HF 2748

as introduced - 83rd Legislature (2003 - 2004) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the environment; modifying provisions 
  1.3             relating to lead abatement; imposing a fee on paint; 
  1.4             amending Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 115C.08, 
  1.5             subdivisions 1, 3; 144.9507, by adding a subdivision; 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 115C.08, 
  1.7             subdivision 4; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.8             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 144. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 115C.08, 
  1.11  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.12     Subdivision 1.  [REVENUE SOURCES.] Revenue from the 
  1.13  following sources must be deposited in the state treasury and 
  1.14  credited to a petroleum tank fund: 
  1.15     (1) 95 percent of the proceeds of the fee imposed by 
  1.16  subdivision 3; 
  1.17     (2) money recovered by the state under sections 115C.04, 
  1.18  115C.05, and 116.491, including administrative expenses, civil 
  1.19  penalties, and money paid under an agreement, stipulation, or 
  1.20  settlement; 
  1.21     (3) interest attributable to investment of money in the 
  1.22  fund; 
  1.23     (4) money received by the board and agency in the form of 
  1.24  gifts, grants other than federal grants, reimbursements, or 
  1.25  appropriations from any source intended to be used for the 
  1.26  purposes of the fund; 
  1.27     (5) fees charged for the operation of the tank installer 
  2.1   certification program established under section 116.491; and 
  2.2      (6) money obtained from the return of reimbursements, civil 
  2.3   penalties, or other board action under this chapter. 
  2.4      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 115C.08, 
  2.5   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.6      Subd. 3.  [PETROLEUM TANK RELEASE CLEANUP FEE.] (a) A 
  2.7   petroleum tank release cleanup fee is imposed on the use of 
  2.8   tanks that contain petroleum products defined in section 
  2.9   296A.01.  On products other than gasoline, the fee must be paid 
  2.10  in the manner provided in section 296A.15 by the first licensed 
  2.11  distributor receiving the product in Minnesota, as defined in 
  2.12  section 296A.01.  When the product is gasoline, the distributor 
  2.13  responsible for payment of the gasoline tax is also responsible 
  2.14  for payment of the petroleum tank cleanup fee.  The fee must be 
  2.15  imposed as required under subdivision 2, at a rate of $20 per 
  2.16  1,000 gallons of petroleum products, rounded to the nearest 
  2.17  1,000 gallons.  A distributor who fails to pay the fee imposed 
  2.18  under this section is subject to the penalties provided in 
  2.19  section 296A.22. 
  2.20     (b) Five percent of the fee in paragraph (a) must be 
  2.21  deposited in the lead abatement and hazard reduction fund for 
  2.22  lead remediation costs under section 144.9512. 
  2.23     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  2.24  115C.08, subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  2.25     Subd. 4.  [EXPENDITURES.] (a) After deducting the amount in 
  2.26  subdivision 3, paragraph (b), money in the fund may only be 
  2.27  spent: 
  2.28     (1) to administer the petroleum tank release cleanup 
  2.29  program established in this chapter; 
  2.30     (2) for agency administrative costs under sections 116.46 
  2.31  to 116.50, sections 115C.03 to 115C.06, and costs of corrective 
  2.32  action taken by the agency under section 115C.03, including 
  2.33  investigations; 
  2.34     (3) for costs of recovering expenses of corrective actions 
  2.35  under section 115C.04; 
  2.36     (4) for training, certification, and rulemaking under 
  3.1   sections 116.46 to 116.50; 
  3.2      (5) for agency administrative costs of enforcing rules 
  3.3   governing the construction, installation, operation, and closure 
  3.4   of aboveground and underground petroleum storage tanks; 
  3.5      (6) for reimbursement of the environmental response, 
  3.6   compensation, and compliance account under subdivision 5 and 
  3.7   section 115B.26, subdivision 4; 
  3.8      (7) for administrative and staff costs as set by the board 
  3.9   to administer the petroleum tank release program established in 
  3.10  this chapter; 
  3.11     (8) for corrective action performance audits under section 
  3.12  115C.093; 
  3.13     (9) for contamination cleanup grants, as provided in 
  3.14  paragraph (c); and 
  3.15     (10) to assess and remove abandoned underground storage 
  3.16  tanks under section 115C.094 and, if a release is discovered, to 
  3.17  pay for the specific consultant and contractor services costs 
  3.18  necessary to complete the tank removal project, including, but 
  3.19  not limited to, excavation soil sampling, groundwater sampling, 
  3.20  soil disposal, and completion of an excavation report. 
  3.21     (b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) and subdivision 3, 
  3.22  paragraph (b), money in the fund is appropriated to the board to 
  3.23  make reimbursements or payments under this section. 
  3.24     (c) $6,200,000 is annually appropriated from the fund to 
  3.25  the commissioner of employment and economic development for 
  3.26  contamination cleanup grants under section 116J.554.  Of this 
  3.27  amount, the commissioner may spend up to $180,000 annually for 
  3.28  administration of the contamination cleanup grant program.  The 
  3.29  appropriation does not cancel and is available until expended.  
