Section 816.03 - Plan Review and Approval(a) Timeframes (1) Each Plan shall be approved or denied within 30 days after receipt by the Administrator.(2) Any state agency or committee that reviews the contingency plans shall submit any comments to the Administrator within 60 days of receipt of the plan by the agency or committee.(3) The Administrator shall determine whether each plan complies with the regulations governing the contingency planning process. If it is determined that a plan is inadequate a written explanation of deficiencies, and, if practicable, suggested modifications or alternatives shall be sent to the plan holder.(4) Upon notification of a plan's deficiencies, the plan holder will have 30 days to submit a new or modified plan. Such a re-submittal shall be treated as a new submittal and processed according to the provisions of this section.(b) Determination of Adequacy (1) A plan will be determined to be adequate if it provides for the best achievable protection of coastal and marine resources and meets the requirements of this subchapter. To be approved, the plan must also demonstrate that each owner/operator maintains a level of readiness that will allow for effective implementation of the plan.(2) To be determined adequate, each plan shall provide for all of the following:(A) Prevention Measures:1. for marine facilities, all prevention measures to reduce or eliminate the hazards that could result in an oil spill as identified in the Risk and Hazard Analysis;2. for tank vessels, all prevention measures to reduce the possibility of an oil spill occurring as a result of allisions, collisions, groundings, explosions or operator error;(B) immediate notification and mobilization of response resources upon the discovery of a spill;(C) procedures for deployment and delivery of response equipment and personnel within the timeframes specified in Sections 817.02, 817.03, 818.02 or 818.03;(D) procedures to assure protection of the environment from oil spills;(E) procedures for timely and adequate cleanup of all spills, up to and including the reasonable worst case spill;(F) identification of response equipment, and the call-out procedures to acquire that equipment, to respond to any spill over and above the reasonable worst case spill, in a timely and efficient manner.(G) all other prevention and response measures specified in Sections 817.02, 817.03, 818.02 or 818.03.(3) In assessing the adequacy of a plan the Administrator shall consider: (A) the volume and types of oil addressed by the plan;(B) the history and circumstances of prior spills from the tank vessel, marine facility, small marine fueling facility, or vessel carrying oil as secondary cargo;(C) existing operating hazards;(D) the sensitivity and value of the natural, cultural and commercial resources of the geographic area encompassed by the plan;(E) the spill prevention, notification and response measures addressed in the plan; and(F) the site-specific characteristics of a marine facility that could affect response and cleanup operations, including: local topography, prevailing winds, current speed and direction, tidal fluctuations, and access to the potential spill sites; or(G) the area-specific characteristics along a tank vessel's normal routes of travel that could affect response and cleanup operations, including: prevailing winds, current speed and direction, tidal fluctuations, and access to the potential spill response sites.(4) Prior and subsequent to plan approval, the Administrator may make an on-site inspection and require a drill of all or part of any contingency plan submitted in order to determine the plan's adequacy.(c) Public Review and Comment Contingency plans will be made available for review by any interested member of the general public at a designated location.
(1) Any person interested in reviewing the plan shall contact the Administrator to request an appointment to review the plan at the office of OSPR. Copies of the plans will be provided at the cost of duplication.(2) Any interested person may review a plan and submit written comments prior to the Administrator's approval of the initial plan or plan updates. Such comments will be taken into consideration in the Administrator's approval process. No comments will be accepted after final approval.(d) Plan Approval (1) A plan shall be approved if it addresses all the elements specified in Sections 817.02, 817.03, 818.02, or 818.03, as appropriate, and complies with the adequacy criteria enumerated in this section.(2) Any revised plan submitted by an owner/operator in response to a notification of inadequacy shall be considered approved unless otherwise notified by the Administrator within the timeframes established in Section 816.03(a).(3) Any comments submitted by other agencies or interested parties shall be considered when approving or disapproving the plan.(4) The plan holder shall be notified when a plan has been approved. A Letter of Approval will be issued by the Administrator and will describe the conditions of approval, if any, and specify the expiration date of the Letter of Approval.(5) A plan will be considered to be effective upon submittal unless and until the owner/operator is notified that the plan is inadequate. Exceptions to this requirement will be considered by the Administrator on a case-by-case basis.(e) Interim Approval (1) A plan may be approved with minor deficiencies as long as the following requisite elements are included in the plan:(A) Information to clearly identify the tank vessel or marine facility, including but not limited to: 1. for tank vessels: vessel name, call sign, official number, classification and owner/operator name, address and phone number;2. for marine facilities: name and address of facility, name, address and phone number of the owner/operator.(B) A copy of the contract(s) or other approved means for the response resources that meet the requirements of this subchapter;(C) Identification, including telephone number and facsimile number, of a Qualified Individual;(D) Appropriate and adequate evidence of financial responsibility.(2) An Interim Approval shall only remain valid for 30 calendar days.(f) Denial or Revocation of Plan (1) Approval shall be denied or revoked if a plan does not comply or maintain compliance with the criteria set forth in this Subchapter.(2) If approval of a contingency plan is denied or revoked, the Administrator shall notify the plan holder in writing of the reasons for denial or revocation and provide an explanation of those actions necessary to secure approval. (A) The plan holder shall have 30 calendar days from notification of a denied plan to submit a new or revised plan that incorporates the recommended changes, during which time the plan is considered effective pending final approval. For a tank vessel plan, the Administrator may, however, revoke the plan and deny entry to the vessel if the plan has significant deficiencies that result in the inability of the plan holder to maintain a level of readiness as required by this subchapter.(B) No tank vessel shall operate in marine waters if it fails to gain approval of its contingency plan after the second submission until a subsequent submission is approved.(C) If a marine facility fails to gain approval of its contingency plan after the second submission, the administrator may order it to discontinue operations until a subsequent submission is approved.(D) If a plan holder fails to address plan deficiencies within 90 calendar days from notification of a denied plan, the Administrator may, without further notice, declare the plan null and void.(g) Request for Reconsideration. The plan holder may request reconsideration of a decision made by the Administrator regarding the denial of approval, denial of exemption, or revocation of a contingency plan by following the process described in section 790.5 of chapter 1.
