HB3290 amends the Illinois Environmental Protection Act provisions governing the Underground Storage Tank Fund, which helps pay for investigation, corrective action, and indemnification costs after confirmed releases from underground storage tanks. The bill revises Sections 57.8 and 57.9 to change how eligibility, deductibles, payment timing, and agency review work for owners and operators seeking reimbursement from the Fund.
A major feature of the bill is that it lowers the deductible for certain releases reported on or after June 8, 2010, from $10,000 to $5,000, while also establishing higher deductibles for older releases in specified circumstances, including $100,000, $50,000, and $15,000 thresholds depending on tank registration and notice timing. It also sets a $1.5 million per-occurrence cap for corrective action and indemnification payments, creates a 120-day deadline for the Agency to make payment determinations on complete applications, and provides that failure to act within that period results in deemed approval by operation of law. The bill further clarifies what constitutes a complete application, adds project labor agreement certification requirements when applicable, and preserves subrogation rights for the State.
The bill also changes the process when Fund money is insufficient by requiring the Agency to maintain a priority list and notify applicants monthly about funding availability. It limits the Agency’s review to auditing and accounting practices in certain cases, restricts additional review of completed plans within budget, and allows owners or operators to appeal adverse payment decisions to the Pollution Control Board. The measure also preserves existing exclusions, such as costs already covered by insurance or other agreements, legal defense costs, and costs incurred before required notice or outside the statutory timeframes.
Overall, the bill appears to have broad support in the legislature, passing the House 116-0 and the Senate motion 57-0. The unanimous votes suggest general agreement with the bill’s goal of making the Underground Storage Tank Fund process more predictable and accessible while still preserving fiscal controls and eligibility safeguards.
There is little evidence of public or committee controversy in the available record, but the main policy tension in the bill is between faster, more certain reimbursement for tank owners/operators and tighter state oversight of Fund expenditures. The most notable points of potential contention are the reduced deductible for some claims, the automatic approval provision if the Agency misses the 120-day deadline, and the new payment caps and priority-list system when Fund resources are limited.
HB3290 changes state law by amending the Environmental Protection Act’s Underground Storage Tank Fund provisions, specifically Sections 57.8 and 57.9. It alters deductibles, payment procedures, eligibility documentation, agency deadlines, and funding-priority rules for underground storage tank cleanup and indemnification claims. The bill directly affects tank owners and operators, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Comptroller, and the Pollution Control Board, while also preserving the State’s subrogation rights and existing exclusions for costs already compensated elsewhere.
The available voting history shows strong bipartisan support and no recorded opposition, with unanimous passage in both chambers’ recorded actions. That suggests the bill was viewed favorably as a technical but meaningful update to the Underground Storage Tank Fund process, likely intended to improve predictability for claimants and clarify agency responsibilities. No committee transcript is available, so the record does not show detailed debate or organized opposition.
No explicit controversy appears in the available materials, but the bill’s most likely points of contention are policy tradeoffs rather than partisan conflict. These include lowering the deductible for some claims while imposing different deductible tiers for older releases, requiring the Agency to approve or be deemed to approve payment within 120 days, and limiting total annual Fund exposure through per-occurrence caps and priority lists when money is insufficient. Stakeholders most affected would be underground storage tank owners and operators, environmental regulators, and parties concerned about Fund solvency and administrative control.