BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNANCE AND FINANCE
Senator Robert M. Hertzberg, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
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|Bill No: |SB 1147 |Hearing |5/4/16 |
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|Author: |Galgiani |Tax Levy: |No |
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|Version: |4/6/16 |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant|Favorini-Csorba |
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Hazardous materials: aboveground storage tanks
Requires local governments to adopt an ordinance prior to
enforcing standards on aboveground storage tanks that are more
stringent than state standards.
Background
Unified Program. State law requires the Secretary of the
California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) to establish
a unified hazardous waste and hazardous materials management
regulatory program, known as the "Unified Program" (SB 1082,
Calderon, 1993). The Unified Program consolidated, coordinated,
and made consistent the following six programs that aim to
regulate hazardous materials and wastes, including the
Aboveground Petroleum Storage Act (ASPA).
A local agency, such as a county or city, applies to CalEPA to
become a Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA), responsible
for implementing the Unified Program within its jurisdiction.
Under the unified program, CUPAs issue permits, perform
inspections, levy fees, and take enforcement actions on
facilities that store hazardous waste, and the implementation of
the Unified Program must be consistent throughout each county.
CUPAs may also adopt other requirements on facilities subject to
the Unified Program as long as they are more stringent than the
statewide requirements.
SB 1147 (Galgiani) 4/6/16 Page 2
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Currently, there are 83 CUPAs in California, including all 58
counties, which are required by state law to apply to be CUPAs.
County environmental health departments frequently serve as
CUPAs, but in other cases fire agencies or public safety
departments may be the CUPA for a jurisdiction or participate in
the administration of the Unified Program. CalEPA periodically
reviews and evaluates individual CUPAs to determine how
successfully they are implementing the Unified Program.
Aboveground Petroleum Storage Program. The APSA directs CUPAs
to regulate facilities that store more than 1,320 gallons of
petroleum in aggregate, stored in aboveground storage tanks with
capacities of 55 gallons or greater. These facilities typically
include large petroleum tank facilities, aboveground fuel tank
stations and vehicle repair shops with aboveground petroleum
storage tanks, but can also include farms or construction sites.
AB 1566 (Wieckowski, 2012) tasked the Office of the State Fire
Marshal with overseeing the CUPAs' implementation of the APSA
and required the State Fire Marshal to adopt regulations
governing state oversight of APSA implementation.
All facilities subject to the APSA that store 10,000 gallons or
more of petroleum must (1) be inspected at least once every
three years by a CUPA, (2) report information about the tank
facility to the CUPA, and (3) pay a fee to help cover the cost
of the program. Facilities that store between 1,320 gallons and
10,000 gallons of petroleum must only meet the reporting and fee
requirements. In addition, most facilities subject to the ASPA
must prepare spill prevention control and countermeasure plans,
but certain farms, logging sites, and construction sites are
exempted. Federal regulations require the spill prevention
plans to, among other things, describe the oil handling
operations, spill prevention practices, discharge or drainage
controls, and the personnel, equipment and resources at the
facility that are used to prevent oil spills. Facility owners
must also periodically inspect the tanks and connected pipes.
Standards for Aboveground Storage Tanks. Aboveground storage
tanks must meet certain standards set out in state and local
fire codes. Fire codes in California are typically developed
and adopted according to the following process:
A model fire code is developed by the National Fire
SB 1147 (Galgiani) 4/6/16 Page 3
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Protection Association (NFPA).
The State of California then adopts that model code,
with any amendments specific to California, as the
California Fire Code.
Local agencies in California then enact an ordinance to
adopt the California Fire Code. Those ordinances may
include amendments that are more stringent than the
California Fire Code, if the local governing body makes
findings that the amendments are necessary because of local
climatic, geological, or topographical conditions.
The California Fire Code requires the design, fabrication, and
construction of tanks to conform to certain standards developed
by the NFPA. These standards include provisions for different
types of storage tanks, such as steel tanks without additional
protections as well as "protected" steel tanks, which must meet
a higher standard. Above-ground storage tanks must generally be
protected tanks unless they hold less flammable motor oil.
However, the California Fire Code includes some exemptions from
these standards for tanks on farms.
Kern County. The Kern County Environmental Health Services
Division is the CUPA in Kern County. The Kern County Fire
Department also participates in implementing the APSA because it
is responsible for issuing permits for storage tanks under the
Kern County Fire Code. In 2013, following delegation of
oversight responsibility for APSA to the Office of the State
Fire Marshal, Kern County began rigorously enforcing the APSA
and identifying tanks as not meeting the required standards in
the Kern County Fire Code. These standards require farms to use
protected tanks.
A 2016 evaluation of Kern County's implementation of the Unified
Program found that Kern County was not adequately ensuring that
violators of the APSA had in fact returned to compliance by
replacing tanks that did not meet standards. Accordingly, some
tank owners have been told that they must remove their tanks.
These owners are concerned that Kern County has been enforcing
standards higher than state regulations without first adopting
an ordinance.
SB 1147 (Galgiani) 4/6/16 Page 4
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Proposed Law
Senate Bill 1147 prohibits a city, county, or city and county
from enforcing standards for aboveground storage tanks that are
more stringent than state or federal standards unless it adopts
an ordinance establishing those standards.
State Revenue Impact
No estimate
Comments
1. Purpose of the bill . Aboveground storage tanks are necessary
to store fuel for agricultural equipment in an accessible
manner. Yet recently, some tank owners in Kern County have been
told that their tanks are in violation of county standards for
tanks and that they must remove them. This removal must often
be performed within 30 days of the notice of violation and
represents a significant cost to landowners. Moreover, Kern
County's standards appear to exceed state standards that some
tank owners would otherwise be in compliance with. SB 1147
requires local agencies to pass an ordinance prior to enforcing
standards on aboveground storage tanks that are higher than
statewide standards. This simple fix ensures that tank owners
have adequate notice about the standards that they must meet and
provides a mechanism for local governments to regulate
aboveground storage tanks.
2. Sure, but will it work ? SB 1147 arose out of concerns that
Kern County was imposing a higher standard than state
regulations for the storage of flammable liquids, which
potentially results in costly replacements for tank owners.
Accordingly, a previous version of the bill would have delayed
the replacement of some storage tanks and statutorily defined
statewide standards for tanks. The bill has since been amended
to contain the current requirement to adopt an ordinance in
order to enforce higher standards. However, this requirement
appears to duplicate existing law, which already requires local
agencies to adopt ordinances and make findings prior to
increasing standards. Furthermore, the Kern County Fire Code
was amended in 2013 to specify the standards that above-ground
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storage tanks must meet. Thus SB 1147 may not address the
challenges facing tank owners who have been tagged as violating
the APSA in Kern County. The Committee may wish to consider
whether SB 1147 is necessary.
Support and
Opposition (4/28/16)
Support : California Cotton Growers and Ginners Association
(co-sponsor); Wester Agricultural Processors Association
(co-sponsor); California Fresh Fruit Association; Milk Producers
Council.
Opposition : Unknown.
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