Utah Code 19-5-115. Violations — Penalties — Civil actions by director — Ordinances and rules of political subdivisions — Acts of individuals
Current as of: 2024 | Check for updates
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(1) As used in this section:
For details, see Utah Code § 76-3-204
Attorney's Note
Under the Utah Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| class A misdemeanor | up to 364 days | up to $2,500 |
Terms Used In Utah Code 19-5-115
- Board: means the Water Quality Board created in Section 19-1-106. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Department: means the Department of Environmental Quality. See Utah Code 19-1-103
- Director: means the director of the Division of Water Quality or, for purposes of groundwater quality at a facility licensed by and under the jurisdiction of the Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control, the director of the Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Discharge: means the addition of a pollutant to waters of the state. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Person: means an individual, trust, firm, estate, company, corporation, partnership, association, state, state or federal agency or entity, municipality, commission, or political subdivision of a state. See Utah Code 19-1-103
- pollutant: means dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt, and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
- Publicly owned treatment works: means a facility for the treatment of pollutants owned by the state, its political subdivisions, or other public entity. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Sewage sludge: means solid, semisolid, or liquid residue removed during the treatment of municipal wastewater or domestic sewage. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Treatment works: means a plant, disposal field, lagoon, dam, pumping station, incinerator, or other works used for the purpose of treating, stabilizing, or holding wastes. See Utah Code 19-5-102
- Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
(1)(a) “Criminal negligence” means the same as that term is defined in Section 76-2-103 .
(1)(b) “Knowingly” means the same as that term is defined in Section 76-2-103 .
(1)(c) “Organization” means a legal entity, other than a government, established or organized for any purpose, and includes a corporation, company, association, firm, partnership, joint stock company, foundation, institution, trust, society, union, or any other association of persons.
(1)(d) “Serious bodily injury” means bodily injury that involves a substantial risk of death, unconsciousness, extreme physical pain, protracted and obvious disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member, organ, or mental faculty.
(1)(e) “Willfully” means the same as that term is defined in Section 76-2-103 .
(2) A person who violates this chapter, or any permit, rule, or order adopted under this chapter, upon a showing that the violation occurred, is subject in a civil proceeding to a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 per day of violation.
(3)
(3)(a) A person is guilty of a class A misdemeanor and is subject to imprisonment under Section 76-3-204 and a fine not exceeding $25,000 per day who, with criminal negligence:
(3)(a)(i) discharges pollutants in violation of Subsection 19-5-107 (1) or in violation of any condition or limitation included in a permit issued under Subsection 19-5-107 (3);
(3)(a)(ii) violates Section 19-5-113 ;
(3)(a)(iii) violates a pretreatment standard or toxic effluent standard for publicly owned treatment works; or
(3)(a)(iv) manages sewage sludge in violation of this chapter or rules adopted under this chapter.
(3)(b) A person is guilty of a third degree felony and is subject to imprisonment under Section 76-3-203 and a fine not to exceed $50,000 per day of violation who knowingly:
(3)(b)(i) discharges pollutants in violation of Subsection 19-5-107 (1) or in violation of any condition or limitation included in a permit issued under Subsection 19-5-107 (3);
(3)(b)(ii) violates Section 19-5-113 ;
(3)(b)(iii) violates a pretreatment standard or toxic effluent standard for publicly owned treatment works; or
(3)(b)(iv) manages sewage sludge in violation of this chapter or rules adopted under this chapter.
(4) A person is guilty of a third degree felony and subject to imprisonment under Section 76-3-203 and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $10,000 per day of violation if that person knowingly:
(4)(a) makes a false material statement, representation, or certification in any application, record, report, plan, or other document filed or required to be maintained under this chapter, or by any permit, rule, or order issued under this chapter; or
(4)(b) falsifies, tampers with, or knowingly renders inaccurate a monitoring device or method required to be maintained under this chapter.
