(a) An owner or operator of a registered facility, or the current owner or operator of a recently abandoned drycleaning facility, may petition the commissioner to perform investigation and remediation in connection with a release from a drycleaning facility, in-state wholesale distribution facility, or abandoned drycleaning facility in accordance with rules promulgated by the commissioner.
(b) Once a registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility has petitioned the commissioner and has complied with all the requirements for entry into the program as established by this chapter, including compliance with applicable rules and the payment of necessary registration fees and, if applicable, surcharges on drycleaning solvents, then the commissioner shall accept the petition in accordance with the rules promulgated under this chapter. Upon acceptance, the commissioner shall inform the party of the decision to allow the facility into the program established by this chapter and inform the party of the priority ranking of the site, if sufficient investigative work has been completed at that time to determine priority ranking. The commissioner may reject any petition and deny coverage under this chapter if the commissioner determines that the registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility has been in noncompliance with this chapter or the rules promulgated pursuant to this chapter.
(c) The commissioner shall not authorize the expenditure of funds from the fund in excess of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) per year for releases from any registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility, nor authorize a distribution of monies from the fund that would result in a diminution of the fund below a balance of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) unless an emergency exists at a registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility that constitutes an imminent and substantial threat to human health or the environment. In the event of an emergency as described in this subsection (c), the commissioner shall approve the reimbursement of reasonable response costs to remove the imminent and substantial threat to human health or the environment.
(d) The commissioner shall not expend more than two million dollars ($2,000,000) per registered facility that has been accepted to the program.
(e) The commissioner shall not authorize distribution of funds from the fund to:(1) Sites that are contaminated by solvents normally used in drycleaning operations where the contamination at such sites did not result from the operation of a registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility;(2) Sites that are not registered facilities, or recently abandoned drycleaning facilities, that are contaminated by a release that results from drycleaning solvents being transported to or from a drycleaning facility or in-state distribution facility;(3) Any property contaminated by a release from a drycleaning facility, abandoned drycleaning facility, or in-state wholesale distribution facility, that has been identified by the United States environmental protection agency (EPA) as a federal superfund site pursuant to 40 CFR Part 300 et seq.; or(4) Any drycleaning facility which has obtained a permit pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)(42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq.).
(1) Sites that are contaminated by solvents normally used in drycleaning operations where the contamination at such sites did not result from the operation of a registered facility or recently abandoned drycleaning facility;
(2) Sites that are not registered facilities, or recently abandoned drycleaning facilities, that are contaminated by a release that results from drycleaning solvents being transported to or from a drycleaning facility or in-state distribution facility;
(3) Any property contaminated by a release from a drycleaning facility, abandoned drycleaning facility, or in-state wholesale distribution facility, that has been identified by the United States environmental protection agency (EPA) as a federal superfund site pursuant to 40 CFR Part 300 et seq.; or
(4) Any drycleaning facility which has obtained a permit pursuant to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)(42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq.).
(f) Any person granted fund coverage under this section shall pay a deductible of ten percent (10%) of each contractor billing, not to exceed a total of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) per site. If an applicant reenters facilities or sites into the program for any reason, including failure to submit annual registration forms or registration fees on time, the applicant is required to pay a new deductible.