ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    November 20, 1986
    CITIZENS UTILITIES COMPANY
    OF ILLINOIS,
    Petitioner,
    )
    V.
    )
    PCB 86—185
    )
    ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
    )
    PROTECTION AGENCY,
    )
    Respondent.
    ORDER OF THE BOARD
    (by J.
    Anderson):
    On November
    18,
    1986,
    the
    Board received
    an objection from
    Mr.
    & Mrs.
    Sheldon Arkin
    to grant of this October 23,
    1986
    variance petition.
    Section 37(a)
    of the Act provides that
    hearing must be held when an objection
    is filed within
    21 days of
    the filing
    of the petition.
    As Citizens noted
    in
    its
    filing
    of
    November
    19,
    this objection
    is untimely, being filed
    5 days
    late.
    However, the
    Board on
    its own motion finds it advisable to
    set this matter
    for hearing.
    This matter
    is set for hearing.
    Hearing must be scheduled
    within
    14 days of the date of this Order
    and completed within
    60
    days of the date
    of this Order.
    The hearing
    officer shall
    inform
    the Clerk
    of the
    Board of the
    time and location of the hearing at
    least 40 days
    in advance of hearing
    so that public notice of
    hearing may be published.
    After hearing,
    the hearing officer
    shall
    submit an exhibit list and all
    actual exhibits
    to the Board
    within 5 days of the hearing.
    Any briefing schedule shall
    provide for
    final
    filings as expeditiously
    as
    possible and
    in
    no
    event
    later
    than
    70
    days
    from
    the
    date
    of
    this
    Order.
    If
    after
    appropriate
    consultation
    with
    the
    parties,
    the
    parties
    fail
    to
    provide
    an
    acceptable
    hearing
    date
    or
    if
    after
    an
    attempt
    the
    hearing
    officer
    is
    unable
    to
    consult
    with
    the
    parties, the hearing officer shall
    unilaterally set a
    hearing
    date
    in conformance with the schedule above.
    This schedule will
    only provide the Board a very short
    time period
    to deliberate
    and
    reach
    a
    decision
    before
    the
    due
    date.
    The hearing officer and
    the
    parties
    are
    encouraged
    to
    expedite
    this
    proceeding
    as
    much
    as
    possible.
    Within
    10
    days of accepting this case,
    the Hearing Officer
    shall
    enter
    a Hearing Officer Scheduling Order governing
    completion
    of
    the
    record.
    That
    Order
    shall
    set
    a
    date
    certain
    74-113
    —2—
    for each aspect of the case including:
    briefing schedule,
    hearing date(s), completion of discovery
    (if necessary)
    and pre—
    hearing conference
    (if necessary).
    The Hearing Officer
    Scheduling Order may be modified by entry of a complete new
    scheduling
    order conforming with the
    time requirements below.
    The hearing officer may extend this schedule only on a
    waiver of the decision deadline by the petitioner
    and only for
    the equivalent or
    fewer number of days that the decision deadline
    is waived.
    Such waivers must be provided
    in writing
    to
    the Clerk
    of the Board.
    Any waiver must be an “open waiver”
    or
    a waiver
    of
    decision until
    a date certain.
    Any waiver
    shall extend
    the time
    deadline of Section 104.180 regarding filing the Agency
    recommendation by the equivalent number
    of days, but
    in any
    circumstance the recommendation must be
    filed at least 20 days
    before
    the hearing.
    Because of requirements regarding the publication of notice
    of hearing,
    no scheduled hearing may be cancelled unless the
    petitioner provides an open waiver
    or
    a waiver
    to
    a date at
    least
    75 days beyond the date of the motion
    to cancel hearing.
    This
    should
    allow
    ample
    time
    for
    the
    Board
    to
    republish
    notice
    of
    hearing
    and
    receive transcripts from the hearing before the due
    date.
    Any
    order
    by
    the
    hearing
    officer
    granting
    cancellation
    of
    hearing
    shall
    include
    a
    complete
    new
    scheduling
    order
    with
    a
    new
    hearing
    date
    at
    least
    40
    days
    in
    the
    future
    and
    at
    least
    30
    days
    prior
    to the new due date and the Clerk of the Board
    shall
    be
    promptly informed of the new schedule.
    Because t1~isproceeding
    is the type for which the Illinois
    Environmental Protection Act sets
    a very short statutory deadline
    for decisionmaking, absent
    a waiver,
    the Board will grant
    extensions or modifications only in unusual
    circumstances.
    Any
    such
    motion
    must
    set
    forth
    an
    alternative
    schedule
    for
    notice,
    hearing,
    and final submissions, as well
    as the deadline for
    decision,
    including response time to such
    a motion.
    However,
    no
    such
    motion
    shall
    negate
    the
    obligation
    of
    the
    hearing
    officer
    to
    set
    a
    date
    pursuant
    to
    the
    fourth
    paragraph
    of
    this
    Order,
    and
    to
    adhere
    to that Order
    until modified.
    IT
    IS SO ORDERED.
    I, Dorothy
    M.
    Gunn,
    Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
    Board1 hereby certify
    t)~at the
    above
    Order
    was
    adopted
    on
    the
    ~
    day of
    _____________________,
    1986, by a vote
    of
    /~,—c~
    ~
    ~.,
    Dorothy
    M.
    .~unn, Clerk
    Illinois Pollution Control
    Board
    74-114

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