MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Energy
By: Representative Roberson
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 75-55-5 AND 75-55-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXTEND THE REPEALERS ON THOSE SECTIONS OF LAW WHICH PROVIDE DEFINITIONS AND PENALTIES UNDER THE PETROLEUM PRODUCTS INSPECTION LAW OF MISSISSIPPI; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 75-55-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
75-55-5. (1) The following words, terms and phrases, as used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context requires otherwise:
(a) * * * "Commissioner" means the
Commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, or his
agents and employees.
(b) * * * "State Chemist" means the
Director of the Mississippi State Chemical Laboratory, or his agents and
employees.
(c) * * * "ASTM" means an
international voluntary consensus standards organization formed for the
development of standards on characteristics and performance of materials,
products, systems, and services, and the promotion of related knowledge.
(d) * * * "Person" * * * includes any individual, firm,
copartnership, joint venture, association, corporation, estate, trust or any
other group or combination acting as a unit, and the plural as well as the
singular number, unless the intention to give a more limited meaning is
disclosed by the context.
(e) * * * "Illuminating oil" * * * includes coal oil, kerosene or
other petroleum products used for illuminating purposes.
(f) * * * "Lubricating oil" means all
petroleum-based oils or synthetic lubricants intended for use in the crankcase
of an internal combustion engine, either spark ignition or diesel type. The
purpose of the lubricating oil is to reduce friction between two (2) solid
surfaces moving relative to one another.
(g) * * * "Gasoline pump" * * * includes pumps, meters and all
measuring devices used for measuring gasoline and all oxygenated blended fuels; * * * "diesel fuel pump" * * * includes pumps, meters and all
measuring devices used for measuring diesel fuel; * * * "kerosene pump" * * *l includes pumps, meters and all
measuring devices used for measuring kerosene; * * * "liquefied compressed gas
pump" * * *
includes pumps, meters and all measuring devices used for measuring
liquefied compressed gas.
(h) * * * "Gasoline" * * * includes: (i) all products
commonly or commercially known or sold as gasoline (excluding casing head and
absorption or natural gasoline) regardless of their classification or uses; and
(ii) a volatile mixture of liquid hydrocarbons, generally containing small
amounts of additives, suitable for use as a fuel in spark ignition, internal
combustion engines.
(i) * * * "Commercial gasoline" * * * means a liquid suitable for use as
a fuel in spark ignition combustion engines, * * * which shall be free of undissolved
water, suspended matter and of any harmful ingredient or component and which,
in addition, meets the following test requirements as set out in ASTM D4814 * * *. It shall be the intent of this
chapter that the state specifications may be kept current with ASTM D4814 as
illustrated below:
(i) Corrosion ASTM D130. A clean copper strip shall not show more than extremely slight discoloration equivalent to ASTM Strip No. 1, when submerged in the gasoline for three (3) hours at one hundred twenty-two degrees (l22°) Fahrenheit, as determined by ASTM D130.
(ii) Distillation range. For each month the distillation range shall be that specified by the vapor pressure class requirement for that month. Distillation temperature limits shall be consistent with the corresponding vapor pressure class during the months affected by federal or state regulation which restrict vapor pressure. If the vapor pressure limit is between two (2) classes, the distillation temperature limits of the least restrictive class shall be acceptable. The method of test shall be ASTM D86.
(iii) Residue. The residue, after evaporation, shall not exceed two percent (2%), as determined by ASTM D86.
(iv) Gum test. The gum shall not exceed five (5) milligrams per one hundred (100) milliliters, after the extraction of the residue with a-heptane, as determined by ASTM D381.
(v) Sulphur. The sulphur content shall not exceed ten one-hundredths percent (0.10%) for unleaded gasoline or fifteen one-hundredths percent (0.15%) for leaded gasoline, as determined by ASTM D2622 or D4045.
