SB 39: "An Act relating to hazardous chemicals, hazardous materials, and hazardous waste."
00SENATE BILL NO. 39 01 "An Act relating to hazardous chemicals, hazardous materials, and hazardous 02 waste." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 09.65 is amended by adding a new section to read: 05 Sec. 09.65.240. Liability of the state and regional educational attendance 06 areas for release of hazardous substances. (a) Notwithstanding AS 46.03.822(a), 07 neither the state nor a regional educational attendance area established under AS 14.08, 08 nor an agent or employee of the state or a regional educational attendance area acting 09 within the scope of that agency or employment, is subject to liability under 10 AS 46.03.822 for damages, as defined in AS 46.03.822(k) and 46.03.824, for the 11 release of a hazardous substance at or from any facility used in relation to a regional 12 educational attendance area school as described in AS 14.08.151 or at or from any 13 facility used in relation to a school operated by the state under AS 14.16. 14 (b) In this section,
01 (1) "facility" has the meaning given in AS 46.03.826; 02 (2) "hazardous substance" has the meaning given in AS 46.03.826. 03 * Sec. 2. AS 18.70.090 is amended to read: 04 Sec. 18.70.090. Enforcement authority. The Department of Public Safety and 05 the chief of each fire department recognized under regulations adopted by the 06 Department of Public Safety, and their authorized representatives in their respective 07 areas, may enforce the regulations adopted by the Department of Public Safety for the 08 prevention of fire or for the protection of life and property against fire or panic. All 09 state peace officers may assist the Department of Public Safety in the enforcement of 10 AS 18.70.010 - 18.70.100 [, 18.70.310,] and the regulations adopted under those 11 sections. The authority conferred in AS 18.70.010 - 18.70.100 [AND 18.70.310] 12 extends to the enforcement of the provisions of AS 11.46.400 - 11.46.430. 13 * Sec. 3. AS 18.70.100(a) is amended to read: 14 (a) A person who violates a provision of AS 18.70.010 - 18.70.100 [, 15 18.70.310,] or a regulation adopted under those sections, or who fails to comply with 16 an order issued under AS 18.70.010 - 18.70.100, [OR 18.70.310] is guilty of a class 17 B misdemeanor. When not otherwise specified, each 10 days that the violation or 18 noncompliance continues is a separate offense. 19 * Sec. 4. AS 29.35.500(a) is amended to read: 20 (a) If a municipality establishes a program for the reporting of hazardous 21 chemicals, hazardous materials, and hazardous wastes, then the municipality shall 22 require a business or a government agency that handles hazardous chemicals, 23 hazardous materials, or hazardous wastes to submit to a designated person or office of 24 the municipality, on a form approved by the Alaska State Emergency Response 25 Commission [DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, DIVISION OF FIRE 26 PREVENTION], an inventory of the hazardous chemicals, hazardous materials, and 27 hazardous wastes the business or government agency handles. 28 * Sec. 5. AS 29.35.500(c) is amended to read: 29 (c) Unless the Alaska State Emergency Response Commission or a 30 municipality, after public hearing, removes a substance listed in this subsection 31 from the reporting requirements within its jurisdiction, the [THE] following
01 quantities of hazardous chemicals, hazardous materials, and hazardous wastes shall be 02 reported in an inventory required under this section, and the commission [DIVISION 03 OF FIRE PREVENTION] or a municipality may require the reporting of smaller 04 quantities: 05 (1) any quantity of a hazardous material of the hazard class identified 06 in federal placarding regulations as [OF] 07 (A) [POISON A; 08 (B)] Poison Gas Hazard Division No. 2.3 and Poisons 6.1 [B]; 09 (B) Explosives 1.1 [(C) CLASS A EXPLOSIVE]; 10 (C) Explosives 1.2 and 1.3, excluding smokeless gunpowder, 11 black powder, and ammunition [(D) CLASS B EXPLOSIVE]; 12 (D) [(E)] Flammable solid Divisions 4.1, 4.2, and 4.3 13 [(DANGEROUS WHEN WET)]; or 14 (E) [(F)] Radioactive Hazard Class 7; 15 (2) [A CONSUMER COMMODITY OF A HAZARDOUS MATERIAL 16 IN A QUANTITY OF MORE THAN 1,000 POUNDS; 17 (3)] a hazardous chemical, or a hazardous material other than one 18 described in (1) of this subsection, if handled in a single day in an amount equal to or 19 greater than 10,000 [500] pounds; 20 (3) [(4)] acute hazardous waste in a quantity of 2.2 pounds or more; 21 (4) [(5)] hazardous waste in a quantity of 220 pounds or more; and 22 (5) [(6)] extremely hazardous substances in a quantity equal to or more 23 than 500 pounds or the threshold planning quantity, whichever is less [; AND 24 (7) COMPRESSED GASSES EQUAL TO OR MORE THAN 200 25 CUBIC FEET AT STANDARD TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE]. 26 * Sec. 6. AS 29.35.510 is amended to read: 27 Sec. 29.35.510. Inspections; penalties. A municipality may conduct 28 inspections, and establish and impose penalties, necessary to ensure compliance with 29 reporting requirements adopted under AS 29.35.500 [AND PLACARDING 30 REQUIREMENTS ADOPTED UNDER AS 18.70.310]. 31 * Sec. 7. AS 29.35.520 is amended to read:
