SSB 6567 -
By Senator Baumgartner
Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:
"NEW SECTION. Sec. 1 (1) The state of Washington has a long
history of leading in efforts to protect our natural environment while
encouraging economic opportunities. Public safety, protection of the
natural environment, and economic opportunities are goals shared by all
Washingtonians.
(2) Liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and response programs in
Washington state, created through thoughtful cooperation and
coordination between industry and the communities they serve, is a
model to the rest of the nation and a model to the world. As modes of
transport for various types of liquid bulk crude oil change and as the
volume of liquid bulk crude oil transported through Washington changes,
it is important that proactive steps are taken to ensure public safety
and protection of natural resources.
(3) This act is intended to build upon strong and prudent plans
currently in effect, identify areas that need further protections, and
invest taxpayer funds today to increase safety and prevent spills.
(4) Prevention of crude oil spills is a top priority of the
legislature. Providing first responders, local communities, and
impacted parties with the tools to respond when spills do occur is in
the vital interest of the citizens of Washington state.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2 (1) The department of ecology, in
consultation with the utilities and transportation commission, the
federal railroad administration, and industry representatives, shall
conduct a study on the safety of transporting crude oil in liquid bulk
form by rail. The study must include:
(a) A review of:
(i) The federal, state, and local emergency response and prevention
programs and activities for spills from tank cars transporting liquid
bulk crude oil with a focus on high hazard areas where emergency
response equipment can be strategically placed for use by federal,
state, regional, or local governments or other emergency responders;
(ii) The capacity of local jurisdictions to prevent and respond to
liquid bulk crude oil spills;
(iii) The identification of weaknesses or gaps in federal, state,
and local liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and response; and
(iv) Federal regulations governing liquid bulk crude oil spill
prevention and response for transport by rail;
(b) A survey of:
(i) Local government funding for emergency liquid bulk crude oil
spill prevention and response programs;
(ii) Sources of funding, entities assessed, or contributions
required by participants of emergency liquid bulk crude oil spill
prevention and response programs; and
(iii) Regional or countywide cooperative agreements implementing
liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and response programs;
(c) Recommendations for legislative consideration on the following:
(i) Levels of funding and sources of funding for emergency liquid
bulk crude oil spill prevention and response programs;
(ii) Participants that should be included in an emergency liquid
bulk crude oil spill prevention and response program and the amount
these participants should be assessed;
(iii) Appropriate use of funds such as: Liquid bulk crude oil
spill response, equipment, training, or other benefits to those who are
assessed;
(iv) Cooperative regional or countywide agreements to meet
emergency liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and response program
needs, while maintaining an individual organization's distinct purpose;
and
(v) Methods to increase cooperation and coordination among
organizations responding to liquid bulk crude oil spills, including:
(A) Sharing resources or mutual aide between terrestrial and on-water liquid bulk crude oil spill emergencies; and
(B) Communication to ensure a common understanding of the potential
threat from liquid bulk crude oil spills; and
(d) A report on the status and progress of federal rule making for
tank car safety requirements including model, age, modifications, and
upgrades.
(2) The department of ecology must provide: (a) A preliminary
evaluation on the status of the safety of transporting liquid bulk
crude oil by rail in the state and include recommendations for near-term legislative action to address needs identified in the review as
required under subsection (1)(a)(i) of this section, to the relevant
policy and fiscal committees of the senate and house of representatives
by December 31, 2014; and (b) using the study and reviews conducted
under this section, a final report regarding the safety of the
transport of liquid bulk crude oil by rail, as well as recommendations
for policy, budget needs, or legislation to the relevant policy and
fiscal committees of the senate and house of representatives by
December 31, 2015.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3 The department of ecology shall provide an
analysis on the safety of transporting liquid bulk crude oil on waters
of the state.
(1) The analysis must include:
(a) The capacity to address risks posed by liquid bulk crude oil;
(b) Weaknesses or gaps in liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention
and response programs, including identification of programs that are
not complete or need to be more robust, with a focus on Grays Harbor
and the Columbia river; and
(c) Barge and tug operations within the state related to the
movement of liquid bulk crude oil; and
(d) A status report on the federal, state, and local waterborne
liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and preparedness.
