(a) Upon application by a facility owner or a fuel distributor the department may issue an order granting a temporary exception from the provisions of this Subpart where it can be shown, to the department’s satisfaction, that there is an insufficient supply of conforming fuel, either:

(b) The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority must certify that there exists an insufficient supply of fuel that conforms to the standards in this Subpart before a sulfur-in-fuel exception may be granted under this subdivision.

(c) The department may grant a sulfur-in-fuel exception contingent upon a fuel shortage for a period not longer than 45 days.

(d) The department may grant a sulfur-in-fuel exception contingent upon a fuel shortage for a period longer than 45 days, but not longer than one year, only after a public hearing is held to gather information relevant to such an exception. The applicant for the exception must publish notice of such hearings, in a form acceptable to the department, in a newspaper of general circulation in the area for which the exception is sought. The applicant will bear the cost of publication of the notice, of the hearing transcript, and for rental of space in which the hearing is conducted.