(a) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds deposited in the Toxic Substances Control Account shall be appropriated in the annual Budget Act each year in the following manner:
(1) An amount sufficient to pay for the estimated costs identified by the department in the report submitted pursuant to subdivision (c) to the Site Remediation Account in the General Fund for direct site remediation costs, as defined in Section 25337.
(2) Not less than ten million seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($10,750,000) to the Site Remediation Account in the General Fund for direct site remediation costs, as defined in Section 25337.
(3) Not less than four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000) to the Expedited Site Remediation Trust Fund in the State Treasury, created pursuant to subdivision (a) of former Section 25399.1, for purposes of paying the orphan share of response costs pursuant to former Chapter 6.85 (commencing with Section 25396).
(4) An amount that does not exceed the costs incurred by the State Board of Equalization, a private party, or other public agency, to administer and collect the fees imposed pursuant to Article 9.1 (commencing with Section 25205.1) and deposited into the Toxic Substances Control Account, for the purpose of reimbursing the State Board of Equalization, public agency, or private party, for those costs.
(5) Not less than one million fifty thousand dollars ($1,050,000) for purposes of establishing and implementing a program pursuant to Sections 25244.15.1, 25244.17.1, 25244.17.2, and 25244.22 to encourage hazardous waste generators to implement pollution prevention measures.
(6) Funds not appropriated as specified in paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, may be appropriated for any of the purposes specified in subdivision (b) of Section 25173.6, except the purposes specified in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of, and paragraph (13) of, subdivision (b) of Section 25173.6.
(b) (1) The amounts specified in paragraphs (2) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a) shall be adjusted annually to reflect increases or decreases in the cost of living during the prior fiscal year, as measured by the Consumer Price Index issued by the Department of Industrial Relations or by a successor agency.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the department may, upon the approval of the Legislature in a statute or the annual Budget Act, take either of the following actions:
(A) Reduce the amounts specified in paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a), if there are insufficient funds in the Toxic Substances Control Account.
(B) Suspend the transfer specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a), if there are no orphan shares pending payment pursuant to former Chapter 6.85 (commencing with Section 25396).
(c) The department shall submit to the Legislature with the Governor’s Budget each year a report that includes an estimate of the funding needed to fund direct site remediation costs at state orphan sites and meet the state’s obligation to pay for direct site remediation costs at federal Superfund orphan sites pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of Section 104 of the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (42 U.S.C. Sec. 9604(c)(3)). The estimate shall include projected costs for the current budget year and the two following budget years, including, but not limited to, the state’s 10-percent funding obligation for remedial actions at federal Superfund orphan sites, the state’s 100-percent funding obligation for ongoing operation and maintenance at federal Superfund orphan sites, and ongoing operation and maintenance costs at state orphan sites.
(Amended by Stats. 2016, Ch. 704, Sec. 1. (AB 2891) Effective January 1, 2017.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018