§201N-4  Permit plan application;coordinator; fee; pre-application conference.  (a)  The coordinator shallestablish and require the applicant to pay a fee for the coordinator's servicesin overseeing the permit plan process.  The coordinator shall set the fee at anamount sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of the coordinator,coordinator's staff and any contractor contracted by the coordinator to assistthe applicant, and relevant state and county agencies, if necessary, to provideinput and advice on the state and county permits necessary for the facility andin obtaining the permits.  Upon collection of the fee or periodicallythereafter, the coordinator, if necessary, shall transmit to each relevantstate or county agency the portion of the fee that reflects the cost to thatstate or county agency for providing its input or advice or issuing therequired permits.

(b)  Before accepting a permit planapplication, the coordinator may hold a pre-application conference, withoutregard to acceptance of the final environmental impact statement, with theprospective applicant to discuss all the state and county permits necessary forthe facility and notify the prospective applicant of the information that mustbe submitted for the necessary permits under the permit plan.  After receivinga permit plan application, the coordinator shall accept the application afterdetermining that the application is complete and complies with the permit planformat and procedure.

(c)  Within ten days of acceptance of a permitplan application, the coordinator shall publish public notice of the acceptanceof the application in two consecutive publications of the office ofenvironmental quality control's environmental notice, published pursuant tosection 343-3.  The public notice shall include:

(1)  The name of the applicant;

(2)  The location of the proposed renewable energyfacility;

(3)  A summarized description of the facility;

(4)  The state and county permits required for thefacility; and

(5)  Any other information deemed necessary ordesirable by the coordinator.

(d)  In conjunction with the pre-applicationconference, the initial public meeting, and any subsequent coordinatingmeetings with permitting agencies, the coordinator shall compile a permit plan,which shall include:

(1)  All state and county permits needed;

(2)  All applicant information required;

(3)  A plan for permits to be processed concurrently;

(4)  A list of required state and county technicalsupport and data required;

(5)  Agreement on timeline and coordination forpotential environmental impact statements and permit concurrence, review, andissuance;

(6)  Agreement on conditions by which any timelinesmay be extended; and

(7)  Agreement on cost reimbursement agreement.

(e)  The permit plan shall be a workingdocument, available to the public and posted on the department of business,economic development, and tourism's website, and shall be regularly updatedwith current information.  The permit plan shall be used to promote efficiencyand transparency in the permitting process and to achieve the purposes of thischapter through efficiencies in processes and procedures, including thecoordinated and concurrent processing of permits where possible, while ensuringopportunities for appropriate public comment and participation, includinghearings normally required for permits and mitigation of potentialenvironmental impacts.

(f)  The permit plan shall be designed toensure that all permits identified in the permit plan shall be processed andeither denied or approved no later than twelve months after the date that theproject permit plan application is accepted by the coordinator, subject to anyextensions that may be requested by the applicant.

(g)  Each appropriate state and county agencyshall diligently endeavor to process and approve or deny any permit in thepermit plan no later than twelve months after a completed permit planapplication is approved by the coordinator.  If the coordinator has given atleast thirty days written notice stating that the permit plan application issubject to this section and a permit is not approved or denied within twelvemonths after approval of a completed permit plan application, the permittingagency, within thirty days following the end of the twelve-month period, shallprovide the coordinator with a report identifying diligent measures that arebeing taken by the agency to complete processing and take action as soon aspracticable.  If no further processing and action are reported by thepermitting agency within five months following the end of the thirty-day agencyreport period, the coordinator may deem the permit approved.  If a permittingagency fails to provide this report identifying diligent measures and if thepermit has not been approved or denied within eighteen months following theapproval of a completed permit plan application by the coordinator, the permitshall be deemed approved. [L 2008, c 207, pt of §2; am L 2009, c 155, §8]