MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2013 Regular Session
To: Environment Prot, Cons and Water Res; Appropriations
By: Senator(s) Burton
AN ACT TO ENACT THE MISSISSIPPI ABOVEGROUND STORAGE TANK ACT OF 2013; TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS FOR THE ACT; TO PROVIDE THAT FUNDS SHOULD BE EXPENDED FROM THE MISSISSIPPI GROUNDWATER PROTECTION TRUST FUND FOR CERTAIN PURPOSES OF THE ACT; TO AUTHORIZE THE MISSISSIPPI COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY TO ESTABLISH REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTS ON CONTAMINATION INCIDENTS; TO DIRECT THE COMMISSION TO PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS GOVERNING ABOVEGROUND STORAGE TANKS; TO PROVIDE CERTAIN OBLIGATIONS OF OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF ABOVEGROUND STORAGE TANKS; TO AUTHORIZE THE COMMISSION TO TAKE TIMELY AND EFFECTIVE CORRECTIVE ACTION IN USING THE POLLUTION EMERGENCY FUND; TO AUTHORIZE THE COMMISSION TO ASSESS AND COLLECT A TANK REGULATORY FEE TO USE FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF THIS ACT; TO ESTABLISH THE ABOVEGROUND STORAGE TANK ADVISORY COUNCIL; TO PROVIDE A CIVIL PENALTY FOR VIOLATIONS OF THIS ACT; TO AMEND SECTION 49-17-405, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-437, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-437. Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 shall be known as the "Mississippi Aboveground Storage Tank Act of 2013".
SECTION 2. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-439, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-439. For the purposes of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465, the following words and phrases shall have the meaning ascribed in this section:
(a) "Aboveground Storage Tank" or "AST" means any one (1) or more combination of containers including tanks, vessels, enclosures or structures together with appurtenances thereto used to contain an accumulation of motor fuels, and the volume of which, including the volume of the pipes connected thereto, is more than ninety percent (90%) above the surface of the ground. Such term does not include any:
(i) Tank that meets the definition of an "Underground Storage Tank" as defined in Section 49-17-403;
(ii) Tanks utilized exclusively for farming, agricultural, residential or construction related purposes;
(iii) Tanks used for storing motor fuel that is not intended for commercial resale;
(iv) Tanks utilized for the temporary bulk storage of motor fuels at bulk terminals;
(v) Tanks used for storing heating oil for consumptive use on the premises where stored;
(vi) Septic tanks;
(vii) Pipeline facilities (including gathering lines regulated under:
1. The Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968, Public Law No. 90-481, 49 USCS 1671-1684, as amended and extended;
2. The Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Safety Act of 1979, Public Law No. 96-129, 49 USCS 2001 et seq., as amended and extended; or
3. An intrastate pipeline facility regulated under state laws comparable to the provisions of law in item 1 or 2 of this subparagraph);
(viii) Surface impoundments, pits, ponds or lagoons;
(ix) Storm water or wastewater collection systems;
(x) Flow-through process tanks;
(xi) Tanks, liquid traps and associated gathering lines directly related to oil or gas production and gathering operation;
(xii) Tanks under the jurisdiction of the State Oil and Gas Board created by Section 53-1-5; and
(xiii) Piping connected to any of the above exemptions.
(b) "Active site" means a site of an aboveground storage tank where an owner can be identified and where the tank can be used for management and handling of motor fuels.
(c) "Biofuel" means an oxygenated fuel comprised of mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids from biologically derived oil and fats.
(d) "Bulk plant" means a distributor or supplier facility that is utilized for the temporary storage of motor fuels prior to the distribution of these products to retail, commercial or consumer outlets.
(e) "Bulk terminal" means a facility that typically consists of very large, field erected tanks utilized for the temporary storage of motor fuels. These facilities typically receive bulk delivery of product from pipelines, tankers, barges or directly from a nearby refinery.
(f) "Commercial resale" means the selling again of purchased motor fuels for sale to the consuming public.
(g) "Commission" means the Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality.
(h) "Contamination" means the presence or discharge of motor fuels from an aboveground storage tank in or on the land or in the waters of the state.
(i) "Department" means the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.
(j) "Director" means the Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.