(2) The department of ecology must provide to the relevant policy
and fiscal committees of the senate and house of representatives by
December 31, 2014, a status report on waterborne liquid bulk crude oil
spill prevention and preparedness; recommendations for Grays Harbor and
the Columbia river crude oil spill prevention and preparedness; an
analysis of barge and tug liquid bulk crude oil operations; and safety
gaps or weaknesses in liquid bulk crude oil spill prevention and
response programs.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4 A new section is added to chapter 90.56 RCW
to read as follows:
(1) The department must provide to the relevant policy and fiscal
committees of the senate and house of representatives:
(a) A review of all state and federal geographic response plans as
needed in contingency plans required under RCW 90.56.210 and 88.46.060
by December 31, 2014; and
(b) Annual updates, beginning December 31, 2015, and ending
December 31, 2021, as required under RCW 43.01.036, as to the progress
made in completing state and federal geographic response plans as
needed in contingency plans required under RCW 90.56.060, 90.56.210,
and 88.46.060.
(2) The department must contract, if practicable, with eligible
independent third parties to ensure completion by December 1, 2016, of
at least fifty percent of the geographic response plans as needed in
contingency plans required under RCW 90.56.210 and 88.46.060 for the
state.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5 A new section is added to chapter 90.56 RCW
to read as follows:
(1) The owner or operator for each facility other than a
transmission pipeline shall submit to the department data and
information on the volume and type of crude oil that arrived at and
departed from the facility each month, including the state, province,
or country of origin of the crude oil, the mode of arrival and
departure at the facility including, but not limited to, arrival by
vessel, rail, or pipeline.
(2)(a) Any person required to present information to the department
pursuant to subsection (1) of this section may request that specific
information be held in confidence. Information requested to be held in
confidence is presumed to be confidential.
(b) Information presented to the department pursuant to subsection
(1) of this section must be held in confidence by the department or
aggregated to the extent necessary to ensure confidentiality if public
disclosure of the specific information or data would result in an
unfair competitive disadvantage to the person supplying the
information.
(c)(i) Whenever the department receives a request to publicly
disclose unaggregated information or otherwise proposes to publicly
disclose information submitted pursuant to subsection (1) of this
section, notice of the request or proposal must be provided to the
person submitting the information. The notice must indicate the form
in which the information is to be released. Upon receipt of notice,
the person submitting the information has ten working days in which to
respond to the notice to justify the claim of confidentiality on each
specific item of information covered by the notice on the basis that
public disclosure of the specific information would result in an unfair
competitive disadvantage to the person supplying the information.
(ii) The department shall consider the respondent's submittal in
determining whether to publicly disclose the information submitted to
it to which a claim of confidentiality is made. The department shall
issue a written decision that sets forth its reasons for making the
determination whether each item of information for which a claim of
confidentiality is made remains confidential or must be publicly
disclosed.
(iii) The department shall not publicly disclose information
submitted to it pursuant to subsection (1) of this section within ten
working days after the department has issued its written decision
required in (c)(ii) of this subsection.
(iv) No information submitted to the department pursuant to
subsection (1) of this section may be deemed confidential if the person
submitting the information or data has made it public.
(v) With respect to information provided under subsection (1) of
this section, neither the department nor any employee of the department
may do any of the following:
(A) Use the information for any purpose other than the statistical
purposes for which it is supplied;
(B) Make any publication whereby the information furnished by any
particular establishment or individual can be identified; or
(C) Permit anyone other than department employees to examine the
individual reports provided under subsection (1) of this section.
(d) Any confidential information pertinent to the responsibilities
of the department that is obtained by another state agency must be
available to the department and must be treated in a confidential
manner.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 6 (1) The department of ecology in
consultation with the senate energy, environment, and
telecommunications committee and the house of representatives
environment committee, shall hold a regional meeting in British
Columbia, Canada, during the week of July 21 through 24, 2014,
coinciding with the Pacific Northwest economic region annual summit in
British Columbia and a joint work session prior to the regional meeting
to address emergency prevention and response activities for liquid bulk
crude oil transported in the Pacific Northwest region.
