DEFINITIONS AND EXEMPTIONS
Sec. 9001. [6991] For the purposes of this subtitle
(1) The term "underground storage tank" means any one or
combination of tanks (including underground pipes connected
thereto) which is used to contain an accumulation of regulated
substances, and the volume of which (including the volume of the
underground pipes connected thereto) is 10 per centum or more
beneath the surface of the ground. Such term does not include any
(A) farm or residential tank of 1,100 gallons or less capacity
used for storing motor fuel for noncommercial purposes,
(B) tank used for storing heating oil for consumptive use on the
premises where stored,
(C) septic tank,
(D) pipeline facility (including gathering lines),
(i) which is regulated under the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of
1968 (49 U.S.C. App. 1671, et seq.),
(ii) which is regulated under the Hazardous Liquid Pipeline
Safety Act of 1979 (49 U.S.C. App. 2001, et seq.), or
(iii) which is an intrastate pipeline facility regulated under
State laws provided in the provisions of law referred to in clause
(i) or (ii) of this subparagraph, and which is determined by the
Secretary to be connected to a pipeline or to be operated or
intended to be capable of operating at pipeline pressure or as an
integral part of a pipeline.
(E) surface impoundment, pit, pond, or lagoon,
(F) storm water or waste water collection system,
(G) flow-through process tank,
(H) liquid trap or associated gathering lines directly related
to oil or gas production and gathering operations, or
(I) storage tank situated in an underground area (such as a
basement, cellar, mineworking, drift, shaft, or tunnel) if the
storage tank is situated upon or above the surface of the floor.
The term "underground storage tank" shall not include any pipes
connected to any tank which is described in subparagraphs (A)
through (I).
(2) The term "regulated substance" means
(A) any substance defined in section 101(14) of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act of 1980 (but not including any substance regulated as
a hazardous waste under subtitle C), and
(B) petroleum.
(3) The term "owner" means
(A) in the case of an underground storage tank in use on the
date of enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of
1984, or brought into use after that date, any person who owns an
underground storage tank used for the storage, use, or dispensing
of regulated substances, and
(B) in the case of any underground storage tank in use before
the date of enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments
of 1984, but no longer in use on the date of enactment of such
Amendments, any person who owned such tank immediately before the
discontinuation of its use.
(4) The term "operator" means any person in control of, or
having responsibility for, the daily operation of the
underground storage tank.
(5) The term "release" means any spilling, leaking, emitting,
discharging, escaping, leaching, or disposing from an underground
storage tank into ground water, surface water or subsurface soils.
(6) The term "person" has the same meaning as provided in
section 1004(15), except that such term includes a
consortium, a joint venture, and a commercial entity, and the
United States Government.
(7) The term "nonoperational storage tank" means any underground
storage tank in which regulated substances will not be deposited or
from which regulated substances will not be dispensed after the
date of the enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments
of 1984.
(8) The term "petroleum" means petroleum, including crude oil or
any fraction thereof which is liquid at standard conditions of
temperature and pressure (60 degrees Fahrenheit and 14.7 pounds per
square inch absolute).
Date :10/17/1986
NOTIFICATION
Sec. 9002. [6991a]
(a) UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANKS -- (1)
Within 18 months after the date of enactment of the Hazardous
and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, each owner of an
underground storage tank shall notify the State or local
agency or department designated pursuant to subsection (b)(1)
of the existence of such tank, specifying the age, size,
type, location, and uses of such tank.
(2)(A) For each underground storage tank taken out of
operation after January 1, 1974, the owner of such tank
shall, within eighteen months after the date of enactment of
the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, notify the
State or local agency, or department designated pursuant to
subsection (b)(1) of the existence of such tanks (unless the
owner knows the tank subsequently was removed from the
ground). The owner of a tank taken out of operation on or
before January 1, 1974, shall not be required to notify the
State or local agency under this subsection.
(B) Notice under subparagraph (A) shall specify, to the
extent known to the owner
(i) the date the tank was taken out of operation,
(ii) the age of the tank on the date taken out of
operation,
(iii) the size, type and location of the tank, and
(iv) the type and quantity of substances left stored in
such tank on the date taken out of operation.
(3) Any owner which brings into use an underground storage
tank after the initial notification period specified under
paragraph (1), shall notify the designated State or local
agency or department within thirty days of the existence of
such tank, specifying the age, size, type, location and uses
of such tank.
(4) Paragraphs (1) through (3) of this subsection shall
not apply to tanks for which notice was given pursuant to
section 103(c) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980.
(5) Beginning thirty days after the Administrator
prescribes the form of notice pursuant to subsection (b)(2)
and for eighteen months thereafter, any person who deposits
regulated substances in an underground storage tank shall
reasonably notify the owner or operator of such tank of the
owner's notification requirements pursuant to this
subsection.
