On Wednesday, May 7, at 3 p.m., the Air Pollution Control District will host a public workshop to discuss proposed changes to Rule 302, Schedule of Fees. Following a brief presentation, the public will have the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback. The workshop will take place at the District office at 3433 Roberto Court, San Luis Obispo.
The following changes to Rule 302, Schedule of Fees, are proposed:
- Annual increases in permit renewal base fees of the greater of 6% or the CPI for Fiscal Years 2026-2027 and 2027-2028.
- Beginning July 1, 2028, fees would be adjusted annually based upon CPI.
- The following fees would be rounded down to the nearest whole dollar: Application Filing fee, Transfer of Ownership Fee, Modified Permit Conditions Fee, Asbestos NESHAP Fees, Naturally Occurring Asbestos Project Review Fees, Wine Operations Registration Fee, and the Conditional Permit Exemption fee.
- Permit renewal fees for motor vehicle and mobile equipment coating, printing operations, and surface coating or adhesive application coatings would be based on the mass of VOCs used rather than the volume. This change will not increase any facility’s fees.
- Clarify that the production rate used to determine permit renewal fees for coffee roasters is terms the amount of green coffee processed.
- Minor fixes to capitalization and punctuation and renaming certain permit categories for clarity and consistency.
As currently amended, Rule 302 specifies that for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 permit renewal fees will increase by approximately 6% and other fees will increase by 3.1%, effective July 1. The proposed changes to the rule will not affect this. Fees for burn permits will not change.
In addition to the May 7th workshop, the public has several other opportunities to provide feedback on the changes to Rule 302 and on Districts fees. The changes will be presented to the District Board of Directors at their meeting on May 21, 2025, in the context of the budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. On June 18, 2025, the Board of Directors will hold a hearing to consider adoption of the proposed changes. Public comment will be taken at both meeting; see here for additional details. In addition, written comments may be emailed to [email protected]