(2) The department of ecology must invite state representatives
from the Pacific Northwest economic region authorized under chapter
43.147 RCW and representatives from affected tribes, local governments,
the United States government, provinces, Canada, and other appropriate
stakeholders. The work session and the regional meeting must at a
minimum address:
(a) Cooperative emergency prevention and response activities
between the shared international and state borders;
(b) Expected risks posed by increased transport of Canadian crude
oil or liquid bulk crude oil throughout the Pacific Northwest region
within the next three to five years;
(c) Changes in methods for transporting liquid bulk crude oil and
associated risks;
(d) Identification of responsible agencies and corresponding
activities that can be taken to address expected risks; and
(e) Consideration of new or emerging technologies to make transport
of Canadian crude oil or liquid bulk crude oil safer.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7 (1) The department of ecology shall provide
grants to emergency responders to assist with oil spill response and
firefighting equipment and resources needed to meet the requirements of
this act.
(2) The department of ecology, in consultation with emergency first
responders, representatives from oil and rail industries, and
businesses that are recipients of liquid bulk crude oil shall review
grant applications.
(a) The application review must include an evaluation of equipment
and resource requests, funding requirements, and coordination with
existing equipment and resources in the area.
(b) Funding must be prioritized for applicants from areas where
liquid bulk crude oil is transferred from one mode of transportation to
another.
(c) Grants must be coordinated to maximize currently existing
equipment and resources that have been put in place by first responders
and industry.
Sec. 8 RCW 82.23B.010 and 1992 c 73 s 6 are each amended to read
as follows:
((Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
this section apply throughout this chapter.)) The definitions in this
section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly
requires otherwise.
(1) "Barrel" means a unit of measurement of volume equal to forty-two United States gallons of crude oil or petroleum product.
(2) "Bulk oil terminal" means a facility of any kind, other than a
waterborne vessel, that is used for transferring crude oil from a tank
car.
(3) "Crude oil" means any naturally occurring liquid hydrocarbons
at atmospheric temperature and pressure coming from the earth,
including condensate and natural gasoline.
(((3))) (4) "Department" means the department of revenue.
(((4))) (5) "Marine terminal" means a facility of any kind, other
than a waterborne vessel, that is used for transferring crude oil or
petroleum products to or from a waterborne vessel or barge.
(((5))) (6) "Navigable waters" means those waters of the state and
their adjoining shorelines that are subject to the ebb and flow of the
tide, including the Columbia and Snake rivers.
(((6))) (7) "Person" has the meaning provided in RCW 82.04.030.
(((7))) (8) "Petroleum product" means any liquid hydrocarbons at
atmospheric temperature and pressure that are the product of the
fractionation, distillation, or other refining or processing of crude
oil, and that are used as, useable as, or may be refined as a fuel or
fuel blendstock, including but not limited to, gasoline, diesel fuel,
aviation fuel, bunker fuel, and fuels containing a blend of alcohol and
petroleum.
(((8))) (9) "Tank car" means a rail car, the body of which consists
of a tank for transporting liquids.
(10) "Taxpayer" means the person owning crude oil or petroleum
products immediately after receipt of the same into the storage tanks
of a marine or bulk oil terminal in this state ((from a waterborne
vessel or barge)) and who is liable for the taxes imposed by this
chapter.
(((9))) (11) "Waterborne vessel or barge" means any ship, barge, or
other watercraft capable of travelling on the navigable waters of this
state and capable of transporting any crude oil or petroleum product in
quantities of ten thousand gallons or more for purposes other than
providing fuel for its motor or engine.
Sec. 9 RCW 82.23B.020 and 2006 c 256 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) An oil spill response tax is imposed on the privilege of
receiving: (a) Crude oil or petroleum products at a marine terminal
within this state from a waterborne vessel or barge operating on the
navigable waters of this state; and (b) crude oil at a bulk oil
terminal within this state from a tank car. The tax imposed in this
section is levied upon the owner of the crude oil or petroleum products
immediately after receipt of the same into the storage tanks of a
marine or bulk oil terminal from a tank car or waterborne vessel or
barge at the rate of one cent per barrel of crude oil or petroleum
product received.
