Application Fee Schedule & Permitting Time Frames

Beginning on June 26, 1998, State Regulation 61-30, entitled "Environmental Protection Fees," authorizes the Department to charge application fees for permits on agricultural animal facility management plans. A check for the applicable amount must be included with an application package. The check should be made out to "DHEC's Bureau of Finance."

Please note that under the agricultural permitting regulations, Regulation 61-43, entitled "Standards for the Permitting of Agricultural Animal Facilities," permits are not needed for facilities that have 30,000 pounds or less of normal production live weight and do not have a manure treatment system unless the Department specifically requires a permit. Therefore, there is no fee associated with these facilities unless the Department requires a permit.

The fees only apply to permit applications for new facilities and expansions of existing facilities. Expansion is defined for facilities with lagoons as "an increase due to construction in the maximum capacity of an existing lagoon, treatment system or manure storage pond as determined using design standards of the United States Department of Agriculture's Natural Resource Conservation Service." However, if a lagoon is converted to a storage pond, it is an expansion regardless of whether construction was necessary for the increase in capacity. For facilities with dry manure handling, expansion is defined as an increase in the permitted number of animals. Existing facilities that make a permit application to the Department for the addition of only new manure application areas, composters, stacking sheds, etc., are not subject to the application fees at this time.

With the fee program, there is a requirement that DHEC meet certain time frames when processing permit applications. The fees and time frames are identified below:

Swine Facilities - Based on the size of the facility

Other Animal Facilities - Based on the type of manure handling

The "DHEC Time Frame" is not total time but rather it is generally the time that DHEC spends working on an application after a complete package is received. The "DHEC Time Frame" does not include the time an applicant takes to supply any information that may be requested by DHEC. If DHEC fails to meet the prescribed time for its work, a refund of the application fee must be made. Please see Regulation 61-30, entitled "Environmental Protection Fees," for more information on this subject.