Petroleum Release Remedial Action Reimbursement Fund

The Petroleum Release Remedial Action Reimbursement Fund was established to help pay remediation costs for owners/operators of facilities that have leaking petroleum tanks. Costs for both underground and above ground tank releases are eligible for reimbursement.

Who is eligible

When contamination has been found at a site, and the NDEE has determined that more investigation and/or cleanup is required, the agency will also determine the “responsible person(s).” This term refers primarily to those who owned or operated the site when the leak occurred. Those who are determined to be the responsible persons may be eligible for reimbursement through this fund, minus the deductibles listed below.

In situations involving "orphan" sites (sites where the person or business that caused the contamination either cannot be identified or does not have the resources to pay for their share of cleanup costs), investigation and remediation costs are paid with federal and/or state funds.

Types of activities that are eligible

Primarily this fund reimburses costs of investigation and cleanup activities. To be eligible, the activities must be approved by NDEE. To assist applicants, the program developed guidelines entitled "Reasonable Rates Schedule and Reimbursement Guidance Manual."

Deductibles

Most responsible persons will need to meet an initial deductible of $10,000 in eligible expenses per release. The responsible person also has a co-payment obligation equal to 25% of the next $60,000 of eligible expenses (a total co-payment of $15,000). Under these circumstances the total “out of pocket” expenses (initial deductible plus co-payment) is $25,000 per release.

However, a responsible person may qualify for a lower deductible and co-payment obligation, if he or she is either:

1. A marketer who sold more than 2,000 but less than 250,000 gallons of petroleum at all facilities in the calendar year prior to the year the release was first reported, or,
2. A storer/non-marketer who stored less than 10,000 gallons at all facilities in the calendar year prior to the year the release was first reported.

If either of these criteria is met, the applicant has a reduced deductible requirement of $5,000, followed by a co-payment obligation equal to 25% of the next $40,000 in eligible remedial expenses (a total co-payment of $10,000). Under these circumstances, the total "out-of-pocket" expenses (initial deductible plus co-payment) is $15,000 per release for an applicant classified as low-volume. In order to be considered for the low-volume classification level, a responsible person must complete and submit to the NDEE an "Application for Low-Volume Classification."

Time requirement

A complete application must be submitted within one year of the compliance date established by the Department when the remedial phase is approved. Failure to submit an application in a timely fashion may result in reduction of reimbursement by up to 100%. If total eligible costs do not exceed the initial deductible as described above, this requirement does not apply.