The updated MS4 general permit requires municipalities to pass several 'legal authorities' which could be ordinances, bylaws, regulations, standard conditions of approval or other appropriate legal authorities. Generally, the three legal authorities in the permit are: to prohibit and eliminate illicit discharges, to require low impact development be considered before other practices for managing stormwater runoff, and to require and inspect stormwater runoff control practices at construction sites.
The examples we provide below don't substitute for real legal advice! Please be sure to consult your legal experts or town attorney.
IDDE Legal Authority
Although the 2004 MS4 general permit previously required towns to establish the legal authority to prohibit illicit discharges to the stormwater system, additional requirements were added to the updated permit. We modified a model IDDE ordinance developed by the EPA to reflect the new requirements of the CT general MS4 permit. The example CT ordinance is available for download here. If you already have an IDDE ordinance and just want to know what the new permit requires for IDDE legal authorities, you can refer to this outline of the requirements.
Construction Site Legal Authority
In the Construction Site Stormwater Management (MCM 4) section of the CT MS4 Permit there is a requirement for MS4 communities to establish a legal authority to require certain measures to protect water quality during construction projects. We compiled example regulatory language that can be adapted by MS4 communities to meet this legal authority requirement.
Post-Construction Legal Authority
We compiled guidance to help towns and institutions get started in meeting the legal authority requirements in the CT MS4 General Permit Section 6(a)(5)(A) and (B) – also known as the post-construction legal authority requirement.
This is one of the more complex sections of the permit and towns are sure to handle this requirement in many different ways. The suggested language in the guidance document below may be adapted to fit the particular needs and circumstances in each town and by no means is it required to be used. The language included responds to each of the requirements of the post-construction legal authority.
Finally (and we can't emphasize this enough), the resources we’re providing are not actual legal advice. Please be sure to consult a lawyer!
CT NEMO Suggested Language for Post Construction Legal Authority