H.3370 would allow Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) decisions on the issuance, denial, renewal, suspension, or revocation of permits, licenses, or other actions to be appealed directly to the Administrative Law Court by an individual with the constitutional standing to do so. The bill would also allow anyone issued an emergency order by DHEC to appeal that order directly to the Administrative Law Court and receive a hearing within 72 hours. DHEC is also required under the proposed law to revoke emergency orders as soon as conditions change so that an emergency no longer exists.
Under current law a DHEC decision must be appealed to DHEC itself before the decision can be taken before the Administrative Law Court. Appealing the decision involves a $100 filing fee and would require time and legal expenses from both the appealing party and DHEC. It seems doubtful that DHEC will often reverse its own decision making this step little more than a waste of time and money. When we consider the current law it’s clear this legislation represents a simple and commonsense regulatory reform that is likely to save both public and private resources.