(6) Beginning thirty days after the Administrator issues
new tank performance standards pursuant to section 9003(e) of
this subtitle, any person who sells a tank intended to be
used as an underground storage tank shall notify the
purchaser of such tank of the owner's notification
requirements pursuant to this subsection.
(b) AGENCY DESIGNATION -- (1) Within one hundred and
eighty days after the enactment of the Hazardous and Solid
Waste Amendments of 1984, the Governors of each State shall
designate the appropriate State agency or department or local
agencies or departments to receive the notifications under
subsection (a)(1), (2), or (3).
(2) Within twelve months after the date of enactment of
the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, the
Administrator, in consultation with State and local officials
designated pursuant to subsection (b)(1), and after notice
and opportunity for public comment, shall prescribe the form
of the notice and the information to be included in the
notifications under subsection (a)(1), (2) or (3). In
prescribing the form of such notice, the Administrator shall
take into account the effect on small businesses and other
owners and operators.
(c) STATE INVENTORIES -- Each State shall make two
separate inventories of all underground storage tanks in such
State containing regulated substances. One inventory shall
be made with respect to petroleum and one with respect to
other regulated substances. In making such inventories, the
State shall utilize and aggregate the data in the
notification forms submitted pursuant to subsections (a) and
(b) of this section. Each State shall submit such aggregated
data to the Administrator not later than 270 days after the
enactment of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act
of 1986.
Date :10/17/1986
RELEASE DETECTION, PREVENTION, AND CORRECTION REGULATIONS
Sec. 9003. [6991b] (a) REGULATIONS -- The Administrator,
after notice and opportunity for public comment, and at least
three months before the effective dates specified in
subsection (f), shall promulgate release detection,
prevention, and correction regulations applicable to all
owners and operators of underground storage tanks, as may be
necessary to protect human health and the environment.
(b) DISTINCTIONS IN REGULATIONS -- In promulgating
regulations under this section, the Administrator may
distinguish between types, classes, and ages of underground
storage tanks. In making such distinctions, the
Administrator may take into consideration factors, including,
but not limited to: location of the tanks, soil and climate
conditions, uses of the tanks, history of maintenance, age of
the tanks, current industry recommended practices, national
consensus codes, hydrogeology, water table, size of the
tanks, quantity of regulated substances periodically
deposited in or dispensed from the tank, the technical
capability of the owners and operators, and the compatibility
of the regulated substance and the materials of which the
tank is fabricated.
(c) REQUIREMENTS -- The regulations promulgated pursuant
to this section shall include, but need not be limited to,
the following requirements respecting all underground storage
tanks
(1) requirements for maintaining a leak detection system,
an inventory control system together with tank testing, or a
comparable system or method designed to identify releases in
a manner consistent with the protection of human health and
the environment;
(2) requirements for maintaining records of any monitoring
or leak detection system or inventory control system or tank
testing or comparable system;
(3) requirements for reporting of releases and corrective
action taken in response to a release from an underground
storage tank;
(4) requirements for taking corrective action in response
to a release from an underground storage tank;
(5) requirements for the closure of tanks to prevent
future releases of regulated substances into the environment;
and
(6) requirements for maintaining evidence for financial
responsibility for taking corrective action and compensating
third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by
sudden and nonsudden accidental releases arising from
operating an underground storage tank.
(d) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY -- (1) Financial
responsibility required by this subsection may be established
in accordance with regulations promulgated by the
Administrator by any one, or any combination, of the
following: insurance, guarantee, surety bond, letter of
credit, qualification as a self-insurer. In promulgating
requirements under this subsection, the Administrator is
authorized to specify policy or other contractual terms,
conditions, or defenses which are necessary or are
unacceptable in establishing such evidence of financial
responsibility in order to effectuate the purposes of this
subtitle or any other method satisfactory to the
Administrator.
(2) In any case where the owner or operator is in
bankruptcy, reorganization, or arrangement pursuant to the
Federal Bankruptcy Code or where with reasonable diligence
jurisdiction in any State court of the Federal Courts cannot
be obtained over an owner or operator likely to be solvent at
the time of judgment, any claim arising from conduct for
which evidence of financial responsibility must be provided
under this subsection may be asserted directly against the
guarantor providing such evidence of financial
responsibility. In the case of any action pursuant to this
paragraph such guarantor shall be entitled to invoke all
rights and defenses which would have been available to the
owner or operator if any action had been brought against the
owner or operator by the claimant and which would have been
available to the guarantor if an action had been brought
against the guarantor by the owner or operator.
(3) The total liability of any guarantor shall be limited
to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as
evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator
under this section. Nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to limit any other State or Federal statutory,
contractual or common law liability of a guarantor to its
owner or operator including, but not limited to, the
liability of such guarantor for bad faith either in
negotiating or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any
##claim. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
diminish the liability of any person under section 107 or 111
of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and
Liability Act of 1980 or other applicable law.
