Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 12, March 22, 2024
a)
Scope and Applicability
1) The USEPA, the
Board, or the Agency may allow for the submission of any document as an
electronic document in lieu of a paper document. This Section does not require
submission of electronic documents in lieu of paper documents. This Section
sets forth the requirements for the optional electronic submission of any
document that must be submitted to the appropriate of the following:
A) To USEPA directly under Title 40 of the
Code of Federal Regulations; or
B)
To the Board or the Agency under any provision of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 702 through
705, 720 through 728, 730, 733, 738, or 739.
2) Electronic document submission under this
Section can occur only as follows:
A) For
submissions of documents to USEPA, submissions may occur only after USEPA has
published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that USEPA is prepared to
receive, in an electronic format, documents required or permitted by the
identified part or subpart of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations;
or
B) For submissions of documents
to the State, submissions may occur only under the following circumstances:
i) To the Board, into the Clerk's Office
On-Line (COOL) system at www.ipcb.state.il.us.
ii) To the Agency, into any electronic
document receiving system for which USEPA has granted approval under
40
CFR 3.1000, so long as the system complies
with
40
CFR 3.2000, incorporated by reference in
Section
611.102(c),
and USEPA has not withdrawn its approval of the system in writing.
3) This Section does
not apply to any of the following documents, whether or not the document is a
document submitted to satisfy the requirements cited in subsection (a)(1):
A) Any document submitted via
facsimile;
B) Any document
submitted via magnetic or optical media, such as diskette, compact disc,
digital video disc, or tape; or
C)
Any data transfer between USEPA, any state, or any local government and either
the Board or the Agency as part of administrative arrangements between the
parties to the transfer to share data.
4) Upon USEPA conferring written approval for
the submission of any types of documents as electronic documents in lieu of
paper documents, as described in subsection (a)(2)(B), the Agency or the Board,
as appropriate, must publish a Notice of Public Information in the Illinois
Register that describes the documents approved for submission as electronic
documents, the electronic document receiving system approved to receive them,
the acceptable formats and procedures for their submission, and, as applicable,
the date on which the Board or the Agency will begin to receive those
submissions. In the event of written cessation of USEPA approval for receiving
any type of document as an electronic document in lieu of a paper document, the
Board or the Agency must similarly cause publication of a Notice of Public
Information in the Illinois Register.
BOARD NOTE: Subsection (a) is derived from
40 CFR
3.1,
3.2,
3.10,
3.20,
and
3.1000.
b) Definitions. For the
purposes of this Section, terms will have the meaning attributed them in
40 CFR
3.3, incorporated by reference in 35 Ill.
Adm. Code
720.111(b).
c) Procedures for Submission of Electronic
Documents in Lieu of Paper Documents to USEPA. Except as provided in subsection
(a)(3), any person who is required under Title 40 of the Code of Federal
Regulations to create and submit or otherwise provide a document to USEPA may
satisfy this requirement with an electronic document, in lieu of a paper
document, provided the following conditions are met:
1) The person satisfies the requirements of
40 CFR
3.10, incorporated by reference in Section
720.111(b);
and
2) USEPA has first published a
notice in the Federal Register as described in subsection (a)(2)(A).
BOARD NOTE: Subsection (c) is derived from
40 CFR
3.2(a) and subpart B of 40
CFR 3.
d)
Procedures for Submission of Electronic Documents in Lieu of Paper Documents to
the Board or the Agency
1) The Board or the
Agency may, but is not required to, establish procedural rules for the
electronic submission of documents. The Board or the Agency must establish any
such procedural rules under the Administrative Procedure Act [5 ILCS 100 /Art.
5].
2) The Board or the Agency may
accept electronic documents under this Section only as provided in subsection
(a)(2)(B).
BOARD NOTE: Subsection (d) is derived from
40 CFR
3.2(b) and subpart D of 40
CFR 3.
e)
Effects of Submission of an Electronic Document in Lieu of Paper Documents
1) If a person who submits a document as an
electronic document fails to comply with the requirements of this Section, that
person is subject to the penalties prescribed for failure to comply with the
requirement that the electronic document was intended to satisfy.
2) If a document submitted as an electronic
document to satisfy a reporting requirement bears an electronic signature, the
electronic signature legally binds, obligates, and makes the signer responsible
to the same extent as the signer's handwritten signature would on a paper
document submitted to satisfy the same reporting requirement.
3) Proof that a particular signature device
was used to create an electronic signature will suffice to establish that the
individual uniquely entitled to use the device did so with the intent to sign
the electronic document and give it effect.
4) Nothing in this Section limits the use of
electronic documents or information derived from electronic documents as
evidence in enforcement or other proceedings.
BOARD NOTE: Subsection (e) is derived from
40
CFR 3.4 and
3.2000(c).
f) Public Document
Subject to State Laws. Any electronic document filed with the Board is a public
document. The document, its submission, its retention by the Board, and its
availability for public inspection and copying are subject to various State
laws, including, but not limited to, the following:
1) The Administrative Procedure
Act;
2) The Freedom of Information
Act [5 ILCS 140];
3) The State
Records Act [5 ILCS 160];
4) The
Electronic Commerce Security Act [5 ILCS 175];
5) The Environmental Protection
Act;
6) Regulations relating to
public access to Board records (2 Ill. Adm. Code 2175); and
7) Board procedural rules relating to
protection of trade secrets and confidential information (35 Ill. Adm. Code
130).
g) Nothing in this
Section or in any provisions adopted under subsection (d)(1) will create any
right or privilege to submit any document as an electronic document.
BOARD NOTE: Subsection (g) is derived from
40 CFR
3.2(c) (2018).
BOARD NOTE: Derived from 40 CFR 3,
145.11(a)(33),
271.10(b),
271.11(b),
and
271.12(h).