ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
October 11,
1990
PEOPLE OF THE STATE
OF ILLINOIS,
Complainant,
)
v.
)
PCB 90—105
(Enforcement)
EVANGELICAL HEALTH SYSTEMS,
)
a/k/a CHRIST HOSPITAL,
)
an Illinois corporation,
Respondent.
DISSENTING OPINION
(by J. Theodore Meyer):
I
dissent from the majority’s acceptance
of the settlement
stipulation in this case.
Although
the
proposed
settlement
agreement
states
that
respondent’s noncompliance was economically beneficial in that
it
operated its unpermitted equipment without the delay of applying
to and waiting for the Agency to issue permits, there
is not any
specific
information
on
the
amount
of
that
economic
benefit.
Section 33(c) of the Environmental Protection Act (and ne~Section
42(h)(3),
as
contained
in
P.A.
86-1363,
effective September
7,
1990)
specifically requires
the
Board
to
consider any
economic
benefits accrued by noncompliance.
I believe that this provision
contemplates a consideration of the amount of the economic benefit,
not
just
a
statement
that
an
economic
benefit
was
realized.
Without more specific information, it is impossible to know if the
penalty
of
$5,000 even
comes
close
to
any
savings
realized by
respondent.
Finally,
I am frustrated that, although this case was brought
in the name of the people of the
State
of Illinois,
there
is
no
recognition that costs and fees could have been assessed against
respondent.
Ill.RevStat.l989,
ch.
111 1/2,
par.
1042(f).
I am
pleased that the Attorney General is beginning to bring enforcement
cases
in the name
of
the
People,
but
I
believe that settlement
agreements in such cases should,
at a minimum, recognize that the
Board could award costs and reasonable fees.
115—283
2
For these reasons,
I dissent.
J. ~ieodore Meyer
Boai~UMember
I, Dorothy M.
Gunn,
Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
Board, hereby certify that the above Dissenting Opinion was filed
on the
/~Z~day of
_______________,
1990.
lution Control Board
115—284