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SF 3061

1st Unofficial Engrossment - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

KEY: stricken = removed, old language.
underscored = added, new language.
1.1A bill for an act
1.2relating to environment; modifying Petrofund program;amending Minnesota
1.3Statutes 2006, sections 115C.04, subdivision 3; 115C.09, subdivision 3h, by
1.4adding a subdivision; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 115C.09,
1.5subdivision 3j.
1.6BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.7    Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 115C.04, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
1.8    Subd. 3. Agency Cost recovery; subrogation. Reasonable and necessary expenses
1.9incurred by the agency in taking a corrective action, including costs of investigating
1.10a release, administrative and legal expenses, and reimbursement costs described in
1.11subdivision 1, paragraph (b), may be recovered in a civil action in district court brought
1.12by the attorney general board against a responsible person. The agency's certification of
1.13expenses is prima facie evidence that the expenses are reasonable and necessary. If the
1.14responsible person has petroleum tank leakage or spill insurance coverage that insures
1.15against the liability provided in this section, the agency board is subrogated to the rights
1.16of the responsible person with respect to that insurance coverage, to the extent of the
1.17expenses incurred by the agency and described in this subdivision. The agency board
1.18may request the attorney general to bring an action in district court against the insurer
1.19to enforce this subrogation right. Expenses that are recovered under this section must
1.20be deposited in the fund.

1.21    Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 115C.09, subdivision 3h, is amended to read:
1.22    Subd. 3h. Reimbursement; aboveground tanks in bulk plants. (a) As used in
1.23this subdivision, "bulk plant" means an aboveground or underground tank facility with a
2.1storage capacity of more than 1,100 gallons but less than 1,000,000 gallons that is used to
2.2dispense petroleum into cargo tanks for transportation and sale at another location.
2.3    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision in this chapter and any rules adopted
2.4pursuant to this chapter, the board shall reimburse 90 percent of an applicant's cost for bulk
2.5plant upgrades or closures completed between June 1, 1998, and November 1, 2003, to
2.6comply with Minnesota Rules, chapter 7151, provided that the board determines the costs
2.7were incurred and reasonable. The reimbursement may not exceed $10,000 per bulk plant.
2.8The board may provide reimbursement under this paragraph for work completed after
2.9November 1, 2003, if the work was contracted for prior to that date and was not completed
2.10by that date as a result of an unanticipated situation, provided that an application for
2.11reimbursement under this paragraph, which may be a renewal of an application previously
2.12denied, is submitted prior to December 31, 2005.
2.13    (c) For corrective action at a bulk plant located on what is or was railroad
2.14right-of-way, the board shall reimburse 90 percent of total reimbursable costs on the first
2.15$40,000 of reimbursable costs and 100 percent of any remaining reimbursable costs when
2.16the applicant can document that more than one bulk plant was operated on the same
2.17section of right-of-way, as determined by the commissioner of commerce.

2.18    Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 115C.09, is amended by adding a subdivision
2.19to read:
2.20    Subd. 3k. PVC piping at residential locations. (a) The purpose of this subdivision
2.21is to assist homeowners who have installed PVC fill piping as part of the heating oil
2.22system at their residences, not knowing that heating oil has been shown to dissolve certain
2.23types of glue used to hold PVC piping together. Replacement of the PVC piping with
2.24metal piping is intended to avoid the catastrophic release of heating oil, as well as the
2.25ensuing cleanup costs, that can occur at residences where the PVC piping fails.
2.26    (b) As used in this subdivision:
2.27    (1) "residential locations" means a storage tank and appurtenances for heating oil
2.28that are used to heat a single-family residence; and
2.29    (2) "qualified person" means someone who is registered as a contractor under section
2.30115C.11 and, as part of their trade or business, installs or repairs nonpressure piping,
2.31heating systems, air conditioning systems, or storage tank systems.
2.32    (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or any rules adopted
2.33under this chapter, the board shall reimburse a qualified person 90 percent of the cost
2.34for replacing PVC fill piping with metal piping at residential locations between May 1,
2.352008, and September 1, 2011, provided that the board determines the costs were incurred
3.1and reasonable. The reimbursement may not exceed $250 per residential location. The
3.2maximum expenditure from the fund may not exceed $1,500,000.
3.3    (d) A heating oil vendor is not a responsible person for a heating oil spill inside a
3.4residential location if the spill was caused solely by the failure of a tank or appurtenance
3.5to a tank owned by the homeowner.

3.6    Sec. 4. REPEALER.
3.7Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 115C.09, subdivision 3j, is repealed.