(4) For the purpose of this subsection, the term
"guarantor" means any person, other than the owner or
operator, who provides evidence of financial responsibility
for an owner or operator under this subsection.
(5)(A) The Administrator, in promulgating financial
responsibility regulations under this section, may establish
an amount of coverage for particular classes or categories of
underground storage tanks containing petroleum which shall
satisfy such regulations and which shall not be less than
$1,000,000 for each occurrence with an appropriate aggregate
requirement.
(B) The Administrator may set amounts lower than the
amounts required by subparagraph (A) of this paragraph for
underground storage tanks containing petroleum which are at
facilities not engaged in petroleum production, refining, or
marketing and which are not used to handle substantial
quantities of petroleum.
(C) In establishing classes and categories for purposes of
this paragraph, the Administrator may consider the following
factors:
(i) The size, type, location, storage, and handling
capacity of underground storage tanks in the class or
category and the volume of petroleum handled by such tanks.
(ii) The likelihood of release and the potential extent of
damage from any release from underground storage tanks in the
class or category.
(iii) The economic impact of the limits on the owners and
operators of each such class or category, particularly
relating to the small business segment of the petroleum
marketing industry.
(iv) The availability of methods of financial
responsibility in amounts greater than the amount established
by this paragraph.
(v) Such other factors as the Administrator deems
pertinent.
(D) The Administrator may suspend enforcement of the
financial responsibility requirements for a particular class
or category of underground storage tanks or in a particular
State, if the Administrator makes a determination that
methods of financial responsibility satisfying the
requirements of this subsection are not generally available
for underground storage tanks in that class or category; and
(i) steps are being taken to form a risk retention group
for such class of tanks; or
(ii) such State is taking steps to establish a fund
pursuant to section 9004(c)(1) of this Act to be submitted as
evidence of financial responsibility.
A suspension by the Administrator pursuant to this paragraph
shall extend for a period not to exceed 180 days. A
determination to suspend may be made with respect to the same
class or category or for the same State at the end of such
period, but only if substantial progress had been made in
establishing a risk retention group, or the owners or
operators in the class or category demonstrate and the
Administrator finds, that the formation of such a group is
not possible and that the State is unable or unwilling to
establish such a fund pursuant to clause (ii).
(e) NEW TANK PERFORMANCE STANDARDS -- The Administrator
shall, not later than three months prior to the effective
date specified in subsection (f), issue performance standards
for underground storage tanks brought into use on or after
the effective date of such standards. The performance
standards for new underground storage tanks shall include,
but need not be limited to, design, construction,
installation, release detection, and compatibility standards.
(f) EFFECTIVE DATES -- (1) Regulations issued pursuant
to subsection (c) and (d) of this section, and standards
issued pursuant to subsection (e) of this section, for
underground storage tanks containing regulated substances
defined in section 9001(2)(B) (petroleum, including crude oil
or any fraction thereof which is liquid at standard
conditions of temperature and pressure) shall be effective
not later than thirty months after the date of enactment of
the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984.
(2) Standards issued pursuant to subsection (e) of this
section (entitled "New Tank Performance Standards") for
underground storage tanks containing regulated substances
defined in section 9001(2)(A) shall be effective not later
than thirty-six months after the date of enactment of the
Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984.
(3) Regulations issued pursuant to subsection (c) of this
section (entitled "Requirements") and standards issued
pursuant to subsection (d) of this section (entitled
"Financial Responsibility) for underground storage tanks
containing regulated substances defined in section 9001(2)(A)
shall be effective not later than forty-eight months after
the date of enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste
Amendments of 1984.
(g) INTERIM PROHIBITION -- (1) Until the effective date
of the standards promulgated by the Administrator under
subsection (e) and after one hundred and eighty days after
the date of the enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste
Amendments of 1984, no person may install an underground
storage tank for the purpose of storing regulated substances
unless such tank (whether of single or double wall
construction)
(A) will prevent releases due to corrosion or structural
failure for the operational life of the tank;
(B) is cathodically protected against corrosion,
constructed of noncorrosive material, steel clad with a
noncorrosive material, or designed in a manner to prevent the
release or threatened release of any stored substance; and
(C) the material used in the construction or lining of the
tank is compatible with the substance to be stored.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (10), if soil tests conducted
in accordance with ASTM Standard G57-78, or another standard
approved by the Administrator, show that soil resistivity in
an installation location is 12,000 ohm/cm or more (unless a
more stringent standard is prescribed by the Administrator by
rule), a storage tank without corrosion protection may be
installed in that location during the period referred to in
paragraph (1).
