25149
. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, except as
provided in Section 25149.5 or 25181 of this code or Section 731 of
the Code of Civil Procedure, no city or county, whether chartered or
general law, or district may enact, issue, enforce, suspend, revoke,
or modify any ordinance, regulation, law, license, or permit relating
to an existing hazardous waste facility so as to prohibit or
unreasonably regulate the disposal, treatment, or recovery of
resources from hazardous waste or a mix of hazardous and solid wastes
at that facility, unless, after public notice and hearing, the
director determines that the operation of the facility may present an
imminent and substantial endangerment to health and the environment.
However, nothing in this section authorizes an operator of that
facility to violate any term or condition of a local land use permit
or any other provision of law not in conflict with this section.
(b) The director shall, pursuant to subdivision (c), conduct the
hearing specified in subdivision (a) to determine whether the
operation of an existing hazardous waste facility may present an
imminent and substantial endangerment to health and the environment
whenever any of the following occurs:
(1) A state or federal public agency requires any person to
evacuate a residence or requires the evacuation of a school, place of
employment, commercial establishment, or other facility to which the
public has access, because of the release of a hazardous substance
from the facility.
(2) For more than five days in any month, the air emissions from
the facility result in the violation of an emission standard for a
hazardous air pollutant established pursuant to Section 7412 of Title
42 of the United States Code or the threshold exposure level for a
toxic air contaminant, as defined in Section 39655.
(3) A state or federal public agency requires that the use of a
source of drinking water be discontinued because of the contamination
of the source by a release of hazardous waste, hazardous substances,
or leachate from the facility.
(4) A state agency, or the board of supervisors of the county in
which the facility is located, upon recommendation of its local
health officer, makes a finding that the public health has been
affected by a release of hazardous wastes from the facility. The
finding shall be based on statistically significant data developed in
a health effects study conducted according to a study design, and
using a methodology, that are developed after considering the
suggestions on study design and methodology made by interested
parties and that are approved by the Epidemiological Studies Section
in the Epidemiology and Toxicology Branch of the State Department of
Health Services before beginning the study.
(5) The owner or operator of the facility is in violation of an
order issued pursuant to Section 25187 that requires one or both of
the following:
(A) The correction of a violation or condition that has resulted,
or threatens to result, in an unauthorized release of hazardous waste
or a constituent of hazardous waste from the facility into either
the onsite or offsite environment.
(B) The cleanup of a release of hazardous waste or a constituent
of hazardous waste, the abatement of the effects of the release, and
any other necessary remedial action.
(6) The facility is in violation of an order issued pursuant to
Article 1 (commencing with Section 13300) of, or Article 2
(commencing with Section 13320) of, Chapter 5 of Division 7 of the
Water Code or in violation of a temporary restraining order,
preliminary injunction, or permanent injunction issued pursuant to
Article 4 (commencing with Section 13340) of Chapter 5 of Division 7
of the Water Code.
(c) Whenever the director determines that a hearing is required,
as specified in subdivision (b), the director shall immediately
request the Office of Administrative Hearings to assign an
administrative law judge to conduct the hearing, pursuant to this
subdivision.
(1) After an administrative law judge is assigned by the Office of
Administrative Hearings, the director shall transmit to the
administrative law judge and to the operator of the existing
hazardous waste facility, all relevant documents, information, and
data that were the basis for the director's determination. The
director shall also prepare a notice specifying the time and place of
the hearing. The notice shall also include a clear statement of the
reasons for conducting the hearing, a description of the facts, data,
circumstances, or occurrences that are the cause for conducting the
hearing, and the issues to be addressed at the hearing. The hearing
shall be held as close to the location of the existing hazardous
waste facility as is practicable and shall commence no later than 30
days following the director's request to the Office of Administrative
Hearings to assign an administrative law judge to the case.
(2) The hearing specified in paragraph (1) shall be conducted in
accordance with Article 8 (commencing with Section 11435.05) of
Chapter 4.5 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of, and Sections 11511
to 11515, inclusive, of, the Government Code. The administrative law
judge's proposed decision shall be transmitted to the director
within 30 days after the case is submitted.
(3) The director may adopt the proposed decision of the
administrative law judge in its entirety or may decide the case upon
the record, as provided in Section 11517 of the Government Code. The
director's decision shall be in writing and shall contain findings of
fact and a determination of the issues presented. The decision is
subject to judicial review in accordance with Section 11523 of the
Government Code.