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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh Legislature, First Regular Session
underground storage tanks; reimbursement
Purpose
Requires applicants for reimbursement from the Underground Storage Tank Revolving Fund (Fund) to apply to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) within one year after the completion of work. Requires ADEQ to fill all five unfilled full-time equivalent positions (FTEs) currently appropriated to ADEQ to administer the Underground Storage Tank Program.
Background
The Fund consists of monies appropriated by the Legislature, underground storage tank (UST) tax revenues, monies obtained from outlined fees and monies reimbursed to the Fund by ADEQ. Monies in the Fund may be used: 1) for all the reasonable and necessary costs incurred in taking statutorily prescribed corrective or noncorrective actions; 2) to provide reimbursement for eligible costs; 3) to reimburse ADEQ for the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by ADEQ in administering the UST Site Improvement Program; 4) to reimburse ADEQ for the reasonable and necessary costs incurred by ADEQ in administering the Fund; and 5) for other statutorily prescribed uses (A.R.S. § 49-1015).
Subject to
available monies in the Fund, an owner, operator or person that meets
statutorily outlined requirements, may request that ADEQ provide monies for
that person to conduct one or more of the following actions, up to a maximum of
$300,000 per site: 1) actions necessary to ensure that the UST its piping and
its under-dispenser contaminant comply with standards for new installations or
other applicable federal requirements, up to a maximum of $200,000; 2) removal
of UST's for purposes of permanent closure or replacement, up to a maximum of
$25,000 per tank;
3) confirmation of a suspected release at a tank or site, up to a maximum of
$20,000; or 4) obtaining a baseline assessment of a site, up to a maximum of
$40,000 (A.R.S.
§ 49-1071).
An UST is a tank or combination of tanks and underground pipes and impact valves connected to tanks being used or having been used to contain regulated substances and which has at least 10 percent of the total volume of the tank and underground portions of pipes connected to the tank underground (A.R.S. § 49-1001).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires applicants for reimbursement from the Fund to apply to ADEQ within one year after the completion of statutorily outlined work.
2. Requires applicants, for projects approved before September 1, 2025, to apply for reimbursement and submit all required documentation needed for cost reimbursement to ADEQ by the later of February 1, 2026, or one year after the completion of work.
3. Stipulates that, on September 1, 2025, any applicant who has not timely submitted an application for reimbursement for eligible costs will lose eligibility for reimbursement of such costs.
4. Removes the stipulation that ADEQ, for outlined applications that are received by ADEQ before September 30, 2020, may reimburse costs incurred for work conducted on or after October 1, 2020, including costs incurred for work that occurred before ADEQ's final determination.
5. Requires ADEQ to fill all five unfilled FTEs currently appropriated to ADEQ to administer the UST Program.
6. Requires ADEQ, on ADEQ's approval of an application for preapproval, to set aside from any other use or purpose any preapproved monies.
7. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Prepared by Senate Research
February 14, 2025
SB/slp