(h) EPA RESPONSE PROGRAM FOR PETROLEUM
(1) BEFORE REGULATIONS -- Before the effective date of
regulations under subsection (c), the Administrator (or a
State pursuant to paragraph (7)) is authorized to
(A) required the owner or operator of an underground
storage tank to undertake corrective action with respect to
any release of petroleum when the Administrator (or the
State) determines that such corrective action will be done
properly and promptly by the owner or operator of the
underground storage tank from which the release occurs; or
(B) undertake corrective action with respect to any
release of petroleum into the environment from an underground
storage tank if such action is necessary, in the judgement of
the Administrator (or the State), to protect human health and
the environment.
The corrective action undertaken or required by this
paragraph shall be such as may be necessary to protect human
health and the environment. The Administrator shall use
funds in the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund for
payment of costs incurred for corrective action under
subparagraph (B), enforcement action under subparagraph (A),
and cost recovery under paragraph (6) of this subsection.
Subject to the priority requirements of paragraph (3), the
Administrator (or the State) shall give priority in
undertaking such actions under subparagraph (B) to cases
where the Administrator (or the State) cannot identify a
solvent owner or operator of the tank who will undertake
action properly.
(2) AFTER REGULATIONS -- Following the effective date of
regulations under subsection (c), all actions or orders of
the Administrator (or a State pursuant to paragraph (7))
described in paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be in
conformity with such regulations. Following such effective
date, the Administrator (or the State) may undertake
corrective action with respect to any release of petroleum
into the environment from an underground storage tank only if
such action is necessary, in the judgment of the
Administrator (or the State), to protect human health and the
environment and one or more of the following situations
exists:
(A) No person can be found, within 90 days or such shorter
period as may be necessary to protect human health and the
environment, who is
(i) an owner or operator of the tank concerned,
(ii) subject to such corrective action regulations, and
(iii) capable of carrying out such corrective action
properly.
(B) A situation exists which requires prompt action by the
Administrator (or the State) under this paragraph to protect
human health and the environment.
(C) Corrective action costs at a facility exceed the
amount of coverage required by the Administrator pursuant to
the provisions of subsections (c) and (d)(5) of this section,
and considering the class or category of underground storage
tank from which the release occurred, expenditures from the
Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund are necessary to
assure an effective corrective action.
(D) The owner or operator of the tank has failed or
refused to comply with an order of the Administrator under
this subsection or section 9006 or with the order of a State
under this subsection to comply with the corrective action
regulations.
(3) PRIORITY OF CORRECTIVE ACTIONS -- The Administrator
(or a State pursuant to paragraph (7)) shall give priority in
undertaking corrective actions under this subsection, and in
issuing orders requiring owners or operators to undertake
such actions, to releases of petroleum from underground
storage tanks which pose the greatest threat to human health
and the environment.
(4) CORRECTIVE ACTION ORDERS -- The Administrator is
authorized to issue orders to the owner or operator of an
underground storage tank to carry out subparagraph (A) of
paragraph (1) or to carry out regulations issued under
subsection (c)(4). A State acting pursuant to paragraph (7)
of this subsection is authorized to carry out subparagraph
(A) of paragraph (1) only until the State's program is
approved by the Administrator under section 9004 of this
subtitle. Such orders shall be issued and enforced in the
same manner and subject to the same requirements as orders
under section 9006.
(5) ALLOWABLE CORRECTIVE ACTIONS -- The corrective actions
undertaken by the Administrator (or a State pursuant to
paragraph (7)) under paragraph (1) or (2) may include
temporary or permanent relocation of residents and
alternative household water supplies. In connection with the
performance of any corrective action under paragraph (1) or
(2), the Administrator may undertake an exposure assessment
as defined in paragraph (10) of this subsection or provide
for such an assessment in a cooperative agreement with a
State pursuant to paragraph (7) of this subsection. The
costs of any such assessment may be treated as corrective
action for purposes of paragraph (6), relating to cost
recovery.
(6) RECOVERY OF COSTS
(A) IN GENERAL -- Whenever costs have been incurred by the
Administrator, or by a State pursuant to paragraph (7), for
undertaking corrective action or enforcement action with
respect to the release of petroleum from an underground
storage tank, the owner or operator of such tank shall be
liable to the Administrator or the State for such costs. The
liability under this paragraph shall be construed to be the
##standard of liability which obtains under section 311 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
(B) RECOVERY -- In determining the equities for seeking
the recovery of costs under subparagraph (A), the
Administrator (or a State pursuant to paragraph (7) of this
subsection) may consider the amount of financial
responsibility required to be maintained under subsections
(c) and (d)(5) of this section and the factors considered in
establishing such amount under subsection (d)(5).
(C) EFFECT ON LIABILITY
(i) NO TRANSFERS OF LIABILITY -- No indemnification, hold
harmless, or similar agreement or conveyance shall be
effective to transfer from the owner or operator of any
underground storage tank or from any person who may be liable
for a release or threat of release under this subsection, to
any other person the liability imposed under this subsection.
