1. (1) Authorization.   The Department shall authorize a public hearing at its discretion, or upon receipt of significant number of technical requests as provided in 335-17-8-.09(2).
2. (2) Procedures.
3. (a) Requests for public hearings shall be submitted in writing to the Department.
4. 1. Frivolous or nontechnical requests shall be denied by the Department.
5. 2. Requests for public hearings must be submitted within thirty-five (35) days after the publication of the public notice and must contain the following:
6. (i) The name, address and telephone number of the person requesting the hearing.
7. (ii) A brief statement of the person’s interest and the information the person wishes to submit.
8. (iii) The person’s signature, if an individual, or the signature of a responsible officer of an organization or legal entity.
9. (b) When a hearing has been authorized, the Department shall appoint a hearing officer to conduct the hearing and shall establish a time, date, and location for the hearing. The location for the hearing shall comply with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
10. (c) The Department shall give notice of the public hearing in the manner set forth in 335-17-8-.08(1), and to the persons requesting the hearing in 335-17-8-.09(2). The notice shall be given not less than thirty-five (35) days prior to the time of the public hearing and shall include:
11. 1. A summary of the proposed permitting action.
12. 2. The place, time, and date of the hearing.
13. 3. The name, address, and telephone number of an office at which interested persons may receive further information.
14. (3) Departmental Action.  After the public hearing and close of the comment period, the Department shall review, consider, and respond to comments received by the close of the comment period and take one of the following actions:
15. (a) Issue the permitting action if the application complies with this Division; or
16. (b) Deny the permitting action, stating in writing the reasons for denial and inform the person requesting the permitting action of appeal procedures described in 335-2-1;
17. (c) Require additional information or additional elements of design for the facility. If required, the applicant must specify procedures for inclusion into the permit of any additional information prior to issuance of the permit action.

Author: Clethes Stallworth

Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, §§22-22A-5, 22-27-7.

History: Amended: Published June 30, 2025; effective August 14, 2025.