2024 -- S 2332 SUBSTITUTE A | |
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LC004680/SUB A | |
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024 | |
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A N A C T | |
RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION -- OIL SPILL PREVENTION, | |
ADMINISTRATION AND RESPONSE FUND | |
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Introduced By: Senators DiMario, Euer, Pearson, Bissaillon, Britto, LaMountain, | |
Date Introduced: February 12, 2024 | |
Referred To: Senate Finance | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Section 42-6.2-3.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-6.2 entitled "2021 Act |
2 | on Climate" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
3 | 42-6.2-3.1. Funding for the council. |
4 | There is hereby established a restricted receipt account in the general fund of the state and |
5 | housed in the budget of the department of administration entitled “RGGI-executive climate change |
6 | coordinating council projects.” The express purpose of this account is to record receipts and |
7 | expenditures allocated pursuant to § §§ 23-82-6(a)(7), 23-82-6(a)(8), 46-12.9-11(a), and 46-12.9- |
8 | 11(b). |
9 | The Rhode Island executive climate change coordinating council shall report annually to |
10 | the governor and general assembly within one hundred twenty (120) days of the end of each |
11 | calendar year how the funds were used to achieve the statutory objectives of the 2021 Act on |
12 | Climate. |
13 | SECTION 2. Section 46-12.7-13 of the General Laws in Chapter 46-12.7 entitled "Oil Spill |
14 | Prevention, Administration and Response Fund" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
15 | 46-12.7-13. Preventative uses of the fund. |
16 | (a) Recognizing the importance of the development of readiness and response programs, |
17 | the legislature may allocate not more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) per annum |
18 | of the amount then currently in the fund to be devoted to research and development in the causes, |
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1 | effects and removal of pollution caused by oil, petroleum products and their by-products on the |
2 | marine environment and the monitoring of baseline environmental and economic conditions. |
3 | (b) The two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) per annum allocated for research, |
4 | development, and monitoring shall be allocated to the Department of Environmental Management |
5 | and expended consistent with the purposes of § 46-23.2-3 entitled “The Comprehensive Watershed |
6 | and Marine Monitoring Act of 2004.” |
7 | (c) The remaining moneys in the fund which the legislature may allocate to research, |
8 | development, and monitoring shall be used for purposes approved by the director. Such purpose |
9 | may include, but shall not be limited to: |
10 | (1) Sensitive area data management and mapping; |
11 | (2) Scientific research and monitoring which is directly relevant to state legislation; and |
12 | (3) Development of more effective removal and containment technologies, appropriate for |
13 | the cleanup and containment of refined fuel oils.; and |
14 | (4) Supporting the executive climate change coordinating council (EC4) efforts to reduce |
15 | climate emissions and meet the act on climate goals. |
16 | SECTION 3. Sections 46-12.9-5 and 46-12.9-11 of the General Laws in Chapter 46-12.9 |
17 | entitled "Rhode Island Underground Storage Tank Financial Responsibility Act" are hereby |
18 | amended to read as follows: |
19 | 46-12.9-5. Purpose of fund Purposes of fund. |
20 | (a) The purpose purposes of the fund shall be to: |
21 | (1) facilitate Facilitate the clean-up of releases from leaking underground storage tanks, |
22 | underground storage tank systems, including those located on sites in order to protect the |
23 | environment, including drinking water supplies and public health.; and |
24 | (2) Support projects and initiatives to reduce emissions and meet the act on climate goals |
25 | as directed by the executive climate change coordinating council (EC4). |
26 | (b) The fund shall provide reimbursement to responsible parties for the eligible costs |
27 | incurred by them as a result of releases of certain petroleum from underground storage tanks or |
28 | underground storage tank systems as provided herein. Monies in the fund shall be dispensed only |
29 | upon the order of the department for the following purposes: |
30 | (1) The fund shall pay not more than one million dollars ($1,000,000) per incident, and up |
31 | to two million dollars ($2,000,000) in the aggregate, for damages of eligible costs, as defined in |
32 | regulations promulgated hereunder and, as further defined in § 46-12.9-3, excluding legal costs and |
33 | expenses, incurred by a responsible party as a result of a release of petroleum from an underground |
34 | storage tank or underground storage tank system; provided, however, that a responsible party may |
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1 | be responsible for the first twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) of said eligible costs; |
2 | (2) Reimbursement for any third-party claim including, but not limited to, claims for bodily |
3 | injury, property damage, and damage to natural resources that are asserted against a responsible |
4 | party and that have arisen as a result of a release of petroleum from an underground storage tank |
5 | or underground storage tank system, in an amount not to exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000) |
6 | for each release as set forth in subsection (b)(1); provided, that such claims are found by the |
7 | department to be justified, reasonable, related to the release of petroleum, and not excessive or |
8 | spurious in nature; |
9 | (3) Costs incurred by the department in carrying out the investigative, remedial, and |
10 | corrective action activities at sites of a petroleum release associated with an underground storage |
11 | tank or underground storage tank system where the responsible party fails to comply with an order |
12 | of the department to undertake such activities. In the event of such failure or documented inability |
13 | to comply, the department may access the fund to perform the ordered work and may proceed to |
14 | recover from the responsible party, on behalf of the fund, any amount expended from the fund by |