(vi) Vapor pressure. The vapor pressure during the months of July and August shall not exceed ten (10) pounds per square inch at one hundred degrees (100°) Fahrenheit, and during the months of November, December, January, February and March, shall not exceed thirteen and one-half (13-1/2) pounds per square inch at one hundred degrees (100°) Fahrenheit.
The vapor pressure during the remaining months of the year shall not exceed eleven and five-tenths (11.5) pounds per square inch at one hundred degrees (100°) Fahrenheit. The method of determination shall be ASTM D4953. Federal or state regulation restricting vapor pressure to lower levels shall preempt these standards during the applicable months.
(vii) Vapor liquid equilibrium. A maximum value of twenty (20) for the vapor liquid equilibrium test during the months July and August shall be obtained at a temperature of one hundred thirty-three degrees (l33°) Fahrenheit; for the months of November, December, January, February and March, it shall be obtained at a temperature of one hundred sixteen degrees (116°) Fahrenheit; for the other months of the year, it shall be obtained at one hundred twenty-four degrees (124°) Fahrenheit. The method of determination shall be ASTM D2533 or ASTM D4814, appendix X2.
(viii) Lead specifications. The unleaded gasoline shall contain less than five hundredths (0.05) gram of lead per gallon, and the leaded gasoline shall contain a minimum of five hundredths (0.05) gram of lead and less than four and two-tenths (4.2) grams of lead per gallon. The method of analysis should be ASTM D3237, (Atomic Absorption Spectrometry), ASTM D2599 (X-ray Spectrometry) or ASTM D2547 (Volumetric Chromate).
(ix) Classification.
1. "Leaded premium grade gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index of at least ninety-three (93). The research octane number shall be at least ninety-six (96).
2. "Unleaded premium grade gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index of at least ninety-one (91). The research octane number shall be at least ninety-four (94).
3. "Mid-grade unleaded gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index of at least eighty-nine (89). The research octane number shall be at least ninety-two (92).
4. "Leaded regular grade gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index of at least eighty-nine (89). The research octane number shall be at least ninety (90).
5. "Unleaded regular grade gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index of at least eighty-seven (87). The research octane number shall be at least ninety (90), and the motor octane number shall be at least eighty-two (82).
6. "Third-grade gasoline" shall have an (R + M)/2 octane antiknock of not more than eighty-seven (87).
The methods of octane determination shall be ASTM D2699 for the research octane number (R) and ASTM D2700 for the motor octane number (M), or ASTM D2885 for both the research octane number and the motor octane number. The (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index shall be the average of the research and motor octane numbers. All retail pumps or delivery devices shall be labeled with the appropriate (R + M)/2 octane antiknock index in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission Octane Posting and Certification Regulation 306. No commercial gasoline shall be colored mahogany.
(j) * * * "Oxygenated fuel" means a
liquid fuel which is a homogeneous blend of hydrocarbons and oxygenates. * * * "Oxygenate" means an oxygen
containing ashless organic compound which may be used as a fuel supplement or
additive and includes alcohols and ethers. "Gasoline-oxygenate
blend" means a blend consisting primarily of gasoline and a substantial
amount of one or more oxygenates. This definition includes, but is not limited
to, the following designations:
(i) "Gasohol," meaning any motor fuel containing a nominal ten (10) volume percent anhydrous denatured alcohol and ninety (90) volume percent unleaded gasoline, regardless of other name, label or designation.
(ii) "Leaded gasohol," meaning any motor fuel containing a nominal ten (10) volume percent anhydrous, denatured ethanol and ninety (90) volume percent leaded gasoline, regardless of other name, label or designation.
(iii) Any gasoline-oxygenate blend which meets the United States Environmental Protection Agency's "substantially similar" rule, Section 211(f)(1) of the Clean Air Act, 42 USCS 7545(f)(1).
(iv) Any gasoline-oxygenate blend for which there is an existing Clean Air Act waiver issued by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
(k) "Alcohol blended fuel" means gasohol or leaded gasohol.