  3.30  The appropriation shall not be withdrawn from the fund nor the 
  3.31  fund balance reduced until the funds are requested by the 
  3.32  commissioner of employment and economic development.  The 
  3.33  commissioner shall schedule requests for withdrawals from the 
  3.34  fund to minimize the necessity to impose the fee authorized by 
  3.35  subdivision 2.  Unless otherwise provided, the appropriation in 
  3.36  this paragraph may be used for: 
  4.1      (1) project costs at a qualifying site if a portion of the 
  4.2   cleanup costs are attributable to petroleum contamination; and 
  4.3      (2) the costs of performing contamination investigation if 
  4.4   there is a reasonable basis to suspect the contamination is 
  4.5   attributable to petroleum. 
  4.6      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 144.9507, is 
  4.7   amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  4.8      Subd. 6.  [MINNESOTA LEAD ABATEMENT FUND AND FEE.] (a) The 
  4.9   commissioner of finance must create a lead abatement and hazard 
  4.10  reduction fund in the state treasury for the purposes of this 
  4.11  act. 
  4.12     (b) A lead abatement fee is imposed on the sale of paint in 
  4.13  Minnesota.  The fee is imposed at a five cent per gallon rate 
  4.14  calculated to yield $2,000,000 annually as determined by the 
  4.15  commissioner of revenue.  The fee shall be paid by the 
  4.16  distributor of the paint.  The proceeds of the fee shall be 
  4.17  deposited in the state treasury and credited to the Minnesota 
  4.18  lead abatement and hazard reduction fund.  A distributor who 
  4.19  fails to pay the fee imposed under this section is subject to 
  4.20  the penalties provided in section 296A.22, subdivisions 1 and 2.
  4.21     (c) Money in the fund may only be spent for the purposes of 
  4.22  section 144.9512.  Money in the fund is appropriated to the 
  4.23  commissioner of health.  
  4.24     Sec. 5.  [144.9512] [REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS.] 
  4.25     Subdivision 1.  [REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM.] (a) The 
  4.26  commissioner of health shall provide reimbursement to eligible 
  4.27  applicants for eligible costs.  
  4.28     (b) An eligible person is a person who holds title or 
  4.29  equitable title to a residential building constructed before 
  4.30  1978, which has been identified in a lead hazard screen or lead 
  4.31  risk assessment conducted by a lead risk assessor, as having 
  4.32  lead hazards that require abatement. 
  4.33     (c) Eligible costs are costs directly related to abatement 
  4.34  or lead hazard reduction that have been incurred by an eligible 
  4.35  person.  Eligible lead hazard reduction costs may be incurred in 
  4.36  conjunction with a project to remodel, repair, or restore a 
  5.1   residence, but only the portion of the project cost directly 
  5.2   related to lead hazard reduction, or interim controls for the 
  5.3   temporary reduction of exposure to lead hazards, is eligible.  
  5.4   To be eligible for reimbursement, all abatement or lead hazard 
  5.5   reduction work must be performed by appropriately licensed 
  5.6   persons, unless the procedures provided in section 144.9503 are 
  5.7   followed.  The cost of a lead hazard inspection, screen, or lead 
  5.8   risk assessment is an eligible cost if it leads to abatement or 
  5.9   lead hazard reduction work.  
  5.10     Subd. 2.  [APPLICATIONS FOR REIMBURSEMENT.] An eligible 
  5.11  person who incurs eligible costs after August 1, 2004, may apply 
  5.12  to the commissioner for reimbursement following adoption of 
  5.13  rules by the commissioner governing application and payment 
  5.14  procedures.  An eligible person may assign the right to obtain 
  5.15  reimbursement to the licensed person or persons who performed 
  5.16  the work.  The commissioner is authorized to adopt rules 
  5.17  governing application and payment procedures.  At a minimum, the 
  5.18  rules must require an eligible person to demonstrate, through 
  5.19  solicitation of multiple bids or other means, that the eligible 
  5.20  costs are reasonable.  
  5.21     Subd. 3.  [REIMBURSEMENT LEVEL.] The commissioner shall 
  5.22  reimburse eligible persons for 75 percent of eligible costs.  If 
  5.23  the commissioner has issued a lead order as provided under 
  5.24  section 144.9504 and makes a finding that the person named in 
  5.25  the order is unable to pay 25 percent of eligible costs, the 
  5.26  commissioner may reimburse up to 95 percent of eligible costs if 
  5.27  the person named in the order is in substantial compliance with 
  5.28  the order. 
  5.29     Subd. 4.  [FALSE CLAIMS.] If a person, with intent to 
  5.30  defraud, issues an invoice or other demand for payment with 
  5.31  knowledge that it is false in whole or in part, and with 
  5.32  knowledge that it is being submitted to the commissioner for 
  5.33  reimbursement: 
  5.34     (1) that person is considered to have presented a false 
  5.35  claim to a public body under section 609.465; and 
  5.36     (2) the commissioner may demand that the person return any 
  6.1   money received as a result of a reimbursement made on the basis 
  6.2   of the false invoice or other demand for payment.  If the money 
  6.3   is not returned upon demand by the commissioner, the 
  6.4   commissioner may recover the money, with administrative and 
  6.5   legal expense, in a civil action in district court brought by 
  6.6   the attorney general against the person.  The person shall also 
  6.7   forfeit and pay to the state a civil penalty, in an amount to be 
  6.8   determined by the court, of not more than the full amount of the 
  6.9   money received by the person on the basis of the false invoice 
  6.10  or other demand for payment.  
  6.11     Sec. 6.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  6.12     Sections 1 to 3 are effective July 1, 2004.  Sections 4 and 
  6.13  5 are effective August 1, 2004.