Nothing in this subsection shall bar any agreement to insure,
hold harmless, or indemnify a party to such agreement for any
liability under this section.
(ii) NO BAR TO CAUSE OF ACTION -- Nothing in this
subsection, including the provisions of clause (i) of this
subparagraph, shall bar a cause of action that an owner or
operator or any other person subject to liability under this
section, or a guarantor, has or would have, by reason of
subrogation or otherwise against any person.
(D) FACILITY -- For purposes of this paragraph, the term
"facility" means, with respect to any owner or operator, all
underground storage tanks used for the storage of petroleum
which are owned or operated by such owner or operator and
located on a single parcel of property (or on any contiguous
or adjacent property).
(7) STATE AUTHORITIES
(A) GENERAL -- A State may exercise the authorities in
paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection, subject to the
terms and conditions of paragraphs (3), (5), (9), (10), and
(11), and including the authorities of paragraphs (4), (6),
and (8) of this subsection if
(i) the Administrator determines that the State has the
capabilities to carry out effective corrective actions and
enforcement activities; and
(ii) the Administrator enters into a cooperative agreement
with the State setting out the actions to be undertake by the
State.
The Administrator may provide funds from the Leaking
Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund for the reasonable costs
of the State's actions under the cooperative agreement.
(B) COST SHARE -- Following the effective date of the
regulations under subsection (c) of this section, the State
shall pay 10 per centum of the cost of corrective actions
undertaken either by the Administrator or by the State under
a cooperative agreement, except that the Administrator may
take corrective action at a facility where immediate action
is necessary to respond to an imminent and substantial
endangerment to human health or the environment if the State
fails to pay the cost share.
(8) EMERGENCY PROCUREMENT POWERS -- Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, the Administrator may authorize use
of such emergency procurement powers as he deems necessary.
(9) DEFINITION OF OWNER -- As used in this subsection, the
term "owner" does not include any person who, without
participating in the management of an underground storage
tank and otherwise not engaged in petroleum production,
refining, and marketing, holds indicia of ownership primarily
to protect the owner's security interest in the tank.
(10) DEFINITION OF EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT -- As used in this
subsection, the term "exposure assessment means an assessment
to determine the extent of exposure of, or potential for
exposure of, individuals to petroleum from a release from an
underground storage tank based on such factors as the nature
and extent of contamination and the existence of or potential
for pathways of human exposure (including ground or surface
water contamination, air emissions, and food chain
contamination), the size of the community within the likely
pathways of exposure, and the comparison of expected human
exposure levels to the short-term and long-term health
effects associated with identified contaminants and any
available recommended exposure or tolerance limits for such
contaminants. Such assessment shall not delay corrective
action to abate immediate hazards or reduce exposure.
(11) FACILITIES WITHOUT FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY -- At any
facility where the owner or operator has failed to maintain
evidence of financial responsibility in amounts at least
equal to the amounts established by subsection (d)(5)(A) of
this section (or a lesser amount if such amount is applicable
to such facility as a result of subsection (d)(5)(B) of this
section) for whatever reason the Administrator shall expend
no monies from the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust
Fund to clean up releases at such facility pursuant to the
provisions of paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection. At
such facilities the Administrator shall use the authorities
provided in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) and paragraph
(4) of this subsection and section 9006 of this subtitle to
order corrective action to clean up such releases. States
acting pursuant to paragraph (7) of this subsection shall use
the authorities provided in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1)
and paragraph (4) of this subsection to order corrective
action to clean up such releases. Notwithstanding the
provisions of this paragraph, the Administrator may use
monies from the fund to take the corrective actions
authorized by paragraph (5) of this subsection to protect
human health at such facilities and shall seek full recovery
of the costs of all such actions pursuant to the provisions
of paragraph (6)(A) of this subsection and without
consideration of the factors in paragraph (6)(B) of this
subsection. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent the
Administrator (or a State pursuant to paragraph (7) of this
subsection) from taking corrective action at a facility where
there is no solvent owner or operator or where immediate
action is necessary to respond to an imminent and substantial
endangerment of human health or the environment.