(k) "Groundwater" means water located beneath the land surface located wholly or partially within the boundaries of the state.
(l) "Leak" means any unintended spilling, leaking, emitting, discharging, escaping, leaching or disposing from an AST system. A leak may or may not result in a release to the environment. A leak from a single-walled AST system will normally result in a release to the environment. A leak from the primary containment of a secondarily contained AST system may or may not result in a release to the environment depending upon the integrity of the secondary containment.
(m) "Motor fuels" means gasoline and aviation gasoline as defined in Section 27-55-5 and special fuel as defined in Section 27-55-505 and biofuels, except for those "motor fuels" used in electric power-generating plants for the commercial production of electricity.
(n) "Operator" means any person in control of, or having responsibility for, the daily operation of an aboveground storage tank.
(o) "Owner of an aboveground storage tank" means:
(i) In the case of an aboveground storage tank in use on July 1, 2013, or brought into use after that date, any person who owns an aboveground storage tank used for the storage, use or dispensing of motor fuel; and
(ii) In the case of an aboveground storage tank in use before July 1, 2013, but no longer in use on that date, any person who owned such tank immediately before the discontinuation of its use.
(p) "Person" means an individual, trust, firm, joint-stock company, federal agency, corporation, state, municipality, commission, political subdivision of a state, any interstate body, a consortium, a joint venture, a commercial entity or the United States government.
(q) "Release" means a leak from an AST system or resulting from the operation of the AST system that reaches the environment.
(r) "Response action" means any activity, including evaluation, planning, design, engineering, construction and ancillary services, which is carried out in response to any, release, or threatened release of motor fuels.
(s) "Response action contractor" means a person who has been approved by the commission and is carrying out any response action, including a person retained or hired by such person to provide services relating to a response action.
(t) "Substantial compliance" means that an owner or operator of an aboveground storage tank has registered that tank with the department, has paid applicable tank fees and has made a good-faith effort to comply with the law; and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
(u) "Third-party claim" means any civil action brought or asserted by any person against any owner of any aboveground storage tank for damages to person or property which damages are the direct result of a release of motor fuels from an aboveground storage tank.
SECTION 3. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-441, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-441. (1) Notwithstanding any provision within this chapter to the contrary, funds shall be expended from the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund, established under Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435, hereinafter referred to as the "fund," for the following costs associated with response action of releases from aboveground storage tanks. These expenditures from the fund shall be in addition to the expenditures from the fund that are authorized by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435. However, the limitations on payments from the fund as provided in Section 49-17-443(2) shall not be exceeded at any site. The commission shall adopt regulations for administering these additional expenditures from this fund for the response action of releases from aboveground storage tanks; and the director of the department shall administer such expenditures. Whenever in the executive director's determination a release of motor fuels from an aboveground storage tank may pose a threat to the environment or the public health, safety or welfare, the department shall obligate monies available in the fund to provide for:
(a) Investigation and assessment of contamination sites;
(b) Restoration or replacement of potable water supplies;
(c) Rehabilitation of contamination sites, which may consist of response action of affected soil, groundwater and inland surface waters, using cost-effective alternatives that are technologically feasible and reliable, and that provide adequate protection of the public health, safety and welfare and minimize environmental damage, in accordance with the site selection and response action criteria established by the commission, except that nothing herein shall be construed to authorize the commission to obligate funds for payment of costs which may be associated with, but are not integral to, site rehabilitation, such as the cost for retrofitting or replacing aboveground storage tanks.
(2) Whenever the commission has expended funds from the fund established under Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435, the owner of the aboveground storage tank shall not be liable to the department for such costs if the owner was in substantial compliance on the date on which the release of the motor fuels which necessitates the response action was reported to the department, provided that such release of motor fuels occurred after the enactment of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 or otherwise provided for under Section 49-17-445. The owner shall not be liable to the department so long as the owner remains in substantial compliance. Otherwise owners are responsible for reimbursement and the reimbursed monies shall go back into the fund. In such circumstances the commission is authorized to take any necessary action to recover these monies from responsible owners.
(3) Any provisions of this section and chapter regarding liability for the costs of cleanup, removal, remediation or abatement of any pollution, hazardous waste or solid waste shall be limited as provided in Section 49-17-42 and rules adopted thereto.
