West Virginia Code § 15-5A-7

Establishment of emergency planning districts and committees;
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composition, organization, duties.
(a) The state emergency response commission shall designate emergency planning districts
in order to facilitate preparation and implementation of emergency plans. After designating
emergency planning districts, the state emergency response commission shall appoint
members of a local emergency planning committee for each emergency planening district.
Each committee shall include representatives from each of the following groups or
organizations: (1) Elected state and local officials; (2) law enforcement,r civil defense, fire
fighting, first aid, health, local environmental, hospital and transportation personnel; (3)
broadcast and print media; (4) community groups; and (5) owners and operators of facilities
subject to the requirements of this article. In addition to the above members, each county
commission president from every county within the district, tor a member of the county
commission designated by the president, shall be appointed as a member of the committee
and such appointment may fulfill the requirement to appoint elected local officials.
(b) Each local committee shall appoint a chairperson and establish procedural rules by which
the committee shall function. Such rules shalls include provisions for public notification of
committee activities, public meetings to discuss the emergency plan, public comments,
response to such comments by the committee and distribution of the emergency plan.
(c) The local committees shall submit their proposed procedural rules to the state emergency
response commission for revieew and comment no later than January 1, 1990. If any local
committees fail to submit proposed procedural rules, the state emergency response
commission shall itself pLromulgate rules applicable to such local committees.
(d) The local emergency planning committee shall have and may exercise the following
powers and authority and shall perform the following duties:
(1) Establish procedures for receiving and processing requests from the public for
infoWrmation regarding any emergency response plan, material safety data sheet, emergency,
first aid and medical treatment procedures, list described in 42 U.S.C. §11021(a)(2),
inventory form, toxic chemical release form, or followup emergency notice, including tier II
information under 42 U.S.C. §11022;
(2) Designate an official to serve as coordinator for information for processing requests for
information from the public;
(3) Develop and implement a comprehensive emergency response plan in accordance with
42 U.S.C. §11003, and review such plan once a year, or more frequently as changed
circumstances in the community or at any facility may require: Provided, That such
comprehensive emergency response plans may not require a covered facility to revise,
modify or otherwise alter any emergency release response or release prevention plan that
has been prepared pursuant to any other state or federal statute or regulation including, but
not limited to, contingency plans developed under the Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act, Spill Prevention and Countermeasure Plans, or Best Management Practices Plans
developed under the Clean Water Act;
(4) Prior to implementation, submit a copy of the prepared emergency response plan to the
state emergency response commission for review and recommendation;
(5) Publish annually a notice in local newspapers that the emergency response plan is
available for review, as are those material safety data sheets, emergency, first aid and
medical treatment procedures, inventory forms and followup emergency notices which have
been submitted to the committee. The notice shall also state that members of the public who
wish to review any such plan, sheet, form or followup notice mayu do so at a designated
location;
(6) Establish deadlines for responding to information requests from the public; and
(7) Receive, catalogue and organize information required to be submitted to the committee
under the provisions of 42 U.S.C. §11001, et seq. l

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