§2702 Elements of Liability

Summary

Makes the owner or operator of a vessel or facility pay for cleanup costs and certain damages when oil is spilled, or is likely to be spilled, into U.S. navigable waters, adjoining shorelines, or the exclusive economic zone. Cleanup costs include those paid by the United States, a State, or an Indian tribe under federal or state law, and costs paid by anyone who acts in line with the National Contingency Plan. Covered damages include six kinds: harm to natural resources (plus reasonable assessment costs) recoverable by trustees; damage to real or personal property recoverable by owners or lessees; loss of subsistence use recoverable by users; net loss of government revenues (taxes, royalties, rents, fees, or net profit shares) recoverable by governments; loss of profits or earning capacity recoverable by any claimant; and net costs of extra public services (fire, safety, health) recoverable by States or their subdivisions. The rule does not apply to discharges that are allowed by a federal, state, or local permit, discharges from public vessels, or discharges from onshore facilities covered by the Trans‑Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act. If the responsible party proves a spill was caused only by a third party (or by a third party plus an act of God or war), that third party is treated as the responsible party. The original responsible party must still pay claimants and can then try to recover what it paid from the third party. Third‑party liability is subject to the same limits that would apply to the responsible vessel or facility.