ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    May 6,
    1991
    COMMONWEALTH EDISON COMPANY,
    )
    )
    Petitioner,
    v.
    )
    PCB 91—70
    )
    (NPDES Permit Appeal)
    ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
    )
    PROTECTION AGENCY,
    )
    )
    Respondent.
    ORDER OF THE BOARD
    (by B. Forcade):
    On April
    25,
    1991, Commonwealth Edison Company filed a
    petition for permit review.
    This matter is accepted for hearing.
    The Board specifically rejects the purported waiver filed by
    Commonwealth Edison.
    The waiver states,
    “This waiver expires 30
    days after Commonwealth Edison files a Revocation of Waiver of
    Decision with the Board.”
    Revocable waivers or conditional
    waivers are unacceptable.
    £~,
    e.g.,
    Land and Lakes,
    et. al..
    v.
    Village of Romeoville,
    PCB 91-7
    (April
    25,
    1991).
    Board
    regulations at 35
    Ill. Adm. Code 101.105 provide:
    Section 101.105
    Waivers
    A waiver of a deadline for final Board action,
    as specified in Sections
    38,
    40,
    40.1 and 41
    of
    the
    Act,
    shall
    be
    filed
    as
    a
    separate
    document.
    The waiver shall be clearly titled
    as such,
    identify the proceeding by name and
    docket number,
    and be signed by the party or
    by his authorized representative or attorney.
    The waiver shall be an open waiver or a waiver
    until
    a calendar date certain.
    However, the
    Board reserves the right to accept waivers in
    other
    forms
    where
    it
    finds
    it necessary
    to
    prevent undue delay or material prejudice.
    A
    contingent waiver is not acceptable.
    (Emphasis
    Added).
    Commonwealth Edison is free to file an open waiver or to file a
    waiver until
    a calendar date certain.
    However, this revocable
    waiver is not accepted.
    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
    122—2 1
    2
    hearing,
    the:. hearing officer shall submit an exhibit list, and
    all actual e;xhibits• to the Board within
    5 days of the hearing.
    Any briefing schedule shall provide for final filings as
    expeditious1~yas possible and in no event later than 70 days from
    the date of ‘~thisOrder.
    If afte:~• appropriate consultation with the parties, the
    parties fail
    to provide an acceptable hearing date or if after an
    attempt the ~thearingofficer is unable to consult with the
    parties,
    the.. hearing officer shall unilaterally set a hearing
    date in conf~rmancewith the schedule above.
    This schedule will
    only provide~the Board a very short time period to deliberate and
    reach a deci~sionbefore 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
    .~aHearing Officer Scheduling Order governing
    completion o~ the record.
    That Order shall set a date certain
    for each
    aspE~ct
    of the case including:
    briefing schedule,
    hearing date(~s),completion of discovery (if necessary)
    and pre-
    hearing confEerence
    (if necessary).
    The Hearing Officer
    Scheduling Oirder may be modified by entry of a complete new
    scheduling order conforming with the time requirements below.
    The heairing officer may extend this schedule only on a
    waiver of th~decision deadline by the petitioner and only for
    the equivalexrit or fewer number of days that the decision deadline
    is waived.
    ~3uchwaivers must be provided in writing to the Clerk
    of the
    Boards.
    Any waiver must be an “open waiver” or a waiver of
    decision unt~la date certain.
    Because
    of requirements regarding the publication of notice
    of hearing,
    mo
    scheduled hearing may be canceled unless the
    petitioner pirovides an open waiver or a waiver to a date at least
    120 days beyczmd the date of the motion to cancel hearing.
    This
    should allow
    ample time for the Board to republish notice of
    hearing and rreceive transcripts from the hearing before the due
    date.
    Any or~derby the hearing officer granting cancellation of
    hearing shai~iinclude 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
    this proceeding is the type for which the Illinois
    Environmentail Protection Act sets a very short statutory deadline
    for making
    a. decision, absent a waiver, the Board will grant
    extensions oi: modifications only in unusual circumstances.
    Any
    such motion m~ustset forth an alternative schedule for notice,
    hearing, and
    final submissions, as well as the deadline for
    decision, inc~ludingresponse time to such a motion.
    However, no
    such motion ~shall negate the obligation of the hearing officer to
    12 2—2
    2
    3
    establish a Scheduling Order pursuant to the requirements 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
    Board, hereby certify that the above Order was adopted on the
    ~
    day of
    ~72’~~-z/
    ,
    1991, by a vote of ~&
    Dorothy M. Gu~in,Clerk
    Illinois PolThtion Control Board
    122—23

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