SB 702 — Petroleum Cleanup

(n) Payment of amounts payable under any service contract entered into by the department pursuant to s.

376.3075, subject to annual appropriation by the Legislature.

(o) Petroleum remediation pursuant to this section throughout a state fiscal year.

The department shall establish a process to uniformly encumber appropriated funds throughout a state fiscal year and shall allow for emergencies and imminent threats to public health, safety, and welfare, water resources, and the environment as provided in paragraph (5)(a).

This paragraph does not apply to appropriations associated with the free product recovery initiative provided in paragraph (5)(c) or the advanced cleanup program provided in s.

376.30713.

(p) Enforcement of this section and ss.

376.30-376.317 by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Department of Environmental Protection.

The department shall may disburse moneys to the commission for such purpose.

(q) Payments for program deductibles, copayments, and limited contamination assessment reports that otherwise would be paid by another state agency for state-funded petroleum contamination site rehabilitation.

(r) Payments for the repair or replacement of, or other preventive measures for, storage tanks, piping, or system components as provided in subsection (15).

Such costs may include equipment, excavation, electrical work, and site restoration.

172 The issuance of a site rehabilitation completion order pursuant to subsection (5) or paragraph (12)(b) for contamination eligible for programs funded by this section does not alter the project’s eligibility for state-funded remediation if the department determines that site conditions are not protective of human health under actual or proposed circumstances of exposure under subsection (5).

The Inland Protection Trust Fund may be used only to fund the activities in ss.

376.30-376.317 except ss.

376.3078 and 376.3079.

Amounts on deposit in the fund in each fiscal year must first be applied or allocated for the payment of amounts payable by the department pursuant to paragraph (n) under a service contract entered into by the department pursuant to s.

376.3075 and appropriated in each year by the Legislature before making or providing for other disbursements from the fund.

This subsection does not authorize the use of the fund for cleanup of contamination caused primarily by a discharge of solvents as defined in s.

206.9925(6), or polychlorinated biphenyls when their presence causes them to be hazardous wastes, except solvent contamination which is the result of chemical or physical breakdown of petroleum products and is otherwise eligible.

Facilities used primarily for the storage of motor or diesel fuels as defined in ss.

206.01 and 206.86 are not excluded from eligibility pursuant to this section.

(13) PETROLEUM CLEANUP PARTICIPATION PROGRAM.—To encourage detection, reporting, and cleanup of contamination caused by discharges of petroleum or petroleum products, the department shall, within the guidelines established in this subsection, implement a cost-sharing cleanup program to provide rehabilitation funding assistance for all property contaminated by discharges of petroleum or petroleum products from a petroleum storage system occurring before January 1, 1995, subject to a copayment provided for in a Petroleum Cleanup Participation Program site rehabilitation agreement.

This closure option applies subject to conditions in department rules and agreementsagreements. The owner, operator, or person otherwise responsible for conducting site rehabilitation shall adequately demonstrate the ability to meet the copayment obligation.

The owner, operator, or person otherwise responsible for conducting site rehabilitation shall adequately demonstrate the ability to meet the copayment obligation.

(15) ETHANOL OR BIODIESEL DAMAGE;

PREVENTIVE MEASURES.—The department shall pay, pursuant to this subsection, up to $10 million each fiscal year from the fund for the costs of labor and equipment to repair or replace petroleum storage systems that may have been damaged due to the storage of fuels blended with ethanol or biodiesel, or for preventive measures to reduce the potential for such damage.

(a) A petroleum storage system owner or operator may request payment from the department for the repair or replacement of petroleum storage tanks, integral piping, or ancillary equipment that may have been damaged, or is subject to damage, by the storage of fuels blended with ethanol or biodiesel or for other preventive measures to ensure compatibility with ethanol or biodiesel in accordance with the following procedures:

1. The petroleum storage system owner or operator may submit a request for payment to the department along with the following information:

a. An affidavit from a petroleum storage system specialty contractor attesting to an opinion that the petroleum storage system may have been damaged as a result of the storage of fuel blended with ethanol or biodiesel or may not be compatible with fuels containing ethanol or biodiesel, or a combination of both.

The affidavit must also include a proposal from the specialty contractor for repair or replacement of the equipment, or for the implementation of other preventive measures to reduce the probability of damage.

If the specialty contractor proposes replacement of any equipment, the affidavit must include the reasons that repair or other preventive measures are not technically or economically feasible or practical.

b. Copies of any inspection reports, including photographs, prepared by the specialty contractor or department or local program inspectors documenting the damage or potential for damage to the petroleum storage system.

c. A proposal from the specialty contractor showing the proposed scope of the repair, replacement, or other preventive measures, including a detailed list of labor, equipment, and other associated costs.