15 | the department; |
16 | (4) Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed to prevent subrogation by the state |
17 | of Rhode Island against any responsible party, other than the owner and/or operator, for all sums |
18 | of money that the fund shall be obligated to pay hereunder, plus reasonable attorney’s fees and |
19 | costs of litigation and such right of subrogation is hereby created; and |
20 | (5) Eligible costs incurred by the department to support the fund, including, but not limited |
21 | to, all personnel support to process and review claims in order to formulate recommendations for |
22 | reimbursement for consideration; provided, however, that no more than five hundred and fifty |
23 | thousand dollars ($550,000) shall be dispensed from the fund for administrative purposes during |
24 | any fiscal year. The department shall directly access the fund, pursuant to the limits set forth in |
25 | subsection (b)(1) of this section, to pay for such expenses. |
26 | (6) [Deleted by P.L. 2016, ch. 148, § 1 and P.L. 2016, ch. 160, § 1]. |
27 | (7) Projects and initiatives that have been approved by the executive climate change |
28 | coordinating council, and have been determined to reduce emissions and support the act on climate. |
29 | 46-12.9-11. Fundings. |
30 | (a) There is hereby imposed an environmental protection regulatory fee of one cent ($0.01) |
31 | per gallon payable of motor fuel, to be collected by distributors of motor fuel when the product is |
32 | sold to owners and/or operators of underground storage tanks. Each distributor shall be responsible |
33 | to the tax administrator for the collection of the regulatory fee, and if the distributor is unable to |
34 | recover the fee from the person who ordered the product, the distributor shall nonetheless remit to |
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1 | the tax administrator the regulatory fee associated with the delivery. In accordance with the |
2 | regulations to be promulgated hereunder, the fee shall be collected, reported, and paid to the Rhode |
3 | Island division of taxation as a separate, line-item entry, on a quarterly tax report by those persons |
4 | charged with the collection, reporting, and payment of motor fuels taxes. This fee shall be |
5 | administered and collected by the division of taxation. Notwithstanding the provisions of this |
6 | section, the fee shall not be applicable to purchases by the United States government. |
7 | (b)(1) Of the one-cent-per-gallon ($0.01) environmental protection regulatory fee collected |
8 | by distributors of motor fuel and paid to the Rhode Island division of taxation, one-half cent |
9 | ($0.005) shall be deposited in the intermodal surface transportation fund to be distributed pursuant |
10 | to § 31-36-20 and one-half cent ($0.005) shall be paid to the fund. All environmental protection |
11 | regulatory fees paid to the department shall be received by the department, which shall keep such |
12 | money in a distinct, interest-bearing, restricted-receipt account to the credit of, and for the exclusive |
13 | use of, the fund provided that for the period January 1, 2008, through June 30, 2008, all revenues |
14 | generated by the environmental protection regulatory fee, up to a maximum of two million dollars |
15 | ($2,000,000), shall be deposited into the general fund. In fiscal year 2009, all revenues generated |
16 | by the environmental protection regulatory fee, up to a maximum equivalent to two million two |
17 | hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred dollars ($2,237,500), shall be deposited into the |
18 | intermodal surface transportation fund. All fees collected may be invested as provided by law and |
19 | all interest received on such investment shall be credited to the fund. |
20 | (2) Commencing in fiscal year 2025, revenues generated by the environmental protection |
21 | regulatory fee, up to a maximum equivalent of two million dollars ($2,000,000), shall be allocated |
22 | to the executive climate change coordinating council (EC4) and in subsequent fiscal years, up to a |
23 | maximum of one million dollars ($1,000,000) shall be allocated. |
24 | (c) When the fund reaches the sum of eight million dollars ($8,000,000), the imposition of |
25 | the fee set forth in this chapter shall be suspended, and the division of taxation shall notify all |
26 | persons responsible for the collection, reporting, and payments of the fee of the suspension. In the |
27 | event that the account balance of the fund subsequently is reduced to a sum less than five million |
28 | dollars ($5,000,000) as a result of fund activity, the fee shall be reinstated by the division of |
29 | taxation, following proper notice thereof, and once reinstated, the collection, reporting, and |
30 | payment of the fee shall continue until the account balance again reaches the sum of eight million |
31 | dollars ($8,000,000). |
32 | (d) Upon the determination by the department that the fund has reached a balance sufficient |
33 | to satisfy all pending or future claims, the department shall recommend to the general assembly the |
34 | discontinuation of the imposition of the fee created in this section. |
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1 | SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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LC004680/SUB A | |
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EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION -- OIL SPILL PREVENTION, | |
ADMINISTRATION AND RESPONSE FUND | |
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1 | This act would provide that the funds allocated to the Rhode Island Underground Storage |
2 | Tank Financial Responsibility Act be used to support the Executive Climate Change Coordinating |
3 | Council (EC4) efforts to reduce climate emissions and meet the Act on Climate goals and allocate, |
4 | in fiscal year 2025, the sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000) to the Executive Climate Change |
5 | Coordinating Council (EC4) and up to one million dollars ($1,000,000) per fiscal year thereafter |
6 | for that purpose. This act would also authorize the use of funds from the oil spill prevention, |
7 | administration and response fund to support the efforts of the EC4 |
8 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
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LC004680/SUB A | |
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