Fremont City Council Meeting: 12/05/23 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Fire Department
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Fees & Rates
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5050) DOC ID: 5050
Updated: 12/1/2023 12:52 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 1
CUPA/HAZMAT STATE SURCHARGE INCREASES - Public Hearing (Published Notice) to Adopt a Resolution to Amend the Master Fee Schedule to Implement CUPA Surcharge Fee Increases Imposed by the State of California, Environmental Protection Agency ("CalEPA")
Contact Persons:
Name: Corina Campbell Zoraida Diaz
Title: Business Manager Fire Chief
Div/Dept: Fire Department Fire Department
Phone: 510-494-4200 510-494-4200
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: This report informs the City Council that State surcharges collected by the City of Fremont Fire Department as a Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) for the State’s United Program have been increased by the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA). The City’s Master Fee Schedule provides for these State surcharges.
Staff recommends that the Council adopt a resolution to amend the Master Fee Schedule to reflect the new fees.
As of October 13, 2023, CalEPA amended its State surcharge fees to increase the General Oversight Surcharge from $57 to $67 annually per business/facility and the California Accidental Release Program (CalARP) surcharge from $270 to $370. These surcharge increases will be implemented as of January 1, 2024, for the 2024/2025 billing cycle. To collect these fees, the City’s Master Fee Schedule needs to be amended to reflect the two program fee increases.
BACKGROUND: The CUPA program state surcharge is an assessment on each entity regulated under the State Unified Program and is used to fund the necessary and reasonable costs of all State agencies responsible for program implementation, ongoing maintenance, and oversight of several environmental and emergency programs.
Since its inception in 1997, the CUPA program has matured into a robust program with established standards and a fully integrated environmental reporting system, raising increasingly numerous and complex legal issues. In 2021, the Legislature transferred to CalEPA the responsibility for managing the CalARP Program and the Hazardous Materials Business Plan (HMBP) Program, which many of Fremont’s industrial businesses are subject to. Effective July 1, 2023, the Legislature expanded CalEPA’s inspection and enforcement responsibilities and authorities with respect to the HMBP and CalARP programs. The necessary and reasonable costs of State agencies responsible for program implementation, ongoing maintenance and oversight of the CUPA program has expanded substantially over the years.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: The Fremont Fire Prevention Division works with CalEPA to oversee the CUPA Program, which is made up of 81 certified local government agencies, known as Certified Unified Program Agencies (CUPAs). State law requires each CUPA to assess a surcharge, in an amount determined by CalEPA, on the persons and businesses Council Staff Report (ID # 5050) Meeting of December 5, 2023 Updated: 12/1/2023 12:52 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 2
that are subject to CalEPA regulations, to cover the costs of the state agencies in carrying out their responsibilities under the Unified Program.
To support the necessary and reasonable costs of the CUPA program, CalEPA has increased the State surcharge fees. CUPA agencies are responsible for billing and collecting the state surcharges from each regulated business or facility. Fremont Fire Prevention has an annual billing which occurs each January. As of October 13, 2023, the Unified Program General Oversight Surcharge which is used to support the HMBP program has been increased annually from $57 to $67 per business/facility, and the CalARP state surcharge, which has only been increased once 15 years ago, will be increased from $270 to $370 per regulated business annually. The Fremont Fire Prevention Bureau is responsible for implementation and collection of the new fees, setting program element standards, working with CalEPA to ensure program consistency, providing technical assistance to CUPAs, and passing the collected fees onto the State.
FISCAL IMPACT: The fees collected are passed through to the State.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: Approval of this agreement is not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is an organizational or administrative governmental activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment and is therefore not a project as defined in CEQA Guidelines section 15378.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Draft Reso CUPA Fee MFS
• Exh A Master Fee Update for CUPA Fees
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Hold a public hearing regarding the State increases in surcharge fees.
2. Adopt a resolution amending the Master Fee Schedule to increase the Unified Program General Oversight Surcharge fee from $57 to $67 and increase the CalARP surcharge fee from $270 to $370 per business/facility annually.