Sec. 32-613. Applications for licenses, permits, approvals and administrative actions. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 32-613. Applications for licenses, permits, approvals and administrative actions. (a) Any environmental permit or approval required or permitted to be issued and any administrative action required or permitted to be taken pursuant to the general statutes in connection with on-site work supervised by the Department of Public Works or off-site work supervised by the Department of Transportation for a downtown higher education center project or a riverfront infrastructure development and improvement project, as defined in subparagraphs (B) and (D), respectively, of subdivision (2) of section 32-600, shall be in accordance with the procedure set forth in this section.

      (b) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, any license, permit and approval required or permitted to be issued and any administrative action required or permitted to be taken pursuant to the general statutes in connection with a downtown higher education center project or a riverfront infrastructure development and improvement project, as defined in subparagraphs (B) and (D), respectively, of subdivision (2) of section 32-600, shall be issued or taken upon application to the particular commissioner or commissioners having jurisdiction over such license, permit, approval or other administrative action or such other state official as such commissioner shall designate. As used in this section, the term commissioner shall mean commissioners if more than one commissioner has jurisdiction over the subject matter and their designee, if any. No agency, commission, council, committee, panel or other body whatsoever other than such commissioner shall have jurisdiction over or cognizance of any licenses, permits, approvals or administrative actions concerning any project and no notice of any tentative determination or any final determination regarding any such license, permit, approval or administrative action and no notice of any such license, permit, approval or administrative action shall be required except as expressly provided pursuant to this subsection. For purposes of this section a downtown higher education center project and a riverfront infrastructure development and improvement project shall be treated as if each is a state facility and accordingly, no ordinance, law or regulation promulgated by or any authority granted to any municipality or any other political subdivision of the state shall apply to such authority project.

      (c) All applications, supporting documentation and other records submitted to the commissioner and pertaining to any application for any license, permit, approval or other administrative action, together with all records of the proceedings of the commissioner relating to any license, permit, approval or administrative action shall be a public record and shall be made, maintained and disclosed in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act, as defined in section 1-200.

      (d) All applications for licenses, permits, approvals and other administrative action required by any applicable provision of the general statutes shall be submitted to the commissioner as provided in subsection (b) of this subsection. The commissioner shall adopt a master process to consider multiple licenses, permits, approvals and administrative actions to the extent practicable. Each license or permit shall be issued, approval shall be granted and administrative action shall be taken not later than ten business days after the date of submission of any application for such license, permit, approval or administrative action to the commissioner. Each application for a license or permit shall be deemed to have been issued, approval shall be deemed to have been granted and administrative action shall be deemed to have been taken as requested unless such application has been denied, or conditionally issued prior to the close of business on the tenth business day after either the date of submission of such application, or a hearing is held on such application pursuant to this section.

      (e) (1) Any hearing regarding all or any part of any project, provided for by this section, shall be conducted by the particular commissioner having jurisdiction over the applicable license, permit, approval or other administrative action. Legal notice of such hearing shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in an area which includes the municipality in which the particular part of such project is proposed to be built or is being built not more than ten nor less than five days in advance of such hearing.

      (2) In rendering any decision in connection with any project, provided for by this section, the commissioner shall weigh all competent material and substantial evidence presented by the applicant and the public in accordance with the applicable statute. The commissioner shall issue written findings and determinations upon which the commissioner's decision is based. Such findings and determinations shall consist of evidence presented including such matters as the commissioner deems appropriate, provided such matters, to the extent applicable to the particular permit, shall include the nature of any major adverse health and environmental impact of any project. The commissioner may reverse or modify any order or action at any time on the commissioner's own motion. The procedure for such reversal or modification shall be the same as the procedure for the original proceeding.

      (3) Any administrative action taken by any commissioner in connection with any project, provided for by this section, may be appealed by an aggrieved party to the superior court for the judicial district of Hartford in accordance with the provisions of section 4-183. Such appeal shall be brought within ten days of the date of mailing to the parties to the proceeding of a notice of such order, decision or action by certified mail, return receipt requested, and the appellant shall serve a copy of the appeal on each party listed in the final decision at the address shown in such decision. Failure to make such service within such ten days on parties other than the commissioner who rendered the final decision may not, in the discretion of the court, deprive the court of jurisdiction over such appeal. Within ten days after the service of such appeal, or within such further time as may be allowed by the court, the commissioner who rendered such decision shall cause any portion of the record that had not been transcribed to be transcribed and shall cause either the original or a certified copy of the entire record of the proceeding appealed from to be transmitted to the reviewing court. Such record shall include the commissioner's findings of fact and conclusions of law, separately stated. If more than one commissioner has jurisdiction over the matter, such commissioners shall issue joint findings of fact and conclusions of law. Such appeal shall state the reasons upon which it is predicated and, notwithstanding any provisions of the general statutes, shall not stay the development of any project. The commissioner who rendered such decision shall appear as the respondent. Such appeals to the superior court shall each be a privileged matter and shall be heard as soon after the return date as practicable. A court shall render its decision not later than twenty-one days after the date that the entire record, with the transcript, is filed with the court by the commissioner who rendered the decision.

      (4) The court shall not substitute its judgment for that of the commissioner as to the weight of the evidence presented on a question of fact. The court shall affirm the decision of the commissioner unless the court finds that substantial rights of the party appealing such decision have been materially prejudiced because the findings, inferences, conclusions or decisions of the commissioner are in violation of constitutional or statutory provisions, in excess of the statutory authority of the commissioner, made upon unlawful procedure, affected by an error of law, clearly erroneous in view of the reliable, probative and substantial evidence on the whole record, or arbitrary, capricious or characterized by abuse of discretion or clearly unwarranted exercise of discretion.

      (5) If the court finds material prejudice, it may sustain the appeal. Upon sustaining an appeal, the court may render a judgment which modifies the decision of the commissioner, orders particular action by the commissioner or orders the commissioner to take such action as may be necessary to effect a particular action and the commissioner may issue a permit consistent with such judgment.

      (6) An applicant may file an amended application and the commissioner may consider an amended application for an order, permit or other administrative action following court action.

      (P.A. 88-230, S. 1, 12; P.A. 90-98, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-142, S. 4, 7, 8; P.A. 95-220, S. 4-6; P.A. 98-179, S. 18, 30; P.A. 99-241, S. 23, 66; P.A. 00-230, S. 13.)

      History: P.A. 98-179 effective June 1, 1998 (Revisor's note: P.A. 88-230, 90-98, 93-142 and 95-220 authorized substitution of "judicial district of Hartford" for "judicial district of Hartford-New Britain" in public and special acts of the 1998 regular and special sessions of the General Assembly, effective September 1, 1998; in Subsec. (e)(3) the phrase "service ... on parties other then the commissioner" was changed editorially by the Revisors to "service ... on parties other than the commissioner" and the phrase "The commissioner which rendered ..." was changed editorially by the Revisors to "The commissioner who rendered ..."); P.A. 99-241 deleted reference to "convention center project", and made technical corrections, effective July 1, 1999; P.A. 00-230 made technical changes in Subsec. (e).