(l) "Anhydrous, denatured ethyl alcohol (ethanol)" means normal two hundred (200) proof ethanol to which has been added a maximum of five (5) volumes of approved denaturant(s) to one hundred (100) volumes of ethanol and containing not more than one and twenty-five hundredths percent (1.25%) water by weight as determined by ASTM E203.
(m) "Approved denaturant(s)" means materials used for denaturing ethyl alcohol for use as a motor fuel which have been approved by the United States Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and both the State Chemist and the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce. Gasoline-oxygenate blends shall meet the specifications set forth in the most recent edition of the Annual Book of ASTM standards and supplements thereto, and revisions thereof, except where amended or modified by the Commissioner and State Chemist.
(n) * * * "Oil" * * * includes
diesel fuel, kerosene, fuel oil, distillate, gas oil, tractor fuel or any other
product other than gasoline, as defined in this chapter, which is usable as
fuel in an internal combustion engine, and any product which, on distillation
in accordance with the method of test of the American Society for Testing and
Materials, shows not more than ten percent (10%) recovered when the
thermometer shows two hundred sixty-one degrees (261°) Fahrenheit; and not more
than ninety-five percent (95%) recovered when the thermometer shows four
hundred sixty-five degrees (465°) Fahrenheit or more; * * * however, nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to include oils received or sold as lubricants
when such oils cannot be used as a fuel in internal combustion engines.
(o) "Diesel
fuel" * * *
means any petroleum product intended for use or offered for sale as a
fuel for engines in which the fuel is injected into the combustion chamber and
ignited by pressure without the presence of an electric spark.
Specifications: The fuel oils herein specified shall be hydrocarbon oils free from acids, grit and fibrous or other foreign material. Three (3) grades of such oils are specified, and these shall conform to the detailed requirements in the current American Society for Testing and Materials Specifications for Diesel Fuel Oils (ASTM D975), except for the sulphur content of Grade 2-D. All tests shall be in accordance with the applicable American Society for Testing and Materials method as set forth in the current ASTM Designation D975. Diesel fuel requirements are listed below:
Grade 1-D Grade 2-D Grade 4-D Flash point, degrees F. D93 Min. 100 Min. 125 Min. 130
Water & sediment,
% by volume, D1796 Max. 0.05 Max. 0.05 Max. 0.5
Carbon residue on 10%
residium, % D524 Max. 0.15 Max. 0.35 ________
Ash, % by weight, D482 Max. 0.01 Max. 0.01 Max. 0.1
Distillation, 90% point,
degrees F., D86 _________ Min. 540 ________
Max. 550 Max. 640 ________
Viscosity @ 100 degrees F.
kinematic-centistokes
D445 Min. 1.3 Min. 2.0 Min. 5.5
or Max. 2.4 Max. 4.1 Max. 24.0
Viscosity @ 100 degrees F.
Saybolt Universal Sec. ________ Min. 32.6 Min. 45
Max. 34.4 Max. 40.1 Max. 125
Sulphur, % by weight, D129 Max. 0.5 Max. 1.0 Max. 2.0
Copper strip corrosion, D130 Max. No. 3 Max. No. 3 ________
Cetane number, D613 or D976 Min. 40 Min. 40 Min. 30
(p) * * * "Kerosene" * * * includes lamp oil, illuminating
oil and coal oil which shall conform to the detailed requirements set forth in
the current American Society for Testing and Materials Specification for
Kerosene (ASTM D3699). All tests shall be in accordance with the applicable
American Society for Testing and Material Methods as set forth in ASTM D3699.
The detailed requirements are listed below:
(i) The oil shall be free of water and suspended matter.
(ii) The color shall not be darker than number plus sixteen (16) on the Saybolt scale, as determined by ASTM D156.