SECTION 4. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-443, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-443. (1) Monies held in the fund established under Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435 shall be used only at an active site or otherwise provided for under Section 49-17-445 and shall be disbursed in accordance with the commission requirements and as follows:
(a) Payments shall be made to any third party who brings a third-party claim against any owner of an aboveground storage tank and the commission as trustee of the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund and who obtains a final judgment in such action which is valid and enforceable in this state against such parties, provided that such release of motor fuels occurred after the enactment of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465. Payment shall be paid to the third party upon filing by such party an application with the department attaching the original or a certified copy of the final judgment.
(b) Payments shall be made in reasonable amounts to approved response action contractors and other parties involved in the response action. Payment shall be made to the party incurring the costs by filing of a sworn application with the department indicating the fair and reasonable value of the site rehabilitation costs from contamination, subject to the regulations and limitations as set by the department.
(c) These expenditures from the fund shall be in addition to the expenditures from the fund that are authorized by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435. However, the limitations on payments from the fund as provided in subsection (2) of this section shall not be exceeded at any site.
(2) Payments from the fund are limited as follows:
(a) For response action purposes, a maximum of One Million Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($1,500,000.00) may be disbursed from the fund for any one (1) site, per confirmed release occurrence.
(b) For third-party judgments, a maximum of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) may be disbursed from the fund for any one (1) site, per confirmed release occurrence.
(c) Nothing in Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 shall establish or create any liability or responsibility on the part of the department or the State of Mississippi to pay any response action costs or third-party claims if the fund created herein is insufficient to do so.
(3) Monies held in the fund established under Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435 shall not be used for purchases of equipment needed to assist in response action operations.
(4) Nothing in Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 shall serve to limit any recovery against an owner of an aboveground storage tank in excess of the fund payment limits established under this section.
(5) Substantial compliance shall in no way be construed to be an absolute defense to civil liability.
SECTION 5. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-445, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-445. The commission is authorized to establish requirements for the written reporting of motor fuel contamination incidents from aboveground storage tanks. To encourage early detection, reporting and response action of contamination from aboveground storage tanks containing motor fuel, the department shall within the guidelines established in this section, conduct an incentive program which shall provide for a general grace period beginning on July 1, 2013, and ending June 30, 2015. Pursuant thereto the commission may establish requirements for the written reporting of motor fuel contamination incidents. Sites involving incidents of motor fuel releases from aboveground storage tanks that occurred prior to July 1, 2013, reported to the department any time on or before June 30, 2015, shall be qualified sites for expenditure of funds from the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund created by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-433, provided that a written report is filed with respect thereto. Sites involving incidents of motor fuel releases from aboveground storage tanks that occurred after July 1, 2013, where the owner of such tanks is in substantial compliance and files a written report with the commission of such incident, shall be qualified sites for expenditure of funds from the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund created by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435. Any funds so expended shall be absorbed at the expense of the fund, without recourse to reimbursement or recovery from any aboveground storage tank owner, subject to the following exceptions:
(a) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any AST site where the department has initiated any response action or civil enforcement action prior to the passage of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465.
(b) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any AST site where the department has been denied site access to implement the provisions of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465.
(c) Reimbursement from the fund for costs expended prior to the passage of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 shall be limited to the following circumstances:
At sites where remediation costs were expended prior to the passage of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 and where there was a demonstration of good-faith cooperation with the department by the owner or operator in assuming responsibility for the costs of the remediation, the owner or operator shall be eligible for reimbursement from the fund for the costs of the remediation. A demonstration of good-faith cooperation with the department, as used in this subsection, shall mean the execution of a Commission Agreed Order by the owner or operator, prior to the passage of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465, to conduct the remediation, and the owner or operator complied with the Commission Agreed Order and expended funds to pay costs associated with the remediation; or in the alternative, the voluntary payment of costs of the remediation by the owner or operator without any issue of the Commission Agreed Order.
(d) The commission may determine, in its discretion, that the owner of an aboveground storage tank is not in substantial compliance for the purposes of this section and Sections 49-17-405 and 49-17-441, if such owner of an aboveground storage tank has been delinquent in the payment of tank regulatory fees for more than three (3) months after such fee is due and payable.
