ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    December 16, 1993
    VILLAGE OF HODGKINS,
    )
    an Illinois municipal corporation,
    )
    )
    Petitioner,
    v.
    )
    PCB 93—230
    (UST Fund)
    ILLINOIS ENVIRONNENTAL
    PROTECTION AGENCY,
    Respondent.
    ORDER OF THE BOARD (by N. Nardulli):
    This matter is before the Board on a November 22, 1993
    petition for review, filed by petitioner Village of Hodgkins,
    (Hodgkins). Hodgkins seeks review of an Illinois Environmental
    Protection Agency’s (Agency) decision denying petitioner’s
    request for reimbursement of certain costs from the Underground
    Storage Tank Fund. On December 2, 1993, the Board directed the
    Village of Hodgkins to file an amended petition providing the
    Board with any additional correspondence from the Agency, not
    included in the original petition, which set forth the Agency’s
    challenged decision. If petitioner had already submitted the
    complete Agency correspondence, petitioner was to so state in the
    amended petition. On December 13, 1993, village of Hodgkins
    filed an amended petition which stated that the original petition
    included the complete correspondence received from the Agency
    with regard the Agency’s final reimbursement decision.
    The Board accepts the amended petition. The filing of the
    amended petition will restart the Board’s 120 day decision
    timeclock, and the decision due date will be calculated from the
    date of the filing of the amended petition. This matter is
    accepted 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
    the 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 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
    2
    date in conformance with the schedule above. This schedule will
    provide the Board only 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
    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 for in writing to the
    Clerk of the Board. Any waiver.must be an “open waiver” or a
    waiver of decision until a date certain.
    Because of requirements regarding the publication of notice
    of hearing, no scheduled hearing may be canceled unless the
    petitioner provides an open waiver or a waiver to a date at least
    120 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 this proceeding is the type for which the Illinois
    Environmental Protection Act sets a very short statutory deadline
    for making a decision, 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
    establish a scheduling order pursuant to the requirements of this
    order, and to adhere to that order until modified.
    IT IS SO ORDERED.
    3
    I, Dorothy N. Gunn, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
    Bo~ard, hereby certify that the above order was adopted on the
    /~,7Z~day of
    _____________________,
    1993, by a vote of
    7
    C
    ~
    ~c.
    Dorothy N. ,~ünn, Clerk
    Illinois P~4~lutionControl Board

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