(5)
(5)(a) A person is guilty of a second degree felony and, upon conviction, is subject to imprisonment under Section 76-3-203 and a fine of not more than $250,000 if that person:
(5)(a)(i) knowingly violates this chapter, or any permit, rule, or order adopted under this chapter; and
(5)(a)(ii) knows at that time that the person is placing another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury.
(5)(b) If a person is an organization, the organization shall, upon conviction of violating Subsection (5)(a), be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000,000.
(5)(c)
(5)(c)(i) A defendant who is an individual is considered to have acted knowingly if:
(5)(c)(i)(A) the defendant’s conduct placed another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury; and
(5)(c)(i)(B) the defendant was aware of or believed that there was an imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury to another person.
(5)(c)(ii) Knowledge possessed by a person other than the defendant may not be attributed to the defendant.
(5)(c)(iii) Circumstantial evidence may be used to prove that the defendant possessed actual knowledge, including evidence that the defendant took affirmative steps to be shielded from receiving relevant information.
(5)(d)
(5)(d)(i) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this Subsection (5) that the conduct charged was consented to by the person endangered and that the danger and conduct charged were reasonably foreseeable hazards of:
(5)(d)(i)(A) an occupation, a business, or a profession; or
(5)(d)(i)(B) medical treatment or medical or scientific experimentation conducted by professionally approved methods and the other person was aware of the risks involved before giving consent.
(5)(d)(ii) The defendant has the burden of proof to establish an affirmative defense under this Subsection (5)(d) and shall prove that defense by a preponderance of the evidence.
(6) For purposes of Subsections (3) through (5), a single operational upset that leads to simultaneous violations of more than one pollutant parameter shall be treated as a single violation.
(7)
(7)(a) The director may bring a civil action for appropriate relief, including a permanent or temporary injunction, for any violation or threatened violation for which the director is authorized to issue a compliance order under Section 19-5-111 .
(7)(b) Notwithstanding Title 78A, Chapter 3a, Venue for Civil Actions, the director shall bring a civil action in the district court where the violation or threatened violation occurs if the director brings the action in a district court.
(8)
(8)(a) The attorney general is the legal advisor for the board and the director and shall defend the board or director in an action or proceeding brought against the board or director.
(8)(b) The county attorney or district attorney, as appropriate under Section 17-18a-202 or 17-18a-203 , in the county in which a cause of action arises, shall bring an action, civil or criminal, requested by the director, to abate a condition that exists in violation of, or to prosecute for the violation of, or to enforce, the laws or the standards, orders, and rules of the board or the director issued under this chapter.
(8)(c) The director may initiate an action under this section and be represented by the attorney general.
(9) If a person fails to comply with a cease and desist order that is not subject to a stay pending administrative or judicial review, the director may initiate an action for and be entitled to injunctive relief to prevent any further or continued violation of the order.
(10) A political subdivision of the state may enact and enforce ordinances or rules for the implementation of this chapter that are not inconsistent with this chapter.
(11)
(11)(a) Except as provided in Subsection (11)(b), penalties assessed and collected under the authority of this section shall be deposited into the General Fund.
(11)(b) The department may reimburse itself and local governments from money collected from civil penalties for extraordinary expenses incurred in environmental enforcement activities.
(11)(c) The department shall regulate reimbursements by making rules, in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, that:
(11)(c)(i) define qualifying environmental enforcement activities; and
(11)(c)(ii) define qualifying extraordinary expenses.
(12)
(12)(a) For purposes of this section or an ordinance or rule enacted by a political subdivision under Subsection (10), an act performed by an individual wholly within the scope of the individual’s employment with an organization, is attributed to the organization.
(12)(b) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this section, an action may not be brought against an individual acting wholly within the scope of the individual’s employment with an organization if the action is brought under:
(12)(b)(i) this section;
(12)(b)(ii) an ordinance or rule issued by a political subdivision under Subsection (10); or
(12)(b)(iii) any local law or ordinance governing discharge.