(e) Any provisions of this section and chapter regarding liability for the costs of response action, removal, remediation or abatement of any pollution, hazardous waste or solid waste shall be limited as provided in Section 49-17-42 and rules adopted thereto.
SECTION 6. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-447, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-447. No person shall own, install or operate an aboveground storage tank without complying with the applicable regulations of the commission.
SECTION 7. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-449, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-449. (1) The commission shall promulgate rules and regulations governing aboveground storage tanks, which shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) Notification of abandoned aboveground storage tanks;
(b) Registration of aboveground storage tanks at active sites;
(c) Standards for aboveground storage tanks. The commission shall distinguish in such standards between requirements appropriate for new tanks, for tanks in existence on the date of the promulgation of the standards and for abandoned tanks. These standards shall include, but not be limited to, design, construction, installation, upgrade, repair, release or leak detection, and compatibility standards;
(d) Release or leak detection, prevention, and corrective action;
(e) Tank closure requirements;
(f) Standards for monitoring, testing, reporting and record keeping; and
(g) Requirements for financial responsibility. The commission shall adopt requirements to insure financial responsibility for corrective action and compensation of third parties required by releases arising from the operation of an aboveground storage tank. Financial responsibility may be established by any one (1) or combination of the following: insurance; guarantee; surety bond; letter of credit; qualification as a self-insurer; for owners of aboveground storage tanks containing motor fuels, use of the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund established under Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435.
(2) Variances and temporary emergency variances may be granted by the commission from any regulation adopted pursuant to Section 49-17-437 et seq.
SECTION 8. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-451, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-451. For the purposes of identifying the source of known or suspected contamination, developing or assisting in the development of any regulation, conducting any study, taking corrective action or enforcing the provisions of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465, any owner or operator of an aboveground storage tank shall, upon the request of any duly authorized representative of the commission: furnish information relating to such tanks, including tank equipment and contents; conduct monitoring or testing; and permit the designated representative at all reasonable times to have access to and to copy all records relating to such tanks. For the purposes of identifying the source of known or suspected pollution, developing or assisting in the development of any regulation, conducting any study, or enforcing the provisions of Section 49-17-437 et seq., any duly authorized representatives of the commission are authorized:
(a) To enter at reasonable times any establishment or place where an aboveground storage tank is located.
(b) To inspect and obtain samples of any motor fuel contained in such tank; and
(c) To conduct monitoring or testing of such tanks, associated equipment, contents or surrounding soils, air, surface water or groundwater.
SECTION 9. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-453, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-453. Nothing contained in the Mississippi Aboveground Storage Tank Act of 2013 (Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465) shall prevent the commission from requiring any owner of an aboveground storage tank from taking timely and effective response action.
The commission may use the Pollution Emergency Fund for emergency or remedial response action of aboveground storage tank leaks or releases when the tank owner will not take timely and effective action. In the event of the necessity for such immediate response action, the commission may contract for same and advance funds from the Pollution Emergency Fund to pay the costs thereof, such advancements to be repaid to the Pollution Emergency Fund upon recovery by the commission from the tank owner.
