S.C. Code Regs. § § 61-92.280.H.93

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 10, October 25, 2024

Section 61-92.280.H.93 - AMOUNT AND SCOPE OF REQUIRED FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

[Note: The SUPERB Account and the SUPERB Financial Responsibility Fund, described in Section 280.101, may be used to meet the South Carolina financial responsibility requirements for corrective action and third party liability, respectively, when used in conjunction with the owner or operator responsibilities given in Section 280.101.]

(a) Owners or operators of petroleum USTs must demonstrate financial responsibility for taking corrective action and for compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental releases arising from the operation of petroleum USTs in at least the following per-occurrence amounts:

(1) For owners or operators of petroleum USTs that are located at petroleum marketing facilities, or that handle an average of more than 10,000 gallons of petroleum per month based on annual throughput for the previous calendar year; $1 million.

(2) For all other owners or operators of petroleum USTs; $500,000.

(b) Owners or operators of petroleum USTs must demonstrate financial responsibility for taking corrective action and for compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental releases arising from the operation of petroleum USTs in at least the following annual aggregate amounts:

(1) For owners or operators of 1 to 100 petroleum USTs, $l million; and

(2) For owners or operators of 101 or more petroleum USTs, $2 million.

(c) For the purposes of paragraphs (b) and (f) of this section, only, "a petroleum UST" means a single containment unit and does not mean combinations of single containment units.

(d) Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, if the owner or operator uses separate mechanisms or separate combinations of mechanisms to demonstrate financial responsibility for:

(1) Taking corrective action;

(2) Compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by sudden accidental releases; or

(3) Compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by nonsudden accidental releases, the amount of assurance provided by each mechanism or combination of mechanisms must be in the full amount specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.

(e) If an owner or operator uses separate mechanisms or separate combinations of mechanisms to demonstrate financial responsibility for different petroleum USTs, the annual aggregate required shall be based on the number of tanks covered by each such separate mechanism or combination of mechanisms.

(f) Owners or operators shall review the amount of aggregate assurance provided whenever additional petroleum USTs are acquired or installed. If the number of petroleum USTs for which assurance must be provided exceeds 100, the owner or operator shall demonstrate financial responsibility in the amount of at least $2 million of annual aggregate assurance by the anniversary of the date on which the mechanism demonstrating financial responsibility became effective. If assurance is being demonstrated by a combination of mechanisms, the owner or operator shall demonstrate financial responsibility in the amount of at least $2 million of annual aggregate assurance by the first-occurring effective date anniversary of any one of the mechanisms combined (other than a financial test or guarantee) to provide assurance.

(g) The amounts of assurance required under this section exclude legal defense costs.

(h) The required per-occurrence and annual aggregate coverage amounts do not in any way limit the liability of the owner or operator.

S.C. Code Regs. § 61-92.280.H.93

Added by State Register Volume 19, Issue No. 9, eff September 22, 1995; State Register Volume 41, Issue No. 05, eff. 5/26/2017.