ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
December
15,
1988
VILLAGE OF WINNETKA,
)
)
Petitioner,
v.
)
PCB 88—164
)
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
)
PROTECTION AGENCY,
)
Respondent.
ORDER OF THE BOARD
(by J. Theodore Meyer):
This matter
is before the Board on
a November
22,
1988
motion for confirmation filed by petitioner the Village of
Winnetka.
Winnetka alternatively submits an amended petition
for
variance.
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
(Agency)
filed
its response in opposition
to the motion on November
29,
1988.
Winnetka asks that the Board
issue an order
“confirming”
that
its petition for variance was filed within
20 days after
the
effective date of
35 Ill. Adm. Code 212.201 as
to Winnetka.
Alternatively, Winnetka files an amended petition for variance,
with the same text as its first variance petition.
Thus,
Winnetka states that the amended petition
is filed within 20 days
of
the effective date of
35 Ill.
Adm. Code 212.201
as
to
Winnetka,
since
it
is filed within 20 days of the Board’s order
of November
3,
1988, denying Winaetka’s motion for
reconsideration and stay in Proposed Amendment to 35
Ill. Adm.
Code 212.209, Village of Winnetka Generating Station,
R86—41.
By
asking
for confirmation or
filing
an amended petition, Winnetka
seeks
to take advantage of Section 38(b)
of the Environmental
Protection Act (Act)
(Ill. Rev.
Stat.
1987,
ch.
1ll1/~, par.
1038(b)).
Section 38(b) provides that if
a petition for variance
from
a rule or regulation
is filed within
20 days after
the
effective date of that rule or
regulation,
the operation of that
rule or regulation
shall be stayed
as
to that petitioner pending
disposition of the petition.
Winnetka maintains that because
it
became subject
to Section 212.201
for
the first time when its
site—specific petition
(R86—41) was denied by the Board
on August
4,
1988, with reconsideration denied on November
3,
1988,
the
filing of its variance petition triggered
the automatic stay
provision of Section 38(b)
of the Act.
In response,
the Agency contends that Section 38(b) applies
to the effective date
of a regulation,
not
to the date when
a
94—121
—2—
particular entity becomes subject to that regulation.
The Agency
points out that Section 212.201, which became effective in 1986,
is not a new regulation, and argues that the finality of that
regulation should not be disturbed by any “as applied” claim by
Winnetka.
Thus,
the Agency opposes Winnetka’s motion.
However,
the Agency suggests that this situation may be appropriate for
the grant of a discretionary stay,
and states that
it would not
object to such
a discretionary stay.
The Board agrees with the Agency that th~automatic stay
provision of Section 38(b) does not apply to this situation.
The
Board finds that Section 38(b) applies to situations where
a new
rule becomes effective,
and not
to instances where
an entity
becomes subject to an existing rule.
Thus, Winnetka’s motion for
confirmation
is denied.
Because the Board today has granted the
requested variance,
it need not consider
the Agency’s suggested
discretionary stay.
Finally, the Board notes that on December
9, 1988, Winnetka
filed
a reply to the Agency’s response.
The Board does not
ordinarily accept replies.
However,
the Board has
read the
reply, but finds nothing
to convince
it that Section 38(b)
applies to this case.
IT
IS SO ORDERED.
J.
D.
Dumelle concurred.
I, Dorothy M.
Gunn, Clerk
of the Illinois Pollution Control
Board,
~.er~ebycertify
at the above Order was adopted on
the /~~7t~
day of
_______________,
1988,
by a vote of
7o
Dorothy M7/Gunn, Clerk
Illinois P’ollution Control Board
94—122