2007 Minnesota Statutes

115B.412 PROGRAM OPERATION.
    Subdivision 1. Duty to provide information. Any person who the commissioner has reason
to believe has or may obtain information related to the generation, composition, transportation,
treatment, or disposal of waste in a qualified facility or who has or may obtain information related
to the ownership or operation of a facility shall furnish to the commissioner or the commissioner's
designee any information that person may have or may reasonably obtain that is relevant to a
release or threatened release at a qualified facility.
    Subd. 2. Access to information and property. The commissioner or a person designated by
the commissioner, on presentation of credentials, may:
(1) examine and copy any books, papers, records, memoranda, or data of any person who has
a duty to provide information to the agency under subdivision 1; and
(2) enter upon any property, public or private, for the purpose of taking any action authorized
by sections 115B.39 to 115B.43 including obtaining information from any person who has a
duty to provide the information under subdivision 1, conducting surveys or investigations, and
taking response action.
This subdivision and subdivision 1 are enforceable under sections 115.071 and 116.072. If
the commissioner prevails in an enforcement action under this subdivision, the commissioner
may recover all costs, including court costs, attorney fees, and administrative costs, related to the
enforcement action.
    Subd. 3. Acquisition and disposition of real property. The commissioner may acquire
and dispose of real property the commissioner deems reasonably necessary for environmental
response actions at or related to a qualified facility under section 115B.17, subdivisions 15 and 16.
    Subd. 4. Affected real property; notice. (a) The commissioner shall provide to affected
local government units, to be available as public information, and shall make available to others,
on request, a description of the real property described in the original and any revised permits
for a qualified facility, along with a description of activities that will be or have been taken on
the property under sections 115B.39 to 115B.43 and a reasonably accurate description of the
types, locations, and potential movement of hazardous substances, pollutants and contaminants,
or decomposition gases related to the facility. The commissioner shall provide and make this
information available at the time the facility is placed on the priority list under section 115B.40,
subdivision 2 ; shall revise, provide, and make the information available when response actions,
other than long-term maintenance actions, have been completed; and shall revise the information
over time if significant changes occur that make the information obsolete or misleading.
(b) A local government unit that receives information from the commissioner under
paragraph (a) shall incorporate that information in any land use plan that includes the affected
property and shall notify any person who applies for a permit related to development of the
affected property of the existence of the information and, on request, provide a copy of the
information.
    Subd. 5. Environmental lien. An environmental lien for environmental response costs
incurred, including reimbursements made under section 115B.43, by the commissioner under
sections 115B.39 to 115B.445 attaches in the same manner as a lien under sections 514.671 to
514.676 to all the real property described in the original and any revised permits for a qualified
facility and any adjacent property owned by the facility owner or operator from the date the first
assessment, closure, postclosure care, or response activities related to the facility are undertaken
by the commissioner. For the purposes of filing an environmental lien under this subdivision, the
term "cleanup action" as used in sections 514.671 to 514.676 includes all of the costs incurred by
the commissioner to assess, close, maintain, monitor, and respond to releases at qualified facilities
under sections 115B.39 to 115B.445. Notwithstanding section 514.672, subdivision 4, a lien
under this paragraph takes precedence over all other liens on the property regardless of when the
other liens were or are perfected. For the purpose of this subdivision, "owner or operator" has the
meaning given it in section 115B.41, subdivision 4.
    Subd. 6. Contracts. The commissioner shall, to the extent practicable, ensure that contracts
for activities or consulting services under this section are entered into with contractors or
consultants located within the region where the facility subject to the contracts is located. The
commissioner shall tailor specifications in requests for proposals to the types of activities or
services that need to be undertaken at a specific facility or group of facilities located in the same
region and shall not include specifications that require specialized expertise or laboratory work not
available within the region unless it is necessary to do so to meet the requirements of this section.
    Subd. 7. Separate accounting. The commissioner shall maintain separate accounting for
each qualified facility regarding:
(1) the amount of financial assurance funds transferred under section 115B.40, subdivisions
4 and 5 ; and
(2) costs of response actions taken at the facility.
    Subd. 8. Transfer of title. The owner of a qualified facility may, as part of the owner's
activities under section 115B.40, subdivision 4 or 5, offer to transfer title to all the property
described in the facility's most recent permit, including any property adjacent to that property the
owner wishes to transfer, to the commissioner. The commissioner may accept the transfer of title
if the commissioner determines that to do so is in the best interest of the state.
    Subd. 9. Land management plans. The commissioner shall develop a land use plan for
each qualified facility. All local land use plans must be consistent with a land use plan developed
under this subdivision. Plans developed under this subdivision must include provisions to
prevent any use that disturbs the integrity of the final cover, liners, any other components of any
containment system, or the function of any monitoring systems unless the commissioner finds
that the disturbance:
(1) is necessary to the proposed use of the property, and will not increase the potential
hazard to human health or the environment; or
(2) is necessary to reduce a threat to human health or the environment.
Before completing any plan under this subdivision, the commissioner shall consult with the
commissioner of finance regarding any restrictions that the commissioner of finance deems
necessary on the disposition of property resulting from the use of bond proceeds to pay for
response actions on the property, and shall incorporate the restrictions in the plan.
    Subd. 10. Report. By December 1 of each year, the commissioner shall report to the
environment and natural resources committees and to the appropriate finance committees of the
senate and the house of representatives on the commissioner's activities under sections 115B.39 to
115B.43 and the commissioner's anticipated activities during future fiscal years.
    Subd. 11. Rules. The commissioner may adopt rules necessary to implement sections
115B.39 to 115B.43.
History: 1994 c 639 art 1 s 7; 1996 c 470 s 27; 1997 c 7 art 1 s 34; 1997 c 216 s 109