BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 1701
                                                                  Page 1

          CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
          AB 1701 (Wieckowski and Smyth)
          As Amended  August 21, 2012
          Majority vote
           
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          |ASSEMBLY:  |70-0 |(April 23,      |SENATE: |38-0 |(August 23,    |
          |           |     |2012)           |        |     |2012)          |
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           Original Committee Reference:    E.S. & T.M.  

           SUMMARY  :  Provides for state certification of cities and 
          counties to oversee the cleanup of underground storage tanks 
          (USTs).  Specifically,  this bill  :

          1)Requires a city or county to apply to the State Water 
            Resources Control Board (SWRCB) to be certified to implement 
            the local UST cleanup programs.

          2)Provides that only a certified city or county is authorized to 
            implement the local UST oversight cleanup program after July 
            1, 2013.

          3)Authorizes the SWRCB to certify a city or county that it 
            determines is qualified to oversee or perform the abatement 
            and requires the SWRCB to adopt procedures and criteria for 
            certifying cities and counties.  Requires local agency 
            certification by the SWRCB to include a review, at a minimum, 
            of all of the following factors of the city or county 
            capacity:

             a)   Adequacy of the technical expertise possessed by the 
               city or county;

             b)   Adequacy of staff resources;

             c)   Adequacy of budget resources and funding mechanisms;

             d)   Training requirements;

             e)   Past performance in implementing and enforcing 
               corrective action requirements; and,

             f)   Record keeping and accounting systems.








                                                                  AB 1701
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          4)Provides that if a local agency is not certified by the SWRCB, 
            after July 1, 2013, the SWRCB shall assign UST remediation 
            cases from that city or county to either the Regional Water 
            Quality Control Board (RWQCB) or to a certified local program.

          5)Removes obsolete provisions of the UST cleanup program, 
            including the authority for the Santa Clara Valley Water 
            Agency to operate as the local UST oversight agency and for 
            the funding of these activities by the SWRCB.

           The Senate amendments  :  

           1)Provide that an agreement between an RWQCB and a water 
            district to oversee, coordinate or implement a cooperative 
            oversight program entered into prior to January 1, 2013, must 
            remain in effect in accordance with the terms of the agreement 
            or as the terms may be amended in the future.
          2)Add double-jointing language to avoid chaptering out issues 
            with AB 1566 (Wieckowski).  
           
           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Regulates, generally, the storage of hazardous substances in 
            USTs and requires USTs that are used to store hazardous 
            substances to meet certain requirements, including that the 
            primary containment be product tight and that the tank's 
            secondary containment meet specified standards.

          2)Requires the Secretary of the California Environmental 
            Protection Agency to establish a unified hazardous waste and 
            hazardous materials management regulatory program, known as 
            the Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA), as a means of 
            consolidating the local rules or local ordinances relating to 
            the generation or handling of hazardous waste or hazardous 
            materials, as specified pursuant to Chapter 6.11 of the Health 
            and Safety Code.

          3)Requires, under the existing Barry Keene Underground Storage 
            Tank Cleanup Trust Fund Act of 1989 (Act), owners and 
            operators of petroleum USTs to take corrective action on an 
            unauthorized release of petroleum, including requirements for 
            the preparation of a work plan.

           AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY  , this bill was substantially similar 








                                                                  AB 1701
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          to the version passed by the Senate.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Senate Appropriations 
          Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.

           COMMENTS  :

           Need for the bill  .  According to the author, "Leaks from 
          underground storage tanks (UST) represent a threat to California 
          groundwater and land resources.  Even a small amount of 
          petroleum released from a leaking UST can contaminate 
          groundwater.  The multiple local agencies with responsibility 
          for cleanup oversight result in highly varied local requirements 
          and processes for the cleanup of underground tanks.  This 
          variability has led to delays in site cleanups and increased 
          state and business costs."

          On November 30, 2011, the Assembly Environmental Safety and 
          Toxic Materials Committee conducted an oversight hearing on the 
          state and local regulation and management of USTs containing 
          hazardous materials including petroleum.  One of the findings 
          from the hearing was the need to standardize local agency 
          oversight of cleanups to provide timely closure of sites.

          Oversight of UST cleanup is currently carried out by a range of 
          State and local agencies including nine RWQCBs, 22 local 
          oversight programs (LOPs), and over 90 local implementing 
          agencies (LIAs).  The multiple local agencies with 
          responsibility for cleanup oversight result in highly varied 
          local requirements and processes for the cleanup of USTs.  This 
          variability has led to delays in site cleanups and increased 
          state and business costs.
           

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Bob Fredenburg / E.S. & T.M. / (916) 
          319-3965                                               

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