Date :10/17/1986
APPROVAL OF STATE PROGRAMS
Sec. 9004. [6991c] (a) ELEMENTS OF STATE PROGRAM --
Beginning 30 months after the date of enactment of the
Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, any State may,
submit an underground storage tank release detection,
prevention, and correction program for review and approval by
the Administrator. The program may cover tanks used to store
regulated substances referred to in 9001(2) (A) or (B) or
both. A State program may be approved by the Administrator
under this section only if the State demonstrates that the
State program includes the following requirements and
standards and provides for adequate enforcement of compliance
with such requirements and standards
(1) requirements for maintaining a leak detection system,
an inventory control system together with tank testing, or a
comparable system or method designed to identify releases in
a manner consistent with the protection of human health and
the environment;
(2) requirements for maintaining records of any monitoring
or leak detection system or inventory control system or tank
testing system;
(3) requirements for reporting of any releases and
corrective action taken in response to a release from an
underground storage tank;
(4) requirements for taking corrective action in response
to a release from an underground storage tank;
(5) requirements for the closure of tanks to prevent
future releases of regulated substances into the environment;
(6) requirements for maintaining evidence of financial
responsibility for taking corrective action and compensating
third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by
sudden and nonsudden accidental releases arising from
operating an underground storage tank;
(7) standards of performance for new underground storage
tanks; and
(8) requirements
(A) for notifying the appropriate State agency or
department (or local agency or department) designated
according to section 9002(b)(1) of the existence of any
operational or non-operational underground storage tank; and
(B) for providing the information required on the form
issued pursuant to section 9002(b)(2).
(b) FEDERAL STANDARDS -- (1) A State program submitted
under this section may be approved only if the requirements
under paragraphs (1) through (7) of subsection (a) are no
less stringent than the corresponding requirements standards
promulgated by the Administrator pursuant to section 9003(a).
(2)(A) A State program may be approved without regard to
whether or not the requirements referred to in paragraphs
(1), (2), (3), and (5) of subsection (a) are less stringent
than the corresponding standards under section 9003(a) during
the one-year period commencing on the date of promulgation of
regulations under section 9003(a) if State regulatory action
but no State legislative action is required in order to adopt
a State program.
(B) If such State legislative action is required, the
State program may be approved without regard to whether or
not the requirements referred to in paragraphs (1), (2), (3),
and (5) of subsection (a) are less stringent than the
corresponding standards under section 9003(a) during the two-
year period commencing on the date of promulgation of
regulations under section 9003(a) (and during an additional
one-year period after such legislative action if regulations
are required to be promulgated by the State pursuant to such
legislative action).
(c) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY -- (1) Corrective action and
compensation programs administered by State or local agencies
or departments may be submitted for approval under subsection
(a)(6) as evidence of financial responsibility.
(2) Financial responsibility required by this subsection
may be established in accordance with regulations promulgated
by the Administrator by any one, or any combination, of the
following: insurance, guarantee, surety bond, letter of
credit, qualification as a self-insurer. In promulgating
requirements under this subsection, the Administrator is
authorized to specify policy or other contractual terms
including the amount of coverage required for various classes
and categories of underground storage tanks pursuant to
section 9003(d)(5), conditions, or defenses which are
necessary or are unacceptable in establishing such evidence
of financial responsibility in order to effectuate the
purposes of this subtitle.
(3) In any case where the owner or operator is in
bankruptcy, reorganization, or arrangement pursuant to the
Federal Bankruptcy Code or where with reasonable diligence
jurisdiction in any State court of the Federal courts cannot
be obtained over an owner or operator likely to be solvent at
the time of judgment, any claim arising from conduct for
which evidence of financial responsibility must be provided
under this subsection may be asserted directly against the
guarantor providing such evidence of financial
responsibility. In the case of any action pursuant to this
paragraph such guarantor shall be entitled to invoke all
rights and defenses which would have been available to the
owner or operator if any action had been brought against the
owner or operator by the claimant and which would have been
available to the guarantor if an action had been brought
against the guarantor by the owner or operator.
(4) The total liability of any guarantor shall be limited
to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as
evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator
under this section. Nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to limit any other State or Federal statutory,
contractual or common law liability of a guarantor to its
owner or operator including, but not limited to, the
liability of such guarantor for bad faith either in
negotiating or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any
claim. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
diminish the liability of any person under section 107 or 111
of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and
Liability Act of 1980 or other applicable law.
(5) For the purpose of this subsection, the term
"guarantor" means any person, other than the owner or
operator, who provides evidence of financial responsibility
for an owner or operator under this subsection.
(d) EPA DETERMINATION -- (1) Within one hundred and
eighty days of the date of receipt of a proposed State
program, the Administrator shall, after notice and
opportunity for public comment, make a determination whether
the State's program complies with the provisions of this
section and provides for adequate enforcement of compliance
with the requirements and standards adopted pursuant to this
section.
(2) If the Administrator determines that a State program
complies with the provisions of this section and provides for
adequate enforcement of compliance with the requirements and
standards adopted pursuant to this section, he shall approve
the State program in lieu of the Federal program and the
State shall have primary enforcement responsibility with
respect to requirements of its program.
(e) WITHDRAWAL OF AUTHORIZATION -- Whenever the
Administrator determines after public hearing that a State is
not administering and enforcing a program authorized under
this subtitle in accordance with the provisions of this
section, he shall so notify the State. If appropriate action
is not taken with a reasonable time, not to exceed one
hundred and twenty days after such notification, the
Administrator shall withdraw approval of such program and
reestablish the Federal program pursuant to this subtitle.
