbursing agency received the fully executed contract back from the entity, (iv) the contract execution date, and (v) the payment date.
(4)	Notwithstanding any provision of G.S. 143C‑1‑2(b) to the contrary, nonrecurring funds appropriated in this act as directed grants shall not revert until June 30, 2021.
(5)	Directed grants to nonprofit organizations are for nonsectarian, nonreligious purposes only.
SECTION 6.(c)  This section expires on June 30, 2021.

MERCURY SWITCH PROGRAM EXTENSION
SECTION 7.(a)  Section 9 of S.L. 2007‑142, as amended by Section 14.1(a) of S.L. 2016‑94 and Section 13.21(a) of S.L. 2017‑57, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 9. Sections 1, 2, 6, 7, and 9 of this act become effective when this act becomes law. Sections 3, 4, and 8 of this act become effective 1 July 2007. Section 5 of this act becomes effective 1 July 2007 and applies to violations that occur on or after that date. The Department shall submit the first annual report required by G.S. 130A‑310.57, as enacted by Section 7 of this act, on or before 1 October 2008. Effective June 30, 2031, Part 6 of Article 9 of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes, as amended by this act, is repealed."
SECTION 7.(b)  Section 14.1(c) of S.L. 2016‑94, as amended by Section 13.21(b) of S.L. 2017‑57, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 14.1.(c)  Subsection (b) of this section becomes effective June 30, 2031. Funds remaining in the Mercury Pollution Prevention Fund (Fund Code 24300‑2119) on that date shall be transferred to the Division of Waste Management (Fund Code 14300‑1760)."
SECTION 7.(c)  Section 34.37(b) of S.L. 2017‑57 reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 34.37.(b)  This section becomes effective July 1, 2017, and expires on June 30, 2031."
SECTION 7.(d)  This section becomes effective June 30, 2020.

Collaboratory reporting changes
SECTION 8.(a)  Section 13.1(g) of S.L. 2018‑5, as amended by Section 7(d) of S.L. 2019‑241, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 13.1.(g)  The North Carolina Policy Collaboratory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Collaboratory) shall identify faculty expertise, technology, and instrumentation, including mass spectrometers, located within institutions of higher education in the State, including the Universities of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Wilmington, North Carolina State University, North Carolina A&T State University, Duke University, and other public and private institutions, and coordinate these faculty and resources to conduct nontargeted analysis for PFAS, including GenX, at all public water supply surface water intakes and one public water supply well selected by each municipal water system that operates groundwater wells for public drinking water supplies as identified by the Department of Environmental Quality, to establish a water quality baseline for all sampling sites. The Collaboratory, in consultation with the participating institutions of higher education, shall establish a protocol for the baseline testing required by this subsection, as well as a protocol for periodic retesting of the municipal intakes and additional public water supply wells. No later than April 15, 2021, the Collaboratory shall report the results of such sampling by identifying chemical families detected at each intake to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic Resources, the Environmental Review Commission, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency."
SECTION 8.(b)  Section 2.1 of S.L. 2019‑224, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 2.1.  Allocations. – The funds appropriated and reallocated in Part I of this act in the Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Fund shall be allocated as follows:
…
(8)	$10,160,000 to The University of North Carolina Board of Governors to be used as follows:
a.	$160,000 to the North Carolina Policy Collaboratory (Collaboratory) for the ModMon program.
b.	$2,000,000 to the Collaboratory to study flooding and resiliency against future storms in Eastern North Carolina and to develop an implementation plan with recommendations. The Collaboratory shall report the flooding and resiliency implementation plan to the Joint Legislative Emergency Management Oversight Committee no later than June 1, 2021. Notwithstanding Section 3.1(c) of S.L. 2018‑134, funds allocated to the Collaboratory as provided in this sub‑subdivision shall revert on June 30, 2021. The University of North Carolina shall not charge indirect facilities and administrative costs against the funding provided for the Collaboratory from the Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Fund.
c.	$8,000,000 to the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNC‑W) for repairs and renovations to the Dobo Hall science building, which was damaged by Hurricane Florence.
…."
SECTION 8.(c)  Section 11.8 of S.L. 2016‑94 reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 11.8.  The one million dollars ($1,000,000) in recurring funds appropriated in this act to the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina for the 2016‑2017 fiscal year to establish and operate a North Carolina Policy Collaboratory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shall be used to establish a Collaboratory that facilitates the dissemination of the policy and research expertise of The University of North Carolina and other institutions of higher learning within North Carolina for practical use by State and local government, although, wherever possible, funding preference may be given to campuses within The University of North Carolina System. Institutions receiving research funding from the Collaboratory shall not charge for indirect overhead costs against any research funds received by the Collaboratory. The Collaboratory, at a minimum, shall conduct research on natural resources management, including, but not limited to, research related to the environmental and economic components of the management of the natural resources within the State of North Carolina and of new technologies for habitat, environmental, and water quality improvement. The Collaboratory shall develop and disseminate relevant best practices to interested parties, may lead or participate in projects across the State related to natural resource management, and may make recommendations to the General Assembly from time to time."

effective date
SECTION 9.  Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes law.