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Petroleum tank cleanup fund steady at roughly $8M/year; board seeks fee cap fix and warns of future bond needs
Summary
The Petroleum Tank Release Compensation Board reported roughly $8 million a year in revenue from a 0.75‑cent per‑gallon fee but warned the statutory fee cap has not changed since 1989 and that upcoming cleanup needs could require bond authority; the Libby Asbestos oversight fund and long‑term federal CERCLA match requirements were also discussed.
Officials who administer petroleum tank cleanups and waste remediation told the Section C appropriations committee the state’s petroleum cleanup fund continues to operate on a fee set in 1989, produces about $8 million annually, and supports reimbursements for leak cleanups alongside DEQ oversight costs.
Terry Wadsworth, executive director of the Petroleum Tank Release Compensation Board, told lawmakers the cleanup fund is financed by a fee of three‑quarters of one cent on each gallon of gasoline, aviation and special fuel. "The fee has been the same since 1989," Wadsworth said. "It generates about $8,000,000 a year in annual revenue." The board uses those dollars in three ways: reimbursements to tank owners/operators for corrective action costs (statutorily appropriated), DEQ regulatory oversight tied to those cleanups, and administrative costs for the board and staff.
Why it matters: Underground storage tank releases remain a major source of local contamination, and the fund pays for corrective actions and third‑party compensation. Wadsworth said reimbursements historically amount to about $5.2 million per year, with DEQ oversight at roughly $2.2 million annually.
The board and DEQ described other remediation funding needs across the agency. Amy Steinmetz, Waste Management and Remediation Division administrator, told the committee the agency has about $1.1 million in a one‑time bond appropriation for the Carpenter Snow Creek Superfund site in the base year that will not appear in requested budgets for fiscal 2026–27 because the agency has not yet sold CERCLA bonds. She cautioned that the state is likely to need bond authority in a future session for other federal Superfund matches; the department sold CERCLA bonds in 2006 but not frequently.
Steinmetz also described program efficiencies: a recent $1.875 million one‑time appropriation for petroleum tank remediation previously closed 20 releases, leaving about $300,000 for early 2025 work. The department has converted many inspection workflows to electronic field forms for abandoned mine land, junk vehicle and underground storage tank programs, which it said reduces staff transcription time and speeds public access to information.
Committee members asked about how pay‑plan increases or vacancy savings affect available cleanup dollars. Wadsworth and agency staff said the petroleum board’s program runs on a state special revenue account and that increased personal‑services spending can reduce the cash available for cleanup reimbursements; committee staff said programs under a certain size are exempt from statewide vacancy savings. The board had no separate legislative request this session but is tracking bills that could affect its operations.
The committee did not take formal action during the hearing; agency staff said they would provide additional budget detail and follow‑up on bond timing and fund balances as requested.