SECTION 10. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-455, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-455. The commission may assess and collect a tank regulatory fee in an amount sufficient to administer Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465. A minimum annual tank regulatory fee of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) per tank compartment, but not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) per tank compartment per year, shall be collected from the owner of each aboveground storage tank available for use in Mississippi on July 1, 2013, or brought into use or available for use after that date, as provided in the Mississippi Aboveground Storage Tank Act of 2013 (Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465). The commission shall establish the amount of each annual tank fee to cover the aboveground storage tank program costs. Following the date of full implementation of the aboveground storage tank program in Mississippi, the aboveground storage tank annual tank fee for any subsequent state fiscal year shall be set by order of the commission in an amount sufficient to cover the aboveground storage tank program. The commission's order shall follow: (1) receipt of the report and recommendations of the Aboveground Storage Tank (AST) Advisory Council and (2) a public notice to allow the general public a period of at least thirty (30) days to provide comment regarding the annual tank fee or to request a public hearing in accordance with Section 49-17-29(4)(a). The department may conduct a public hearing for the annual tank fee when a significant level of public interest exists or where warranted by other factors. The commission may proceed with entry of the order on fees if the AST Advisory Council fails to submit its report in a timely manner. The tank regulatory fee assessed under this section is a debt due by the owner of each aboveground storage tank available for use in Mississippi on July 1, 2013, or brought into use after that date. The tank regulatory fee shall be due January 31 of each year. If any part of the tank regulatory fee is not paid within thirty (30) days after the due date, a penalty of fifty percent (50%) of the amount due shall accrue at once and be added to the fee, unless the owner of the aboveground storage tank demonstrates to the commission that the failure to make timely payment was unavoidable due to financial hardship or otherwise beyond the control of the owner. Monies collected under this section shall be deposited in a special fund which is created in the State Treasury. Unexpended amounts remaining in the special fund at the end of the fiscal year shall not lapse into the General Fund and any interest earned on amounts in the special fund shall be credited to the special fund by the Treasurer. The special fund may receive monies from any available public or private source, including, but not limited to, collection of fees, interest, grants, taxes, public or private donations and judicial actions. Monies in this special fund shall be expended by annual appropriation approved by the Legislature to administer Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465.
SECTION 11. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-457, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-457. (1) An Aboveground Storage Tank (AST) Advisory Council, hereinafter referred to as "AST Advisory Council," is created to conduct an independent study of the costs for the development and administration of the AST program within the department and to conduct an annual review of the costs of administering such programs. The costs to be included within the study for the AST program shall be those costs set forth in Section 49-17-455. The AST Advisory Council shall include within the study the type and quantity of aboveground storage tanks within the state that are covered by the AST program. After completing a study of the program needs and costs, the AST Advisory Council shall recommend an equitable fee system for the AST program that is based on the type and quantity of aboveground storage tanks. The annual review for the AST program shall determine if the fee system is collecting sufficient funds to meet AST program needs. Each annual review report shall be due July 1 of each year to the commission and the director of the department.
(2) The AST Advisory Council shall be composed of seven (7) persons as identified in the rules and regulations promulgated under Section 49-17-449. Members of the AST Advisory Council may designate an alternate member to act in their stead in performing any function of the AST Advisory Council. The length of the term for each member of the AST Advisory Council shall be four (4) years or less.
(3) Original appointments to the AST Advisory Council shall be made no later than January 1, 2014. Vacancies on the AST Advisory Council shall be filled by appointment in the same manner as the original appointments. The AST Advisory Council shall convene within sixty (60) days following the date of the appointment of the members.
The AST Advisory Council shall select from their membership a chairperson to preside over meetings and a vice chairperson to preside in the absence of the chairperson or when the chairperson shall be excused. The AST Advisory Council shall adopt procedures governing the manner of conducting its business. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum to do business.
(4) Members of the AST Advisory Council shall serve without salary. The members of the AST Advisory Council shall be entitled to receive reimbursement of their actual travel and hotel expenses as provided in Section 25-3-41, incurred while in the performance of their duties as members of the AST Advisory Council to be paid on an itemized statement approved by the State Fiscal Officer. Expenses shall be paid from fees collected in accordance with Section 49-17-455.
(5) The director of the department shall provide technical, clerical and other support services, including services by contract, as the AST Advisory Council determines that it requires in the performance of its functions.
SECTION 12. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-459, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-459. The disclosure of any records, reports or information obtained pursuant to Section 49-17-437 et seq. shall be governed by the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983, Section 25-61-1 et seq., and Section 49-17-39, and the regulations of the commission promulgated thereunder.
SECTION 13. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-461, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-461. (1) Whenever the commission or an employee thereof has reason to believe that a violation of any provision of this chapter, or of any order of the commission, or of any regulation promulgated pursuant to this chapter has occurred, the commission shall initiate proceedings in the same manner as provided in Sections 49-17-31 through 49-17-41, Mississippi Code of 1972.
(2) Any person found by the commission violating any of the provisions of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465, or any rule or regulation or written order of the commission shall be subject to a civil penalty of not more than Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) for each violation per day, such penalty to be assessed and levied by the commission as provided in Sections 49-17-1 through 49-17-43.
