68-215-110 - Petroleum underground storage tank fund Environmental assurance fee.
68-215-110. Petroleum underground storage tank fund Environmental assurance fee.
(a) There is established within the general fund a special agency account to be known as the petroleum underground storage tank fund referred to in this chapter as the fund.
(b) All fees, civil penalties and damages collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited in the fund. Any deposits to the fund which would result in the balance of the fund exceeding fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) shall be transferred to the highway fund.
(c) Any unencumbered funds and any unexpended balance of the fund remaining at the end of any fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund, but shall be carried forward until expended in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(d) Interest accruing on investments and deposits of the fund shall be returned to the fund and remain a part of the fund.
(e) For fiscal years subsequent to 1988-1989, the board shall, by regulation, adjust underground storage tank fees to a level necessary to maintain a minimum unobligated balance of two million dollars ($2,000,000) and a maximum unobligated balance of fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) in the fund.
(f) For each fiscal year there isappropriated a sum sufficient from the fund to provide for the administrative costs of the underground storage tank program.
(g) Moneys in the account shall be invested by the state treasurer for the benefit of the fund pursuant to § 9-4-603. The fund shall be administered by the commissioner.
(h) (1) To provide for the stability of the petroleum underground storage tank fund, there is levied, in addition to all other fees or taxes, an environmental assurance fee of four tenths of one cent (0.4¢) per gallon on each gallon of petroleum products imported into this state and petroleum products manufactured in this state. For the purpose of this levy, petroleum products are those defined in § 67-3-1203.
(2) The environmental assurance fee is for the purpose of assuring sufficient funding of emergency, preventive, or corrective actions necessary when public health or safety is, or potentially may be, threatened from any release of regulated substances from an underground storage tank or the use and service thereof.
(3) (A) Such environmental assurance fee shall be paid and remitted to the department of revenue on a monthly basis at the same time and in the same manner that the special tax on petroleum products is paid and remitted pursuant to § 67-3-1303. Such tax collections are appropriated, and are to be allocated and expended on an annual basis only in the following order of priority:
(i) First to the Tennessee local development authority, referred to in this section as the authority, a sum sufficient to make debt service payments on the authority's bonds or notes, both currently outstanding and those reasonably anticipated to be issued during the fiscal year, issued pursuant to title 4, chapter 31, part 9, the proceeds of which have been or will be distributed to the board pursuant to a funding agreement, plus any amounts necessary to maintain a fully funded debt reserve or other reserve intended to secure the principal and interest on the bonds or notes as may be required by resolution, or other agreement of the authority, and to pay reasonable administrative costs directly related thereto; and
(ii) Second, for a period of three (3) years starting July 1, 2009, the state shall credit an amount not to exceed three million dollars ($3,000,000) to the general fund annually, if the annual general appropriations act so provides, and the remainder shall be credited to the petroleum underground storage tank fund. On July 1, 2012, and thereafter, all of the funds received from this fee shall be credited to the petroleum underground storage tank fund.
(B) Prior to the start of each fiscal year, and to the extent necessary during the fiscal year, the following certifications shall be made and delivered to the authority:
(i) The commissioner of finance and administration, the actual expenditures of the fund;
(ii) The commissioner of revenue, the actual collections made pursuant to subsection (h)(1);
(iii) The commissioner of environment and conservation, the amount of anticipated expenditures and claims against the fund, excluding payments in subdivision (h)(3)(A)(i), and the amount of anticipated tank fees collected pursuant to § 68-215-109; and
(iv) The authority, the amount reasonably anticipated to be necessary to make such payments as provided in subdivision (h)(3)(A)(i).
[Acts 1988, ch. 984, § 12; 1990, ch. 1012, §§ 1-3; 1991, ch. 68, §§ 1, 2; T.C.A., § 68-53-110; Acts 1997, ch. 444, § 1; 2005, ch. 283, § 4; 2009, ch. 531, § 9.]