(a) For purposes of this Code section only, the term:

(1) "LAS permit" means Land Application System permit.

(2) "NPDES permit" means National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit.

(3) "Waste-water treatment facilities" means all publicly owned facilities with average monthly flow limits of 20 million gallons per day or more that have been issued NPDES permits or LAS permits.

(b) The director shall provide written notice to owners of all waste-water treatment facilities that the privatization requirements specified in subsection (c) of this Code section are in effect if the owner of such facility has violated its NPDES or LAS permit, or any interim conditions established by a federal court order, as follows:

(1) A violation of the facility's monthly effluent limitation specified in the NPDES permit or conditions of a federal court order for biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, ammonia, or phosphorus for any eight months during any continuous 12 month period starting on or after January 1, 1999;

(2) A violation of the facility's monthly effluent limitation specified in the NPDES permit or conditions of a federal court order for biochemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, ammonia, or phosphorus by a factor of 1.4 or greater for any four months during any continuous 12 month period, starting on or after January 1, 1999; or

(3) Three major treatment facility bypasses during any continuous 12 month period starting on or after January 1, 1999. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "major treatment facility bypass" shall mean any diversion of waste water from or bypassing of waste water around the treatment facility, excluding sewer system overflows; provided, however, that this shall not include any bypass which is authorized by any NPDES or LAS permit or any bypass which is necessary to prevent loss of life, bodily injury, or severe property damage.

(c) Within 12 months of receipt of written notification from the director in accordance with subsection (b) of this Code section, the owner shall enter into a binding contract with a private contractor for the operation and maintenance of the waste-water facility as follows:

(1) The contractor shall be selected, and the contract shall be awarded, through competitive bidding as follows:

(A) In accordance with the public procurement processes and procedures then in effect for the public owner or, at the option of the owner, through competitive bidding by the Department of Administrative Services in accordance with and as permitted by Part 2 of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of Title 50; and

(B) As may otherwise be specified by the State Waste-water Privatization Oversight Committee upon its review of the privatization plan and other submittals from the owner in accordance with paragraph (2) of subsection (d) of this Code section;

(2) The scope of the contract shall include the operation and maintenance of the entire facility and sewer collection system, including combined sewer overflow treatment facilities, by the selected contractor;

(3) Notwithstanding any provisions of law to the contrary, the term of the contract shall be not less than ten years nor more than 50 years; and

(4) The contract shall meet all applicable state and local laws, rules, and regulations pertinent to the awarding, drafting, enforcement, and administration of such contract and shall contain such other contractual provisions as may be reasonably necessary for the effective enforcement and administration of the contract.

(d) There is created a State Waste-water Privatization Oversight Committee, hereinafter the "committee," consisting of the commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources, the commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, and one appointee each by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Speaker of the House of Representatives. Within 30 days of its creation, the committee shall meet and adopt procedures for the accomplishment of its purposes under this Code section. The committee is authorized to utilize the facilities and personnel of the department for such purposes. During any privatization process, the owner shall be required to make submittals to the committee in accordance with the following milestones:

(1) A privatization plan, consistent with the standards of subsection (c) of this Code section, shall be submitted to the committee within three months of the owner's receipt of the director's written notification. The committee shall review the privatization plan and either concur with the plan or provide comments to the owner. The owner must modify the privatization plan in accordance with any comments provided by the committee and meet any milestone time frame established by the committee to achieve plan concurrence;

(2) A proposed contract and related bid documents, consistent with the standards of subsection (c) of this Code section, shall be submitted to the committee within six months of the owner's receipt of the director's written notification. The owner must modify the proposed contract and related bid documents in accordance with any comments provided by the committee. The owner must receive the concurrence of the committee prior to commencement of the competitive bidding process;

(3) Written notification of issuance of bid documents to prospective contractors and commencement of the competitive bidding process, consistent with the standards of subsection (c) of this Code section, shall be provided to the committee within nine months of the owner's receipt of the director's notification;

(4) Copies of all proposals received in response to the bid documents, and copies of draft contracts and correspondence related thereto exchanged between the owner and any prospective contractor, and copies of any additional documents from the owner or any prospective contractor that the committee deems necessary or advisable to review in order to accomplish its duties under this subsection; and

(5) A copy of the fully executed contract, consistent with the standards of subsection (c) of this Code section, shall be provided to the committee within 12 months of the owner's receipt of the director's notification. In the event of an impasse in negotiations between the owner and the private contractor on one or more terms of the proposed contract, the committee shall be authorized to mediate any such impasse upon agreement of the parties to the proposed contract. In the event of any such impasse in negotiations, the committee shall extend the time for the submission of a fully executed contract for a reasonable period, as long as the owner is negotiating with a private contractor in good faith and an application for extension of time is received by the committee no later than 30 days before the expiration of the time period in which a fully executed contract must be provided to the committee.

(e) Penalties for failure to comply with this Code section shall be assessed as follows:

(1) If an owner fails to meet any milestone set forth in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (d) of this Code section, the owner shall pay a civil penalty in the amount of $50,000.00 per day to the division until that milestone is met. A separate penalty shall be assessed for each milestone that is not met; and

(2) If an owner fails to meet the milestone set forth in paragraph (5) of subsection (d) of this Code section, the owner shall pay a civil penalty in the amount of $100,000.00 per day to the division until that milestone is met, unless an extension of time is granted by the committee in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (5) of subsection (d) of this Code section.

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (e) of this Code section, if the committee determines that an owner's failure to meet a particular milestone was outside the control of the owner, the committee may, in its sole discretion, extend the time for meeting the respective milestone for a period of up to 180 days and waive any penalty that might otherwise accrue pursuant to subsection (e) of this Code section during the extended milestone period; provided, however, in the event any milestone is not met within any extended time frame for meeting the milestone, penalties shall be assessed as provided in subsection (e) of this Code section.

(g) The committee shall, by rules adopted pursuant to the provisions of Title 50, establish criteria for evaluation of the eligibility of any contractors bidding on privatizations consistent with subsection (c) of this Code section, and such criteria shall include, but not be limited to, a review of such contractors' previous performance on projects of comparable magnitude, the environmental compliance record of such contractors, and any civil or criminal penalties incurred by such contractors during the five years immediately preceding the execution of the contract. Such criteria shall provide a basis for determining the eligibility of any contractor. All information required by the committee pursuant to this subsection shall be provided by the contractor under oath.