Okla. Stat. tit. 27A, § 27A-2-3-101

interests - Employee classification - Programs - Departmental

offices and divisions - Annual report - Environmental Quality Report

- Environmental services contracts.

A. There is hereby created the Department of Environmental

Quality.

B. Within its jurisdictional areas of environmental

responsibility, the Department of Environmental Quality, through its

duly designated employees or representatives, shall have the power

and duty to:

1. Perform such duties as required by law; and

2. Be the official agency of the State of Oklahoma, as

designated by law, to cooperate with federal agencies for point

source pollution, solid waste, hazardous materials, pollution,

Superfund, water quality, hazardous waste, radioactive waste, air

quality, drinking water supplies, wastewater treatment and any other

program authorized by law or executive order.

C. Any employee of the Department in a technical, supervisory

or administrative position relating to the review, issuance or

enforcement of permits pursuant to this Code who is an owner,

stockholder, employee or officer of, or who receives compensation

from, any corporation, partnership, or other business or entity

which is subject to regulation by the Department of Environmental

Quality shall disclose such interest to the Executive Director.

Such disclosure shall be submitted for Board review and shall be

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 27A. Environment and Natural Resources Page 69

made a part of the Board minutes available to the public. This

subsection shall not apply to financial interests occurring by

reason of an employee's participation in the Oklahoma State

Employees Deferred Compensation Plan or publicly traded mutual

funds.

D. The Executive Director, Deputy Director, and all other

positions and employees of the Department at the Division Director

level or higher shall be in the unclassified service.

E. The following programs are hereby established within the

Department of Environmental Quality:

1. An air quality program which shall be responsible for air

quality;

2. Water programs which shall be responsible for water quality,

including, but not limited to point source and nonpoint source

pollution within the jurisdiction of the Department, public and

private water supplies, public and private wastewater treatment,

water protection and discharges to waters of the state;

3. Land protection programs which shall be responsible for

hazardous waste, solid waste, radiation, and municipal, industrial,

commercial and other waste within its jurisdictional areas of

environmental responsibility pursuant to Section 1-3-101 of this

title; and

4. Special projects and services programs which shall be

responsible for duties related to planning, interagency

coordination, technical assistance programs, laboratory services and

laboratory certification, recycling, education and dissemination of

information.

F. Within the Department there are hereby created:

1. The complaints program which shall be responsible for intake

processing, investigation, mediation and conciliation of inquiries

and complaints received by the Department and which shall provide

for the expedient resolution of complaints within the jurisdiction

of the Department; and

2. The customer assistance program which shall be responsible

for advising and providing to licensees, permittees and those

persons representing businesses or those persons associated with and

representing local political subdivisions desiring a license or

permit, the necessary forms and the information necessary to comply

with the Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code. The customer

assistance program shall coordinate with other programs of the

Department to assist businesses and municipalities in complying with

state statutes and rules governing environmental areas.

The customer assistance program shall also be responsible for

advising and providing assistance to persons desiring information
necessary to comply

with the Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code. The customer

assistance program shall coordinate with other programs of the

Department to assist businesses and municipalities in complying with

state statutes and rules governing environmental areas.

The customer assistance program shall also be responsible for

advising and providing assistance to persons desiring information

concerning the Department's rules, laws, procedures, licenses or

permits, and forms used to comply with the Oklahoma Environmental

Quality Code.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 27A. Environment and Natural Resources Page 70

G. The Department shall be responsible for holding

administrative hearings as defined in Section 2-1-102 of this title

and shall provide support services related to them, including, but

not limited to, giving required notices, maintaining the docket,

scheduling hearings, and maintaining legal records.

H. 1. The Department shall prepare and submit an annual report

assessing the status of the Department's programs to the Board, the

Governor, the President Pro Tempore of the State Senate, and the

Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives by January 1 of

each year. The annual status report shall include: the number of

environmental inspections made within the various regulatory areas

under the Department's jurisdiction; the number of permit

applications submitted within the various regulatory areas under the

Department's jurisdiction; the number of permits issued within the

various regulatory areas under the Department's jurisdiction; the

number and type of complaints filed with the Department; the number

of resolved and unresolved Department complaints; a list of any

permits and complaints which failed to be either completed or

resolved within the Department's established time frames and an

explanation of why the Department was unable to meet said time

frames; the number and kinds of services provided corporations,

businesses, cities, towns, schools, citizen groups and individuals

by the customer assistance programs; a summary of the Department's

environmental education efforts; the number and type of

administrative hearings held and their outcomes; a detailed

description of any promulgated and pending emergency or permanent

rules requested by the Department and the current status of pending

rules within the rulemaking process; the number of notices of

violations issued by the Department within the various regulatory

areas under its jurisdiction; the amount of penalties collected by

the Department within the various regulatory areas under its

jurisdiction; and any other information which the Department

believes is pertinent.

2. Beginning January 1, 1995, and on or before January 1 of

every year thereafter, the Department shall prepare an Oklahoma

Environmental Quality Report which outlines the Department's annual

needs for providing environmental services within its jurisdictional

areas. The report shall reflect any new federal mandates and any

state statutory or constitutional changes recommended by the

Department within its jurisdictional areas. The Oklahoma

Environmental Quality Report shall be reviewed, amended, and

approved by the Board. The Department shall transmit an approved

copy of the Oklahoma Environmental Quality Report to the Governor,

President Pro Tempore of the State Senate, and Speaker of the House

of Representatives.

3. The Executive Director shall establish such divisions and

such other programs and offices as the Executive Director may

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determine necessary to implement and administer programs and

functions within the jurisdiction of the Department pursuant to the

Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code.

I. 1. The Department may contract with other governmental

entities to provide environmental services. Such contracts may
ices as the Executive Director may

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determine necessary to implement and administer programs and

functions within the jurisdiction of the Department pursuant to the

Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code.

I. 1. The Department may contract with other governmental

entities to provide environmental services. Such contracts may

include duties related to providing information to the public

regarding state environmental services, resources, permitting

requirements and procedures based upon the ability, education and

training of state environmental agency employees.

2. The Department, in conjunction with the state environmental

agencies, may develop a program for the purpose of training

government employees to provide any needed environmental services;

provided, that the investigation of complaints regarding, or

inspections of, permitted sites or facilities shall not be performed

by employees of other agencies, unless otherwise authorized by law.