Oil Spill | Administrative Penalty Policy for Violations of the Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1991

General

The goal of the Texas General Land Office (Land Office) is to protect and preserve Texas coastal waters in as pristine a condition as possible, while at the same time partnering with the oil production and transportation industries to promote strong local and regional economies. To that end, the Land Office's Oil Spill Prevention and Response Division implements programs designed to reap positive contributions to the health of the Texas Coast. The basic philosophy of the Land Office is that all oil spills are preventable and that repeat oil spills are an indication of process or procedural failure on the part of the repeat offender. This Administrative Penalty Policy for Violations of the Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1991 was developed to further that philosophy and will be reviewed annually to determine its effectiveness in reducing the number of oil spills and repeat offenders. Written comments regarding the policy should be sent to:

Greg Pollock
Deputy Commissioner
Texas General Land Office
Oil Spill Prevention and Response Program
1700 North Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 78701

The penalty provisions detailed in the Unauthorized Discharge Matrix are focused on repeat violations of the Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act of 1991 (OSPRA) by the same operation or organization within the twelve-month period immediately preceding a spill event. These violations represent the nucleus around which the Oil Spill Prevention and Response Program was developed. Consistent with the goal of the Land Office, implementation of this matrix is designed to provide an incentive to the regulated community to decrease the number of repeat spills by application of a graduated penalty assessment that is tempered when an effective and recognized Sound Management Practices Program is in place. Naturally coincidental with the implementation of such a program, organizations that are successful in preventing oil spills over a twelve month period are assessed the smallest penalties when they are the responsible parties for an accidental unauthorized discharge.

A program by which an entity is deemed to have in place a Sound Management Practice Program includes at a minimum the following items:

1. A written statement dated prior to a spill from the owner/operator submitted to the Land Office committing to an SMP program.

2. Written policies and procedures to be utilized by company personnel in the handling of oil in a location where a spill could threaten Texas coastal waters, a description of the methods or processes to ensure that personnel adhere to the policies and procedures, and the mechanism to conduct quality assurance of initial and refresher training.

3. Written documentation of Spill Prevention and Response Training identified in (b) above including the subjects presented, the dates of training, and a list of attendees.

4. Post spill auditing process.

The Unauthorized Discharge Matrix in this document supports the OSPRA regarding the assessment of administrative penalties in that the following factors are considered:

1. The seriousness of the violation, including the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation and the hazard or damage caused

2. The degree of cooperation and quality of response.

3. The degree of culpability and history of previous violations of the responsible party.

4. The amount necessary to deter future violations.

5. Any other matter that justice requires including the existence of a Sound Management Practice, Responsible Carrier, or other like programs.

6. The degree to which the responsible party has implemented prevention practices or corrective actions as a result of previous spill incidents.

The Prevention and Response Penalty Matrices are designed to provide guidance for assessment of penalties for specific violations of the OSPRA not directly attributable to unauthorized discharge or failure to notify violations. Most of the violations listed in these matrices, though generally associated with a spill event, are distinctly identified in the OSPRA or the implementing regulation and are considered as either prevention or response actions. Penalties for violations identified in this matrix may be increased for multiple violations within the preceding twelve-month period dependent on a review of the circumstances.

Penalty Matrix Statement

The Land Office will use these matrices as guidance in assessing penalties with the intention to assess penalties at the minimum levels. Aggravating circumstances, however, may cause the penalty assessed to be higher.

The following are examples of circumstances where penalty assessments may be increased from the baseline. This list represents some common considerations and is not meant to be inclusive of all possible circumstances.

1. The responsible party fails to respond to a spill with the appropriate resources within a reasonable time frame.

2. The responsible party fails to modify identified deficient procedures that contribute to subsequent spills.

3. The responsible party fails to fulfill the duties of the responsible person in accordance with the OSPRA.

4. The responsible party is the subject of repeat unauthorized discharges of a similar nature or oil handling, storage or transfer process failure.

Unauthorized Discharge Matrix

The following matrix applies to all unauthorized discharges where oil has entered Texas coastal waters. The time period for determining the number of spills appropriate to this matrix is the twelve-month period immediately preceding the spill in question. For example, an unauthorized discharge that occurred on January 31^st will require the inclusion of the responsible party's history of unauthorized discharges since February 1^st of the previous year to determine the appropriate penalty box to enter.

Repeat unauthorized discharge violations may subject the responsible party to a comprehensive review of spill history and pollution prevention processes including, if appropriate, a review of the responsible party's Sound Management Practices Program.

When discharges are small, the Land Office may elect to issue an "on the spot" ticket if no other aggravating factors require an increase in an assessed penalty amount.

Unauthorized discharges where the amount entering coastal waters is greater than 1 gallon requires a calculation of a per barrel penalty equal to the multiplication of the number of whole barrels (42 U. S. gallons) by the amount indicated by the appropriate penalty box. For example, if an unauthorized discharge of 5.5 barrels was the 3^rd spill during the preceding twelve-month period, and it occurred at a location where a Sound Management Practices Program was in place, the responsible party would be assessed a $900 penalty.

EX: $400 (base penalty) plus 5 bbls (5.5 rounded to the lowest whole barrel) X $100 equals $900.

Sound Management Practice (SMP) in place

Sound Management Practice (SMP) not in place

** Figure applies to all spills greater than the 4^th spill in the twelve months immediately preceding the spill in question.

Prevention and Response Penalty Matrix