ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Fifty-sixth Legislature

Second Regular Session

 

HB 2133: solar panel disposal fund

Sponsor: Representative Griffin, LD 19

Committee on Natural Resources, Energy & Water

Overview

An emergency measure that establishes the Solar Panel Disposal Fund (Fund).

History

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) administers the state's environmental laws and delegated federal programs to ensure the prevention of air, water and land pollution and their proper cleanup. ADEQ is managed by a director appointed by and serving at the pleasure of the Governor (A.R.S. § 49-102). Responsibilities of ADEQ include:

1)   formulating policies, plans and programs to protect the environment;

2)   promoting and coordinating the management of air resources and to ensure their protection, enhancement and balanced utilization and the enhancement of the quality of water resources; and

3)   preventing pollution through regulating the storage, handling and transportation of solids, liquids and gasses that may cause or contribute to pollution (A.R.S. § 49-104).

Provisions☐ Prop 105 (45 votes) ☒ Prop 108 (40 votes) ☐ Emergency (40 votes) ☐ Fiscal Note

1.   Establishes the Fund to consist of legislative appropriations and solar panel installation fees. (Sec. 1)

2.   Designates ADEQ to administer the Fund and permits ADEQ to retain up to 1% of the Fund monies to cover administrative costs. (Sec. 1)

3.   Directs the State Treasurer to invest and divest Fund monies and provides that any investment monies will be credited to the fund. (Sec. 1)

4.   Permits ADEQ to provide grants to cities and towns using Fund monies for decommissioning, recycling and disposing solar panels and groundwater quality remediation efforts caused from improper solar panel disposal. (Sec. 1)

5.   Requires ADEQ to prioritize grant applications that aid groundwater quality remediation efforts and consider the degree to which financial assistance is necessary to ensure that corrective actions take place. (Sec. 1)

6.   Mandates that entities applying for grant funding submit an application to ADEQ containing their proposal. (Sec. 1)

7.   Directs grantees to report the outcomes and their accounted expenditures of the grant monies and additional requested program data to ADEQ by June 30 of each year. (Sec. 1)

8.   Requires ADEQ to submit a report to the Governor, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President of the Senate and Secretary of State by August 15 of each year. (Sec. 1)

9.   Stipulates that the report includes the grant recipients of the previous year, the amount of each grant and the programs or projects supported by grant monies and their outcomes. (Sec. 1)

10.  Requires the owner or installer of a solar panel to pay ADEQ a $1 installation fee per panel, and ADEQ to deposit all collected fees into the Fund. (Sec. 1)

11.  Instructs the ADEQ Director to adopt rules to provide an orderly imposition and collection of fees. (Sec. 1)

12.  Contains a Prop 108 clause. (Sec. 2)

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16.                    HB 2133

17.  Initials EB/RP     Page 0 Natural Resources, Energy & Water

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