01 Sec. 29.35.520. Fees. A municipality may impose appropriate fees to fully or 02 partially compensate for the cost of processing reports and administering inspections 03 under AS 29.35.500 - 29.35.510 [AND THE COST OF PROVIDING PLACARDS 04 UNDER AS 18.70.310. THE MUNICIPALITY MAY ESTABLISH A FEE 05 SCHEDULE DIFFERENT FROM THE SCHEDULE ESTABLISHED BY THE 06 DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY UNDER AS 18.70.310]. 07 * Sec. 8. AS 29.35.530(a) is amended to read: 08 (a) The Department of Environmental Conservation [PUBLIC SAFETY, 09 DIVISION OF FIRE PREVENTION], at the request of a business or government 10 agency required to submit an inventory under AS 29.35.500 or of a municipality, shall 11 provide 12 (1) a descriptive summary of the hazardous chemicals, hazardous 13 materials, and hazardous wastes that are required to be included in an inventory; and 14 (2) inventory forms. 15 * Sec. 9. AS 29.35.590(6) is repealed and reenacted to read: 16 (6) "hazardous chemical" has the meaning given in 29 C.F.R. 17 1910.1200(c) except that it does not include 18 (A) a food, food additive, color additive, drug, or cosmetic 19 regulated by the federal Food and Drug Administration; 20 (B) a substance present as a solid in a manufactured item to the 21 extent exposure to the substance does not occur under normal conditions of 22 use; 23 (C) a substance to the extent it is used for personal, family, or 24 household purposes, or is present in the same form and concentration as a 25 product packaged for distribution and use by the general public; 26 (D) a substance to the extent it is used in a research laboratory 27 or a hospital or other medical facility under the direct supervision of a 28 technically qualified individual; or 29 (E) a substance to the extent it is used in routine agricultural 30 operations or is a fertilizer held for sale by a retailer to the ultimate customer. 31 * Sec. 10. AS 29.35.590(7) is amended to read:
01 (7) "hazardous material" means a material or substance, as defined in 02 49 C.F.R. 171.8, and any other substance determined by the Alaska State Emergency 03 Response Commission in regulations [DIVISION OF FIRE PREVENTION, OR BY 04 A MUNICIPALITY FOR PURPOSES OF ITS OWN REPORTING PROGRAM,] to 05 pose a significant health and safety hazard; "hazardous material" does not include food, 06 drugs, alcoholic beverages, cosmetics, tobacco, or tobacco products intended for 07 personal consumption; 08 * Sec. 11. AS 29.35.590(8) is amended to read: 09 (8) "hazardous waste" means 10 (A) a hazardous waste as defined in AS 46.03.900; 11 (B) a hazardous waste as identified by the Environmental 12 Protection Agency under 40 C.F.R. 261; [,] and 13 (C) any other hazardous waste defined by the Alaska State 14 Emergency Response Commission in regulations [DIVISION OF FIRE 15 PREVENTION OR BY A MUNICIPALITY FOR PURPOSES OF ITS OWN 16 REPORTING PROGRAM]; 17 * Sec. 12. AS 46.03.822(a) is amended to read: 18 (a) Notwithstanding any other provision or rule of law and subject only to the 19 defenses set out in (b) of this section, the exception set out in (i) of this section, the 20 exception set out in AS 09.65.240, and the limitation on liability provided under 21 AS 46.03.825, the following persons are strictly liable, jointly and severally, for 22 damages, for the costs of response, containment, removal, or remedial action incurred 23 by the state, a municipality, or a village, and for the additional costs of a function or 24 service, including administrative expenses for the incremental costs of providing the 25 function or service, that are incurred by the state, a municipality, or a village, and the 26 costs of projects or activities that are delayed or lost because of the efforts of the state, 27 the municipality, or the village, resulting from an unpermitted release of a hazardous 28 substance or, with respect to response costs, the substantial threat of an unpermitted 29 release of a hazardous substance: 30 (1) the owner of, and the person having control over, the hazardous 31 substance at the time of the release or threatened release; this paragraph does not apply
01 to a consumer product in consumer use; 02 (2) the owner and the operator of a vessel or facility, from which there 03 is a release, or a threatened release that causes the incurrence of response costs, of a 04 hazardous substance; 05 (3) any person who at the time of disposal of any hazardous substance 06 owned or operated any facility or vessel at which the hazardous substances were 07 disposed of, from which there is a release, or a threatened release that causes the 08 incurrence of response costs, of a hazardous substance; 09 (4) any person who by contract, agreement, or otherwise arranged for 10 disposal or treatment, or arranged with a transporter for transport for disposal or 11 treatment, of hazardous substances owned or possessed by the person, other than 12 domestic sewage, or by any other party or entity, at any facility or vessel owned or 13 operated by another party or entity and containing hazardous substances, from which 14 there is a release, or a threatened release that causes the incurrence of response costs, 15 of a hazardous substance; 16 (5) any person who accepts or accepted any hazardous substances, other 17 than refined oil, for transport to disposal or treatment facilities, vessels or sites selected 18 by the person, from which there is a release, or a threatened release that causes the 19 incurrence of response costs, of a hazardous substance. 20 * Sec. 13. AS 18.70.310; AS 29.35.530(b), and 29.35.590(2) are repealed. 21 * Sec. 14. APPLICABILITY. (a) Except as provided in (b) of this section, the provisions 22 of AS 09.65.240, enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, apply to claims for damages caused by a 23 release of a hazardous substance that are filed on or after the effective date of sec. 1 of this 24 Act. 25 (b) The provisions of AS 09.65.240, enacted by sec. 1 of this Act, do not apply to a 26 claim by a person damaged by a release of a hazardous substance that occurs before the 27 effective date of sec. 1 of this Act if the claim is filed not more than one year after the person 28 knew or should have known that the person was damaged by the release of a hazardous 29 substance. 30 * Sec. 15. The Alaska State Emergency Response Commission shall approve an inventory 31 form for use under AS 29.35.500 so that it is available for distribution by the Department of
01 Environmental Conservation under AS 29.35.530 by January 1, 1998.