(3) In determining the amount of any penalty under this chapter, the commission shall consider at a minimum:
(a) The willfulness of the violation;
(b) Any damage to air, water, land or other natural resources of the state or their uses;
(c) Costs of restoration or abatement;
(d) Economic benefit as a result of noncompliance;
(e) The seriousness of the violation, including any harm to the environment and any hazard to the health, safety and welfare of the public;
(f) Past performance history; and
(g) Whether the noncompliance was discovered and reported as the result of a voluntary self-evaluation. If a person discovers as a result of a voluntary self-evaluation, information related to noncompliance with an environmental law and voluntarily discloses that information to the department, commission or any employee thereof, the commission shall, to the greatest extent possible, reduce a penalty, if any, determined by the commission, except for economic benefit as a result of noncompliance, to a de minimis amount if all of the following are true:
(i) The disclosure is made promptly after knowledge of the information disclosed is obtained by the person;
(ii) The person making the disclosure initiates the appropriate corrective actions and pursues those corrective actions with due diligence;
(iii) The person making the disclosure cooperates with the commission and the department regarding investigation of the issues identified in the disclosure;
(iv) The person is not otherwise required by an environmental law to make the disclosure to the commission or the department;
(v) The information was not obtained through any source independent of the voluntary self-evaluation or by the department through observation, sampling or monitoring;
(vi) The noncompliance did not result in a substantial endangerment threatening the public health, safety or welfare or the environment; and
(vii) The noncompliance is not a repeat violation occurring at the same facility within a period of three (3) years. "Repeat violation" in this subparagraph means a second or subsequent violation, after the first violation has ceased, of the same statutory provision, regulation, permit condition, or condition in an order of the commission.
(4) Any provisions of this section and chapter regarding liability for the costs of response action, removal, remediation or abatement of any contamination, hazardous waste or solid waste shall be limited as provided in Section 49-17-42 and rules adopted thereto.
SECTION 14. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-463, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-463. No person may install, alter or remove an aboveground storage tank after July 1, 2015, without first having been certified by the Commission on Environmental Quality. The commission shall adopt rules and regulations setting forth the requirements for such certification which shall include, but not be limited to, a certification examination.
SECTION 15. The following shall be codified as Section 49-17-465, Mississippi Code of 1972:
49-17-465. Any person aggrieved by any decision by the commission or the director relating to any provision of Sections 49-17-437 through 49-17-465 shall have the right to appeal as provided in Section 49-17-41.
SECTION 16. Section 49-17-405, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
49-17-405. (1) There is
hereby created the Mississippi Groundwater Protection Trust Fund, hereinafter
referred to as the "fund" to be administered by the Executive
Director of the Department of * * * Environmental Quality.
The commission shall adopt regulations for administering this fund. Whenever
in the executive director's determination a release of motor fuels at an active
site may pose a threat to the environment or the public health, safety or
welfare, the department shall obligate monies available in the fund to provide
for:
(a) Investigation and assessment of contamination sites;
(b) Restoration or replacement of potable water supplies;
(c) Rehabilitation of contamination sites, which may consist of cleanup of affected soil, groundwater and inland surface waters, using cost-effective alternatives that are technologically feasible and reliable, and that provide adequate protection of the public health, safety and welfare and minimize environmental damage, in accordance with the site selection and clean-up criteria established by the commission, except that nothing herein shall be construed to authorize the commission to obligate funds for payment of costs which may be associated with, but are not integral to, site rehabilitation, such as the cost for retrofitting or replacing underground storage tanks.
(2) Whenever the commission has expended funds from the fund created by Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-433, the owner of the underground storage tank shall not be liable to the department for such costs if the owner was in substantial compliance on the date on which the discharge of the motor fuels which necessitates the cleanup was reported to the department. Otherwise owners are responsible for reimbursement and the reimbursed monies shall go back into the fund. In such circumstances the commission is authorized to take any necessary action to recover these monies from responsible owners.
(3) Any provisions of this section and chapter regarding liability for the costs of cleanup, removal, remediation or abatement of any pollution, hazardous waste or solid waste shall be limited as provided in Section 49-17-42 and rules adopted thereto.
(4) In addition, monies from the fund may be obligated as provided in the Mississippi Aboveground Storage Tank Act of 2013.
SECTION 17. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2013.