Provide informal comments on ease of application air permitting rulemaking proposal

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources Air Quality Bureau (DNR) has invited the public to provide informal comments on a draft rulemaking proposal. The draft air quality rule changes are a result of permitting process improvements identified by ABI members prior to and during LEAN* events conducted in late 2015. The meetings involved stakeholders, the governor’s office, the DNR, and the Office of Lean Enterprise in the Department of Management. The draft rulemaking proposal can be viewed on the Stakeholder Involvement webpage, at http://www.iowadnr.gov/Environmental-Protection/Air-Quality/Stakeholder-Involvement under Public Input. If you have feedback on the rule, please contact Nicole Crain, ncrain@iowaabi.org.

The draft proposal would:

• Amend requirements for submitting construction and Title V operating permit applications to clarify the types of mailing services that may be used to submit applications and that applications are not required to be submitted by certified mail.  
• Describe what constitutes a valid electronic signature for permit applications submitted electronically and would establish electronic media submission requirements necessary for compliance with the federal Cross Media Electronic Reporting Rule adopted in Chapter 15 of Iowa Administrative Code 567.
• Reduce regulatory burden for construction permit applicants for projects that will not emit Greenhouse Gases (GHG) by eliminating the requirement to submit the current three-page GHG form.  Applicants would instead be able to indicate that the application includes no GHG emissions in the project description.

Written comments and suggestions on the draft proposal should be provided to Christine Paulson (Christine.Paulson@dnr.iowa.gov), Iowa DNR Air Quality Bureau, by Tuesday, Sept. 6.