(h) Proof of Approval (1) Marine Facilities The marine facility plan holder shall keep the Letter of Approval, or a copy certified to be true and accurate, filed in the front of the approved contingency plan. The approval letter shall be presented upon request to any representative of the Administrator.
(2) Tank Vessels The Letter of Approval shall be presented upon request to the operator of a marine facility prior to an oil transfer.
(i) Liability Approval of a plan does not constitute an express assurance regarding the adequacy of the plan in the event of a spill nor does it constitute a defense to liability on the part of the operator or owner.
(j) Coastal Protection Review (1) Within one year of the adoption of this section, and within 18 months of subsequent updates, the Administrator shall conduct a comprehensive review of all the oil spill contingency plans for tank vessels and marine facilities.(2) The comprehensive review shall be conducted to assure that the plans, as a whole, provide the best achievable protection of coastal resources. Each plan will be reviewed in conjunction with all the plans submitted by tank vessels and marine facilities located in or using the same Geographical Region. The Geographic Regions to be used for the review of overall coastal protection are defined in Chapter 1, Section 790 of this subdivision.(3) The Administrator shall evaluate the contingency plans for each Geographical Region to determine if deficiencies exist in equipment, personnel, training and other elements determined to be necessary to ensure the best achievable protection for that region.(4) If deficiencies are found to exist in overall protection, the Administrator shall remand any contingency plans to the plan holder with recommendations for any amendments necessary to adequately protect coastal resources in that Geographical Region. Any plans returned for amendment shall be processed according to the procedures for initial submittal, review and approval of the contingency plan.Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 14, § 816.03
1. New section filed 11-4-93 with the Secretary of State by the Department of Fish and Game; operative 11-4-93. Submitted to OAL for printing only pursuant to Government Code section 8670.28(e) (Register 93, No. 45).
2. Change without regulatory effect amending subsection (j)(2) and repealing subsections (j)(2)(A)-(G) filed 7-12-95 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 95, No. 28).
3. Amendment of section and NOTE filed 6-1-98; operative 6-1-98 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(d) (Register 98, No. 23).
4. Change without regulatory effect amending NOTE filed 8-29-2000 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2000, No. 35).
5. Amendment filed 3-20-2007; operative 5-1-2007 (Register 2007, No. 12).
6. Amendment of subsections (f)(1)-(f)(2)(D) and NOTE filed 5-3-2011; operative 6-2-2011 (Register 2011, No. 18).
7. Change without regulatory effect amending subsections (a)(1), (a)(4) and (f)(2)(A) filed 7-23-2015 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2015, No. 30).
8. Amendment of subsection (g) and repealer of subsections (g)(1)-(g)(4) filed 7-5-2022; operative 10-1-2022 (Register 2022, No. 27). Note: Authority cited: Sections 8670.19, 8670.28 and 8670.31, Government Code. Reference: Sections 8670.19, 8670.28, 8670.29 and 8670.31, Government Code.
1. New section filed 11-4-93 with the Secretary of State by the Department of Fish and Game; operative 11-4-93. Submitted to OAL for printing only pursuant to Government Code section 8670.28(e) (Register 93, No. 45).
2. Change without regulatory effect amending subsection (j)(2) and repealing subsections (j)(2)(A)-(G) filed 7-12-95 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 95, No. 28).
3. Amendment of section and Note filed 6-1-98; operative 6-1-98 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(d) (Register 98, No. 23).
4. Change without regulatory effect amending Note filed 8-29-2000 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2000, No. 35).
5. Amendment filed 3-20-2007; operative 5-1-2007 (Register 2007, No. 12).
6. Amendment of subsections (f)(1)-(f)(2)(D) and Note filed 5-3-2011; operative 6-2-2011 (Register 2011, No. 18).
7. Change without regulatory effect amending subsections (a)(1), (a)(4) and (f)(2)(A) filed 7-23-2015 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2015, No. 30).
8. Amendment of subsection (g) and repealer of subsections (g)(1)-(g)(4) filed 7-5-2022; operative 10/1/2022 (Register 2022, No. 27).