In the case of replacement or repair, the proposal must also include provisions for any preventive measures needed to prevent a recurrence of the damage, such as the use of corrosion inhibitors, the application of coatings compatible with ethanol or biodiesel, as appropriate, and the adoption of a maintenance plan.

d. For proposals to replace storage tanks or piping, a statement from a certified public accountant indicating the depreciated value of the tanks or piping proposed for replacement.

Applications for such proposals must also include documentation of the age of the storage tank or piping.

Historical tank registration records may be used to determine the age of the storage tank and piping.

The depreciated value shall be the maximum allowable replacement cost for the storage tank and piping, exclusive of labor costs.

For the purposes of this paragraph, tanks that are 20 years old or older are deemed to be fully depreciated and have no replacement value.

2. The department shall review applications for completeness, accuracy, and the reasonableness of costs and scope of work.

Within 30 days after receipt of an application, the department must approve or deny the application, propose modification to the application, or request additional information.

(b) If an application is approved, the department shall issue a purchase order to the petroleum storage system owner or operator.

The purchase order shall:

1. Reflect a payment due to the owner for the cost of the scope of work approved by the department, less a deductible of 25 percent.

2. State that a payment is not due to the owner pursuant to the purchase order until the scope of work authorized by the department has been completed in substantial conformity with the purchase order.

3. Except for preventive maintenance contracts, specify that the work authorized in the purchase order must be substantially completed and paid for by the petroleum storage system owner or operator within 180 days after the date of the purchase order.

After such time, the purchase order is void.

4. For preventive maintenance contracts, the department shall develop a maintenance completion and payment schedule for approved applicants.

The failure of an owner or operator to meet scheduled payments shall invalidate the purchase order for all future payments due pursuant to the order.

(c)1. Except for maintenance contracts, the applicant may request that the department make payment following completion of the work authorized by the department, in accordance with the terms of the purchase order.

The request must include a sufficient demonstration that the work has been completed in substantial compliance with the purchase order and that the costs have been fully paid.

Upon such a showing, the department must issue the payment pursuant to the terms of the purchase order.

2. For maintenance contracts, the department must make periodic payments pursuant to the schedule specified in the purchase order upon satisfactory showing that maintenance work has been completed and costs have been paid by the owner or operator as specified in the purchase order.

(d) The department may develop forms to be used for application and payment procedures.

Until such forms are developed, an applicant may submit the required information in any format, as long as the documentation is complete.

(e) The department may request the assistance of the Department of Management Services or a third-party administrator to assist in the administration of the application and payment process.

Any costs associated with this administration shall be paid from the funds identified in this section.

(f) This subsection does not affect the obligations of facility owners or operators or petroleum storage system owners or operators to timely comply with department rules regarding the maintenance, replacement, and repair of petroleum storage systems in order to prevent a release or discharge of pollutants.

(g) Payments may not be made for the following:

1. Proposal costs or costs related to preparation of the application and required documentation;

2. Certified public accountant costs;

3. Except as provided in subsection (k), any costs in excess of the amount approved by the department under paragraph (b) or which are not in substantial compliance with the purchase order;

4. Costs associated with storage tanks, piping, or ancillary equipment that has previously been repaired or replaced for which costs have been paid under this section;

5. Facilities that are not in compliance with department storage tank rules, until the noncompliance issues have been resolved;

or 6. Costs associated with damage to petroleum storage systems caused in whole or in part by causes other than the storage of fuels blended with ethanol or biodiesel.

(h) Applications may be submitted on a first-come, first served basis.

However, the department may not issue purchase orders unless funds remain for the current fiscal year.

(i) A petroleum storage system owner or operator may not receive more than $200,000 annually for equipment replacement, repair, or preventive measures at any single facility, or $500,000 annually in aggregate for all facilities owned or operated by the owner or operator it owns or operates.

(j) Owners or operators that have incurred costs for repair, replacement, or other preventive measures as described in this subsection during the period of July 1, 2015, through June 30, 2019, may apply to request payment for such costs from the department using the procedure in paragraphs (b), (c), and (d).

The department may not disburse payment for approved applications for such work until all purchase orders for previously approved applications have been paid and unless funds remain available for the fiscal year.

Such payment is subject to a deductible of 25 percent of the cost of the scope of work approved by the department under this paragraph.

(k) For new petroleum requirement registrations after July 1, 2019, the department shall only register equipment that meets applicable standards for compatibility for ethanol blends, biodiesel blends, and other alternative fuels that are likely to be stored in such systems.

545223 The limited contamination assessment report must be sufficient to support the proposed course of action and to estimate the cost of the proposed course of action.