N.J. Admin. Code § 7:14-8.4A - Grace period applicability; procedures

(a) Each violation identified in the tables at 7:14-8.18 by an "M" in the Type of Violation column and for which the conditions at (c) below are satisfied, is a minor violation, and is subject to a grace period, the length of which is indicated in the column with the heading Grace Period.

(b) Each violation identified in the tables at 7:14-8.18 by an "NM" in the Type of Violation column is a non-minor violation and is not subject to a grace period.

(c) Notwithstanding (a) above, and the designation of a violation as minor in Table 2 below, the Department or a local government agency shall provide a grace period for any violation identified as minor under this section, provided the following conditions are met:

1. The violation is not the result of the purposeful, knowing, reckless or criminally negligent conduct of the person responsible for the violation;

2. The activity or condition constituting the violation has existed for less than 12 months prior to the date of discovery by the Department or local government agency;

3. In the case of a violation that involves a permit, the person responsible for the violation has not been identified in a previous enforcement action by the Department or local government agency as responsible for a violation of the same requirement of the same permit within the preceding 12-month period;

4. In the case of a violation that does not involve a permit, the person responsible for the violation has not been notified in a previous enforcement action by the Department or local government agency as responsible for the same or a substantially similar violation at the same facility within the preceding 12-month period; and

5. In the case of any violation, the person responsible for the violation has not been identified by the Department or local government agency as responsible for the same or substantially similar violations at any time that reasonably indicate a pattern of illegal conduct and not isolated incidents on the part of the person responsible;

(d) For a violation determined to be minor under (c) above, the following provisions apply:

1. The Department or local government agency shall issue a notice of violation to the person responsible for the minor violation that:

i. Identifies the condition or activity that constitutes the violation and the specific statutory and regulatory provision or other requirement violated; and

ii. Specifies that a penalty may be imposed unless the minor violation is corrected and compliance is achieved within the specified grace period.

2. If the person responsible for the minor violation corrects that violation and demonstrates, in accordance with (d)3 below, that compliance has been achieved within the specified grace period, the Department or local government agency shall not impose a penalty for the violation.

3. The person responsible for a violation shall submit to the Department or local government agency, before the end of the specified grace period, written information certified to be true and signed by the person responsible for the minor violation, detailing the corrective action taken or compliance achieved.

4. If the person responsible for the minor violation seeks additional time beyond the specified grace period to achieve compliance, the person shall request an extension of the specified grace period. The request shall be made in writing, be certified to be true and signed by the person responsible for the minor violation, and received by the Department or local government agency no later than one week before the end of the specified grace period. The request shall include the anticipated time needed to achieve compliance, the specific cause or causes of the delay, and any measures taken or to be taken to minimize the time needed to achieve compliance. The Department or local government agency may, at its discretion, approve in writing an extension, which shall not exceed 90 days, to accommodate the anticipated delay in achieving compliance. In exercising its discretion to approve a request for an extension, the Department or local government agency may consider the following:

i. Whether the violator has taken reasonable measures to achieve compliance in a timely manner;

ii. Whether the delay has been caused by circumstances beyond the control of the violator;

iii. Whether the delay will pose a risk to the public health, safety and natural resources; and

iv. Whether the delay will materially or substantially undermine or impair the goals of the regulatory program.

5. If the person responsible for the minor violation fails to demonstrate to the Department or local government agency that the violation has been corrected and compliance achieved within the specified grace period or within the approved extension, if any, the Department or local government agency may, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, impose a penalty that is retroactive to the date the notice of violation under (d)1 above was issued.

6. The person responsible for a minor violation shall not request more than one extension of a grace period specified in a notice of violation.

Notes

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:14-8.4A

Adopted by 50 N.J.R. 409(a), effective 1/16/2018