Title 40

SECTION 124.14

124.14 Reopening of the public comment period.

§ 124.14 Reopening of the public comment period.

(a)(1) The Regional Administrator may order the public comment period reopened if the procedures of this paragraph could expedite the decisionmaking process. When the public comment period is reopened under this paragraph, all persons, including applicants, who believe any condition of a draft permit is inappropriate or that the Regional Administrator's tentative decision to deny an application, terminate a permit, or prepare a draft permit is inappropriate, must submit all reasonably available factual grounds supporting their position, including all supporting material, by a date, not less than sixty days after public notice under paragraph (a)(2) of this section, set by the Regional Administrator. Thereafter, any person may file a written response to the material filed by any other person, by a date, not less than twenty days after the date set for filing of the material, set by the Regional Administrator.

(2) Public notice of any comment period under this paragraph shall identify the issues to which the requirements of § 124.14(a) shall apply.

(3) On his own motion or on the request of any person, the Regional Administrator may direct that the requirements of paragraph (a)(1) of this section shall apply during the initial comment period where it reasonably appears that issuance of the permit will be contested and that applying the requirements of paragraph (a)(1) of this section will substantially expedite the decisionmaking process. The notice of the draft permit shall state whenever this has been done.

(4) A comment period of longer than 60 days will often be necessary in complicated proceedings to give commenters a reasonable opportunity to comply with the requirements of this section. Commenters may request longer comment periods and they shall be granted under § 124.10 to the extent they appear necessary.

(b) If any data information or arguments submitted during the public comment period, including information or arguments required under § 124.13, appear to raise substantial new questions concerning a permit, the Regional Administrator may take one or more of the following actions:

(1) Prepare a new draft permit, appropriately modified, under § 124.6;

(2) Prepare a revised statement of basis under § 124.7, a fact sheet or revised fact sheet under § 124.8 and reopen the comment period under § 124.14; or

(3) Reopen or extend the comment period under § 124.10 to give interested persons an opportunity to comment on the information or arguments submitted.

(c) Comments filed during the reopened comment period shall be limited to the substantial new questions that caused its reopening. The public notice under § 124.10 shall define the scope of the reopening.

(d) [Reserved]

(e) Public notice of any of the above actions shall be issued under § 124.10.

[48 FR 14264, Apr. 1, 1983, as amended at 49 FR 38051, Sept. 26, 1984; 65 FR 30911, May 15, 2000]

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