Date :10/17/1986
INSPECTIONS, MONITORING, TESTING, AND CORRECTIVE ACTION
Sec. 9005. [[6991d] (a) FURNISHING INFORMATION -- For
the purposes of developing or assisting in the development of
any regulation, conducting any study taking any corrective
action, or enforcing the provisions of this subtitle, any
owner or operator of an underground storage tank (or any tank
subject to study under section 9009 that is used for storing
regulated substances) shall, upon request of any officer,
employee or representative of the Environmental Protection
Agency, duly designated by the Administrator, or upon request
of any duly designated officer, employee, or representative
of a State acting pursuant to subsection (h)(7) of section
9003 or with an approved program, furnish information
relating to such tanks, their associated equipment, their
contents, conduct monitoring or testing, permit such officer
at all reasonable times to have access to, and to copy all
records relating to such tanks and permit such officer to
have access for corrective action. For the purposes of
developing or assisting in the development of any regulation,
conducting any study, taking corrective action, or enforcing
the provisions of this subtitle, such officers, employees, or
representatives are authorized
(1) to enter at reasonable times any establishment or
other place where an underground storage tank is located;
(2) to inspect and obtain samples from any person of any
regulated substances contained in such tank;
(3) to conduct monitoring or testing of the tanks,
associated equipment, contents, or surrounding soils, air,
surface water or ground water, and
(4) to take corrective action.
Each such inspection shall be commenced and completed with
reasonable promptness.
(b) CONFIDENTIALITY -- (1) Any records, reports, or
information obtained from any persons under this section
shall be available to the public, except that upon a showing
satisfactory to the Administrator (or the State, as the case
may be) by any person that records, reports, or information,
or a particular part thereof, to which the Administrator (or
the State, as the case may be) or any officer, employee, or
representative thereof has access under this section if made
public, would divulge information entitled to protection
under section 1905 of title 18 of the United States Code,
such information or particular portion thereof shall be
considered confidential in accordance with the purposes of
that section, except that such record, report, document, or
information may be disclosed to other officers, employees, or
authorized representatives of the United States concerned
with carrying out this Act, or when relevant in any
proceeding under this Act.
(2) Any person not subject to the provisions of section
1905 of title 18 of the United States Code who knowingly and
willfully divulges or discloses any information entitled to
protection under this subsection shall, upon conviction, be
subject to a fine of not more than $5,000 or to imprisonment
not to exceed one year, or both.
(3) In submitting data under this subtitle, a person
required to provide such data may
(A) designate the data which such person believes is
entitled to protection under this subsection, and
(B) submit such designated data separately from other data
submitted under this subtitle.
A designation under this paragraph shall be made in writing
and in such manner as the Administrator may prescribe.
(4) Notwithstanding any limitation contained in this
section, or any other provision of law, all information
reported to, or otherwise obtained, by the Administrator (or
any representative of the Administrator) under this Act shall
be made available, upon written request of any duly
authorized committee of the Congress, to such committee
(including records, reports, or information obtained by
representatives of the Environmental Protection Agency).
Date :10/17/1986
FEDERAL ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 9006. [6991e] (a) COMPLIANCE ORDERS -- (1) Except
as provided in paragraph (2), whenever on the basis of any
information, the Administrator determines that any person is
in violation of any requirement of this subtitle, the
Administrator may issue an order requiring compliance within
a reasonable specified time period or the Administrator may
commence a civil action in the United States district court
in which the violation occurred for appropriate relief,
including a temporary or permanent injunction.
(2) In the case of a violation of any requirement of this
subtitle where such violation occurs in a State with a
program approved under section 9004, the Administrator shall
give notice to the State in which such violation has occurred
prior to issuing an order or commencing a civil action under
this section.
(3) If a violator fails to comply with an order under this
subsection within the time specified in the order, he shall
be liable for a civil penalty of not more than $25,000 for
each day of continued noncompliance.
(b) PROCEDURE -- Any order issued under this section shall
become final unless, no later than thirty days after the
order is served, the person or persons named therein request
a public hearing. Upon such request the Administrator shall
promptly conduct a public hearing. In connection with any
proceeding under this section the Administrator may issue
subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of witnesses and
the production of relevant papers, books, and documents, and
may promulgate rules for discovery procedures.
(c) CONTENTS OF ORDER -- Any order issued under this
section shall state with reasonable specificity the nature of
the violation, specify a reasonable time for compliance, and
assess a penalty, if any, which the Administrator determines
is reasonable taking into account the seriousness of the
violation and any good faith efforts to comply with the
applicable requirements.
