§ 3-0306. Registry of public agencies and private organizations; notice

of department hearings.

1. The commissioner shall develop and maintain a registry of
government agencies and officials and of private organizations of
statewide, regional, county and local scope, with interests in the
regulatory and other programs of the department for the purpose of
providing written notice to such agencies and organizations of the time,
date, place, subject and nature of hearings on rules and regulations
under consideration by the department, or on applications to the
department for permits relating to the use, improvement, construction,
change or any modification whatsoever of the air, land, or water
resources within the state, or in relation to any other business before
the department for which issuance of a public notice is required or is
appropriate and desirable in accord with the interests of public
participation in environmental planning and decision-making.

2. To aid in the compilation of the registry, the commissioner shall
advertise its purposes no less than annually to governmental agencies
and the public through news releases and other media available to the
department, stating that interested agencies and organizations may apply
to be listed in the registry by completing forms requiring such
information as may be prescribed by the commissioner. Said registry
shall be prepared by the department to be as comprehensive as possible
and the entries contained therein shall not be limited to those obtained
in response to advertisement by the department of the purposes of the
registry.

3. The commissioner shall publish and distribute or cause to be
published and distributed said registry, not less frequently than
annually and in whole or in part as deemed appropriate and desirable by
the commissioner, for the purpose of providing a directory to assist
with communications between public agencies and private organizations in
all manner of environmental affairs.

4. Notices, as described herein, shall, at the discretion of the
commissioner, be published not less frequently than once every two weeks
in a departmental publication which shall be mailed to registered
agencies and organizations in the area to be affected by the subject of
said notices and to other persons subscribing to such publication;
provided that the commissioner may require the payment of a subscription
fee not to exceed the reasonable costs of such publication; and provided
further that the commissioner may in lieu of publishing any such notice
mail a copy thereof to registered agencies or organizations. In setting
such fee the commissioner shall take into account the purposes of this
section to provide broad public notice of department actions. Unless
otherwise provided by statute or regulation, failure to provide notice
as herein described shall in no way affect the ordinary proceedings of
the department.