(iii) The flash point shall, by ASTM D56, not be lower than one hundred degrees (100°) Fahrenheit when determined in Tagliabue closed type tester, as determined by ASTM D56.
(iv) The sulphur content shall not exceed four one-hundredths percent (0.04%) for No. 1-K kerosene and thirty one-hundredths percent (0.30%) for No. 2-K kerosene. The method of determination shall be ASTM D1266. No. 1-K kerosene is a special low-sulphur grade kerosene suitable for use in nonflue-connected kerosene burner appliances and in wick-fed illuminating lamps. No. 2-K kerosene is suitable for use in flue-connected burner appliances and in wick-fed illuminating lamps.
(v) The distillation ten percent (10%) point shall not be higher than four hundred one degrees (401°) Fahrenheit, as determined by ASTM D86.
(vi) The distillation end point shall not be higher than five hundred seventy-two degrees (572°) Fahrenheit, as determined by ASTM D86.
(vii) The oil shall not show a cloud point at five degrees (5°) Fahrenheit, as determined by ASTM D2500.
(viii) The oil shall burn freely and steadily for sixteen (16) hours, as determined by ASTM D187.
(ix) The gravity shall not be less than degrees API 41, as determined by ASTM D1298.
(x) The corrosion test results shall be No. 1 Maximum in a three-hour at two hundred twelve degrees (212°) Fahrenheit test, as determined by ASTM D130.
(q) "Racing gasoline" means any gasoline which is sold for racing purposes. Racing gasoline may be sold from retail dispensing equipment under the following conditions:
(i) The product brand name and octane number shall be registered with the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce and the State Chemist.
(ii) The manufacturer shall forward a list of marketers selling these product(s) and the product(s) being sold by each marketer.
(iii) Marketers shall register their retail outlets by location and provide a list of the product(s) sold for each retail outlet.
(iv) The dispensing equipment shall contain a conspicuous sign stating that the fuel is racing gasoline. The dispensing equipment shall not contain any kind of representation indicating that the product is suitable for vehicles other than for racing.
(v) The dispensing equipment shall be dedicated to and isolated from any other motor fuel dispensing equipment in a manner that a vehicle cannot access both the commercial gasoline and the racing gasoline at the same time.
(vi) Any violation shall result in revocation of the approval to market and/or confiscation of the product.
(vii) The
Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce * * * and the State
Chemist are hereby given authority to change the specifications set forth in
this section to comply with the currently recommended ASTM or federally
required specifications.
(2) This section shall
stand repealed on July 1, * * *2023 2026.
SECTION 2. Section 75-55-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
75-55-37. (1) The
commissioner or his duly appointed representatives shall have the right to
request an inspection of any pump, truck, or other equipment, and if upon such inspection
any such pump, truck, or other equipment is found to be inaccurate to the
extent that a test thereof shows a deficiency of more than twenty-five (25)
cubic inches on a five (5) gallon measurement, or if the right to inspect any
such pump, truck, or other equipment is refused or denied the commissioner, or
his duly authorized representatives, he or they shall have the right to
immediately close and lock * * * the pump and other equipment or to
seal same with the commissioner's seal. If such pump, truck, or other
equipment is found to be inaccurate but the deficiency is twenty-five (25) cubic
inches or less on a five (5) gallon measurement, then the commissioner or his
representative shall give the owner or operator thereof forty-eight (48) hours
within which to correct such inaccuracy, and if such person fails or
refuses to correct same within * * * that period, then the
commissioner or his representative shall have the right to lock and seal such
pump or other equipment in the same manner as provided above.
