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LSPA reports bill delay, tax-credit dispute with DOR and asbestos-in-soil data project
Summary
The LSP Association reported that a home-heating-oil insurance bill stalled in the House Ways and Means Committee by July 31, summarized a July 30 meeting with the Department of Revenue and MassDEP on Brownfields tax credits (noting divergent interpretations), and previewed an asbestos-in-soil data project and an in-person member meeting Sept. 12.
Joe Roman, speaking for the Licensed Site Professional Association (LSPA), told the Waste Site Cleanup Advisory Committee that the association’s long-running effort to secure insurance coverage for home heating oil spills did not advance out of the House Ways and Means Committee before the end of the legislative session on July 31.
"There's still a possibility that it could pass before the end of the calendar year, but the likelihood is quite low," Roman said, adding that LSPA expects to reintroduce the bill in the next session.
Roman summarized a July 30 meeting that included representatives from the Department of Revenue, MassDEP and practitioners to discuss the Brownfields tax-credit program. He said practitioners argued that MCP compliance costs tied to redevelopment projects should be eligible for coverage under the tax-credit program. Roman said the Department of Revenue told the group it interprets the program as covering MCP costs only when those costs are associated with achieving a permanent solution, leaving a coverage gap in many redevelopment scenarios. Roman said participants identified either a statutory change or litigation as potential ways to resolve the dispute and suggested preplanning meetings so redevelopers can consult DOR in advance.
Millie, identified in the transcript as a MassDEP representative, said MassDEP sees opportunities for partnership but does not control how DOR exercises its regulatory authority. "MassDEP is always, doors wide open to talk about a particular site," she said, and she said MassDEP will continue to provide technical assistance on permanent-solution issues tied to Chapter 21E processes.
Roman also announced that LSPA will hold an in-person member meeting on Sept. 12 in Westborough (Dollar Tree Hotel) and will present a lifetime-achievement award to retired assistant commissioner Liz Callahan. He described a Haley & Aldrich project compiling air-monitoring data from redevelopment projects where asbestos in soil has been detected; the LSPA expects a presentation on that project before the end of the year.
No formal legislative action or votes occurred during the committee reports; Roman framed the updates as reports on stakeholder efforts and next steps.
