NC0024937_Correspondence_20231115

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality  Division of Water Resources
512 North Salisbury Street  1617 Mail Service Center  Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617 -- 919.707.3616

ROY COOPER
Governor
ELIZABETH BISER
Secretary
R ICHARD E. ROGERS, JR
Director
November 15, 2023
CERTIFIED MAIL # 7019-1120-0001-4877-5508
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED

Joseph Lockler, Operations Chief
Charlotte Water
5100 Brookshire Boulevard
Charlotte, North Carolina 28216-3371

Subject: Your Request to Remit Civil Penalties
for Case # LV-2023-0125
NPDES Permit NC0024937
Sugar Creek WWTP, WPCS Grade WW-4
Mecklenburg County
Mr. Lockler:
The Division of Water Resources (DWR or the Division) has considered your information submitted in support
of your request to remit civil penalties in the subject case. Your initial penalties of $703.03 have been reduced
in accordance with NCGS 143-215.6A(f).
The Director has granted partial remission of 50% (excluding enforcement costs). Your reduced balance is now
due and payable in the amount of $443.03 [$520.00 – 260.00 + $183.03 Costs]. If you choose to pay this reduced
penalty, send payment to the address below within thirty (30) days of receiving this letter. However, you have two
(2) response options available to you:

1) You may pay this balance. If you decide to pay the balance, please make your check payable to
the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Send payment to:
Attention: Wren Thedford
NCDEQ/DWR/SWPS/Point Source Branch
NPDES Permitting Unit
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617
Note: If your payment is not received within thirty (30) days of this letter, your request for
penalty remission, with its supporting documents (together with DWR’s recommendations), will
be delivered for final agency decision to the North Carolina Environmental Management
Commission’s (EMC’s) Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions (the Committee),

OR you may…

2) Request to make an oral presentation to the EMC Committee explaining why your request for
remission meets one or more of the five (5) statutory factors you previously addressed. If you so
desire, you must complete and return the enclosed Request for Oral Presentation form within
thirty (30) days of receiving this letter.

Please mail completed form [attached] to:
Attention: Bob Sledge
NCDEQ / DWR / NPDES / Point Source Branch
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Your request for an oral presentation and its supporting documents will be reviewed by the EMC Chairman and, if
it is determined that there is a compelling reason to require your oral presentation, the Commission will notify you
by certified mail of a date, time, and place to present. Otherwise, the final decision on your request for remission
will be made by the Committee based on the written record.

Thank you for your continued cooperation in this matter. If you have questions about this transmittal, please
contact me at [[e-mail]].

Sincerely,

__________________________
Joe R. Corporon, P.G.
Compliance and Expedited Permitting Unit

Enclosed: Request for Oral Presentation form
Attached: Case LV-2023-0125 Remission Summary for Signature – received 12Jun2023
Civil Penalty Assessment (CPA)_20230504

ec: Enforcement Case File LV-2023-0125
DWR Mooresville Regional Office (MRO), attn. Wes Bell, Andrew Pitner.
Central Files: [Laserfiche]
Charlotte Water; Joseph Lockler [[e-mail]]

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA ) ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION
COUNTY OF MECKLENBURG ) DEQ Case Number LV-2023-0125
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT OF
CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST: ) REQUEST FOR ORAL PRESENTATION
City of Charlottee – Sugar Creek WWTP
Joseph Lockler, Operations Chief )
I hereby request to make an oral presentation before the Environmental Management Commission’s
Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions in the matter of the case noted above. In making this request, I
assert that I understand all of the following statements:
• This request will be reviewed by the Chairman of the Environmental
Management Commission and may be either granted or denied.
• Making a presentation will require the presence of myself and/or my
representative during a Committee meeting held in Raleigh, North Carolina.
• My presentation will be limited to discussion of issues and information submitted
in my original remission request, and because no factual issues are in dispute,
my presentation will be limited to five (5) minutes in length.
The North Carolina State Bar’s Authorized Practice of Law Committee has ruled that the appearance in a
representative capacity at quasi-judicial hearings or proceedings is limited to lawyers who are active
members of the bar. Proceedings before the Committee on Remissions are quasi-judicial. You should
consider how you intend to present your case to the Committee in light of the State Bar’s opinion and
whether anyone will be speaking in a representative capacity for you or a bu siness or governmental entity.
If you or your representative would like to speak before the Committee, you must complete and return this
form within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter.

Depending on your status as an individual, corporation, partnership or municipality, the State Bar’s Opinion affects how
you may proceed with your oral presentation. See www.ncbar.com/ethics, Authorized Practice Advisory Opinion 2006-1
and 2007 Formal Ethics Opinion 3.

• If you are an individual or business owner and are granted an opportunity to make an oral presentation before
the Committee, then you do not need legal representation before the Committee; however, if you intend on
having another individual speak on your behalf regarding the factual situations, such as an expert, engineer or
consultant, then you must also be present at the meeting in order to avoid violating the State Bar’s Opinion on
the unauthorized practice of law.
• If you are a corporation, partnership or municipality and are granted an opportunity to make an oral
presentation before the Committee, then your representative must consider the recent State Bar’s Opinion and
could be considered practicing law without a license if he or she is not a licensed attorney. Presentation of facts
by non-lawyers is permissible.

If you choose to request an oral presentation, please make sure that signatures on the previously submitted Remission
Request form and this Oral Presentation Request form are: 1) for individuals and business owners, your own signature
and 2) for corporations, partnerships and municipalities, signed by individuals who would not violate the State Bar’s
Opinion on the unauthorized practice of law.

Also, be advised that the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions may choose not to proceed with hearing your case if the
Committee is informed that a violation of the State Bar occurs.
This the day of , 20 .

SIGNATURE TITLE (President, Owner, etc.)

ADDRESS
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