It shall be prima facie
presumed, upon any refusal to allow the right to inspect, that
the pump, truck, or other equipment sought to be inspected is inaccurate to the
extent set forth above, or is operating in violation of this chapter. When any
such pump or other equipment is locked or sealed, it may not be unlocked or the
seal thereon broken except in the presence of a mechanic or other person called
for the purpose of repairing the inaccuracy in the machinery of such pump or
other equipment, and such inaccuracy shall be immediately thereafter repaired,
and the pump or other equipment properly regulated. The commissioner may, in
his discretion, require an affidavit from the mechanic repairing such pump or
other equipment, or any other proof which he may deem advisable to the effect
that * * * the
pump was unlocked or the seal thereon broken in the presence of such mechanic,
and that the inaccuracies therein were thereupon completely repaired or
regulated.
When a state or factory seal
is broken on the measuring adjustment device on a retail pump, it shall be the
duty of the station operator to notify the commissioner by United States mail,
within twenty-four (24) hours, after the breaking of * * * the seal. After the commissioner
has received written notice as herein provided and he or his agent has resealed
the measuring adjustment device on the pump or pumps at this station, it shall
be unlawful for the owner or operator of the station or any of his employees to
break a state or factory seal on the measuring adjustment device on any pump at
the station during the ensuing ninety (90) days without the prior approval of
the commissioner or his agent.
The State of Mississippi
shall have a lien on all pumps, trucks, and other equipment used by any
distributor, or other person, in the operation of his business for any tax or
penalty due the State of Mississippi because of any violation of this chapter.
Such lien shall be paramount to any and all private liens, and all the
provisions set out in Chapter 7, Title 85, Mississippi Code of 1972, shall be
applicable herein for the purpose of securing the enforcement of * * * the lien, and particularly,
the right to secure the issuance of a writ of summons and seizure and
proceedings had and done after the issuance of * * * the writ shall be applicable. * * * However, * * * the commissioner shall not be required to
give any bond in any such case.
Any person or officer, agent or employee thereof who shall violate any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) for the first offense and not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) for each subsequent offense or imprisonment in the county jail for a period not to exceed ninety (90) days or both.
(2) If a person * * * by himself, by his agent, or as the
servant or agent of another person commits a violation of this chapter, the
commissioner or his designee may impose any, all or a combination of the
following penalties:
(a) A stop sale order for any engine fuel, nonengine fuel, automotive lubricant or any other petroleum product not in compliance with this chapter. A remand of the stop sale order may be issued if the engine fuel, nonengine fuel, automotive lubricant or petroleum product is brought into full compliance with this chapter. The stop sale order may be appealed to the commissioner or his designee within twenty (20) days from the receipt of the order.
(b) A warning letter for violations of this chapter.
(c) A civil penalty of not more than Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000.00) per violation. A person may request an administrative hearing within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notice of the penalty. The commissioner or his designee shall conduct a hearing after giving reasonable notice to the person. The decision may be appealed to the Circuit Court of the First Judicial District of Hinds County.
(3) If the person has exhausted his administrative appeals, he shall pay the civil penalty within thirty (30) days after the effective date of the final decision. If the person fails to pay the penalty, the commissioner may bring a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the penalty.
(4) The commissioner is authorized to suspend, revoke and/or permanently deny a registration under the Petroleum Products Inspection Law of Mississippi to any person, firm, corporation or other organization determined to be guilty of two (2) or more violations per location, per year, of the Petroleum Products Inspection Law of Mississippi and the rules and regulations in force pursuant thereto.
(5) In lieu of, or in addition to, the penalties provided above, the commissioner and the State Chemist shall have the power to institute and maintain in the name of the state any and all proceedings necessary or appropriate to enforce the provisions of the Petroleum Products Inspection Law of Mississippi and the rules and regulations in force pursuant thereto, in the appropriate circuit, chancery, county or justice court in which venue may lie. The commissioner and the State Chemist may obtain mandatory or prohibitory injunctive relief, whether temporary or permanent, and it shall not be necessary for the state to post a bond or prove that no adequate remedy is available at law.
(6) All penalties assessed by the commissioner under this section shall be deposited in the State General Fund.
(7) This section shall
stand repealed on July 1, * * *2023 2026.
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.