(d) CIVIL PENALTIES -- (1) Any owner who knowingly fails
to notify or submits false information pursuant to section
9002(a) shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed
$10,000 for each tank for which notification is not given or
false information is submitted.
(2) Any owner or operator of an underground storage tank
who fails to comply with
(A) any requirement or standard promulgated by the
Administrator under section 9003;
(B) any requirement or standard of a State program
approved pursuant to section 9004; or
(C) the provisions of section 9003(g) (entitled "Interim
Prohibition") shall be subject to a penalty not to exceed
$10,000 for each tank for each day of violation.
Date :10/17/1986
FEDERAL FACILITIES
Sec. 9007. [6991f] (a) APPLICATION OF SUBTITLE -- Each
department, agency, and instrumentality of the executive,
legislative, and judicial branches of the Federal Government
having jurisdiction over any underground storage tank shall
be subject to and comply with all Federal, State, interstate,
and local requirements, applicable to such tank, both
substantive and procedural, in the same manner, and to the
same extent, as any other person is subject to such
requirements, including payment of reasonable service
charges. Neither the United States, nor any agent, employee,
or officer thereof, shall be immune or exempt from any
process or sanction of any State or Federal court with
respect to the enforcement of any such injunctive relief.
(b) PRESIDENTIAL EXEMPTION -- The President may exempt any
underground storage tanks of any department, agency, or
instrumentality in the executive branch from compliance with
such a requirement if he determines it to be in the paramount
interest of the United States to do so. No such exemption
shall be granted due to lack of appropriation unless the
President shall have specifically requested such
appropriation as a part of the budgetary process and the
Congress shall have failed to make available such requested
appropriations. Any exemption shall be for a period not in
excess of one year, but additional exemptions may be granted
for periods not to exceed one year upon the President's
making a new determination. The President shall report each
January to the Congress all exemptions from the requirements
of this section granted during the preceding calendar year,
together with his reason for granting each such exemption.
Date :10/17/1986
STATE AUTHORITY
Sec. 9008. [6991g] Nothing in this subtitle shall
preclude or deny any right of any State or political
subdivision thereof to adopt or enforce any regulation,
requirement, or standard of performance respecting
underground storage tanks that is more stringent than a
regulation, requirement, or standard of performance in effect
under this subtitle or to impose any additional liability
with respect to the release of regulated substances within
such State or political subdivision.
Date :10/17/1986
STUDY OF UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANKS
Sec. 9009. [6991h] (a) PETROLEUM TANKS -- Not later than
twelve months after the date of enactment of the Hazardous
and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, the Administrator shall
complete a study of underground storage tanks used for the
storage of regulated substances defined in section
9001(2)(B).
(b) OTHER TANKS -- Not later than thirty-six months after
the date of enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste
Amendments of 1984, the Administrator shall complete a study
of all other underground storage tanks.
(c) ELEMENTS OF STUDIES -- The studies under subsection
(a) and (b) shall include an assessment of the ages, types
(including methods of manufacture, coatings, protection
systems, the compatibility of the construction materials and
the installation methods) and locations (including the
climate of the locations) of such tanks; soil conditions,
water tables, and the hydrogeology of tank locations; the
relationship between the foregoing factors and the likelihood
of releases from underground storage tanks; the effectiveness
and costs of inventory systems, tank testing, and leak
detection systems; and such other factors as the
Administrator deems appropriate.
(d) FARM AND HEATING OIL TANKS -- Not later than thirty-
six months after the date of enactment of the Hazardous and
Solid Waste Amendments of 1984, the Administrator shall
conduct a study regarding the tanks referred to in section
9001(a) (A) and (B). Such study shall include estimates of
the number and location of such tanks and an analysis of the
extent to which there may be releases or threatened releases
from such tanks into the environment.
(e) REPORTS -- Upon completion of the studies authorized
by this section, the Administrator shall submit reports to
the President and to the Congress containing the results of
the studies and recommendations respecting whether or not
such tanks should be subject to the preceding provisions of
this subtitle.
(f) REIMBURSEMENT -- (1) If any owner or operator
(excepting an agency, department, or instrumentality of the
United States Government, a State or a political subdivision
thereof) shall incur costs, including the loss of business
opportunity, due to the closure or interruption of operation
of an underground storage tank solely for the purpose of
conducting studies authorized by this section, the
Administrator shall provide such person fair and equitable
reimbursement for such costs.
(2) All claims for reimbursement shall be filed with the
Administrator not later than ninety days after the closure or
interruption which gives rise to the claim.
(3) Reimbursements made under this section shall be from
funds appropriated by the Congress pursuant to the
authorization contained in section 2007(g).
(4) For purposes of judicial review, a determination by
the Administrator under this subsection shall be considered
final agency action.
Date :10/17/1986
AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS
Sec. 9010. [6991i] For authorization of appropriations to
carry out this subtitle, see section 2007(g).
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