Section 3745.114. Water quality certification fee - exemptions

(A) A person that applies for a section 401 water quality certification under Chapter 6111. of the Revised Code and rules adopted under it shall pay an application fee of two hundred dollars at the time of application plus any of the following fees, as applicable:

(1) If the water resource to be impacted is a wetland, a review fee of five hundred dollars per acre of wetland to be impacted;

(2) If the water resource to be impacted is a stream one of the following fees, as applicable:

(a) For an ephemeral stream, a review fee of five dollars per linear foot of stream to be impacted, or two hundred dollars, whichever is greater;

(b) For an intermittent stream, a review fee of ten dollars per linear foot of stream to be impacted, or two hundred dollars, whichever is greater;

(c) For a perennial stream, a review fee of fifteen dollars per linear foot of stream to be impacted, or two hundred dollars, whichever is greater.

(3) If the water resource to be impacted is a lake, a review fee of three dollars per cubic yard of dredged or fill material to be moved.

(B) One-half of all applicable review fees levied under this section shall be due at the time of application for a section 401 water quality certification. The remainder of the fees shall be paid upon the final disposition of the application for a section 401 water quality certification. The total fee to be paid under this section shall not exceed twenty-five thousand dollars per application. However, if the applicant is a county, township, or municipal corporation in this state, the total fee to be paid shall not exceed five thousand dollars per application.

(C) All money collected under this section shall be transmitted to the treasurer of state for deposit into the state treasury to the credit of the surface water protection fund created in section 6111.038 of the Revised Code.

(D) The fees established under this section do not apply to any state agency as defined in section 119.01 of the Revised Code or to the United States army corps of engineers.

(E) The fees established under this section do not apply to projects that are authorized by the environmental protection agency's general certifications of nationwide permits or general permits issued by the United States army corps of engineers. As used in this division, "general permit" and "nationwide permit" have the same meanings as in rules adopted under Chapter 6111. of the Revised Code.

(F) Coal mining and reclamation operations that are authorized under Chapter 1513. of the Revised Code are exempt from the fees established under this section for one year after the effective date of this amendment.

(G) As used in this section:

(1) "Ephemeral stream" means a stream that flows only in direct response to precipitation in the immediate watershed or in response to the melting of a cover of snow and ice and that has channel bottom that is always above the local water table.

(2) "Intermittent stream" means a stream that is below the local water table and flows for at least a part of each year and that obtains its flow from both surface runoff and ground water discharge.

(3) "Perennial stream" means a stream or a part of a stream that flows continuously during all of the calendar year as a result of ground water discharge or surface water runoff. "Perennial stream" does not include an intermittent stream or an ephemeral stream.

Effective Date: 06-30-2005; 03-30-2006