05/11/2002 10:52 AM Senate FIN

     SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 382(RES)                                                                               
     "An Act relating to the evaluation and cleanup of sites where                                                              
     certain controlled substances may have been manufactured or                                                                
     stored; and providing for an effective date."                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
This  was the first  hearing  for this  bill in  the Senate  Finance                                                            
Committee.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRETCHEN GUESS,  the sponsor  of the bill,  informed                                                            
the Committee that this  legislation provides assurance that illegal                                                            
drug laboratory sites would  be thoroughly decontaminated before the                                                            
premise  could  be re-occupied.  She  informed  the  Committee  that                                                            
currently "after a lab  has been busted," the law enforcement agency                                                            
sends a notice  to the property owner to clean up  the facility, and                                                            
the  agency  takes   no  further  action.  She  continued   that  no                                                            
guidelines exist  to specify the proper way to clean  up a site, and                                                            
the cleanup  activities  that occur  are usually  not adequate.  She                                                            
stated that  this bill  would establish  proper clean-up  guidelines                                                            
for testing and decontamination of sites.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
Senator Olson  asked whether an existing  problem has prompted  this                                                            
legislation.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
Representative Guess responded  that 50 methamphetamine laboratories                                                            
"were busted"  in the  State in  the year 2000,  and proper  cleanup                                                            
provisions  are not  established to  assure a  safe environment  for                                                            
future  occupants  of these  locations.  She  reiterated  that  this                                                            
legislation  would provide  a residential  property  owner with  the                                                            
appropriate clean-up guidelines for a site.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
Senator Austerman  moved to report House Bill 382  "out of Committee                                                            
with individual recommendations and accompanying fiscal notes."                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
There being  no objections,  SCS CS HB 382  (RES) was REPORTED  from                                                            
Committee  with a  previous  zero fiscal  note, dated  February  27,                                                            
2002, from  the Department  of Public Safety,  and a $12,000  fiscal                                                            
note dated  February 25, 2002 from  the Department of Environmental                                                             
Conservation.