(2) In addition to the tax imposed in subsection (1) of this
section, an oil spill administration tax is imposed on the privilege of
receiving: (a) Crude oil or petroleum products at a marine terminal
within this state from a waterborne vessel or barge operating on the
navigable waters of this state; and (b) crude oil at a bulk oil
terminal within this state from a tank car. The tax imposed in this
section is levied upon the owner of the crude oil or petroleum products
immediately after receipt of the same into the storage tanks of a
marine or bulk oil terminal from a tank car or waterborne vessel or
barge at the rate of four cents per barrel of crude oil or petroleum
product.
(3) The taxes imposed by this chapter ((shall)) must be collected
by the marine or bulk oil terminal operator from the taxpayer. If any
person charged with collecting the taxes fails to bill the taxpayer for
the taxes, or in the alternative has not notified the taxpayer in
writing of the ((imposition of the)) taxes imposed, or having collected
the taxes, fails to pay them to the department in the manner prescribed
by this chapter, whether such failure is the result of the person's own
acts or the result of acts or conditions beyond the person's control,
he or she ((shall)), nevertheless, ((be)) is personally liable to the
state for the amount of the taxes. Payment of the taxes by the owner
to a marine or bulk oil terminal operator ((shall)) must relieve the
owner from further liability for the taxes.
(4) Taxes collected under this chapter ((shall)) must be held in
trust until paid to the department. Any person collecting the taxes
who appropriates or converts the taxes collected ((shall be)) is guilty
of a gross misdemeanor if the money required to be collected is not
available for payment on the date payment is due. The taxes required
by this chapter to be collected ((shall)) must be stated separately
from other charges made by the marine or bulk oil terminal operator in
any invoice or other statement of account provided to the taxpayer.
(5) If a taxpayer fails to pay the taxes imposed by this chapter to
the person charged with collection of the taxes and the person charged
with collection fails to pay the taxes to the department, the
department may, in its discretion, proceed directly against the
taxpayer for collection of the taxes.
(6) The taxes ((shall be)) are due from the marine or bulk oil
terminal operator, along with reports and returns on forms prescribed
by the department, within twenty-five days after the end of the month
in which the taxable activity occurs.
(7) The amount of taxes, until paid by the taxpayer to the marine
or bulk oil terminal operator or to the department, ((shall))
constitute a debt from the taxpayer to the marine or bulk oil terminal
operator. Any person required to collect the taxes under this chapter
who, with intent to violate the provisions of this chapter, fails or
refuses to do so as required and any taxpayer who refuses to pay any
taxes due under this chapter((, shall be)) is guilty of a misdemeanor
as provided in chapter 9A.20 RCW.
(8) Upon prior approval of the department, the taxpayer may pay the
taxes imposed by this chapter directly to the department. The
department ((shall)) must give its approval for direct payment under
this section whenever it appears, in the department's judgment, that
direct payment will enhance the administration of the taxes imposed
under this chapter. The department ((shall)) must provide by rule for
the issuance of a direct payment certificate to any taxpayer qualifying
for direct payment of the taxes. Good faith acceptance of a direct
payment certificate by a terminal operator ((shall)) must relieve the
marine or bulk oil terminal operator from any liability for the
collection or payment of the taxes imposed under this chapter.
(9) All receipts from the tax imposed in subsection (1) of this
section ((shall)) must be deposited into the state oil spill response
account. All receipts from the tax imposed in subsection (2) of this
section shall be deposited into the oil spill prevention account.
(10) Within forty-five days after the end of each calendar quarter,
the office of financial management ((shall)) must determine the balance
of the oil spill response account as of the last day of that calendar
quarter. Balance determinations by the office of financial management
under this section are final and ((shall)) may not be used to challenge
the validity of any tax imposed under this chapter. The office of
financial management ((shall)) must promptly notify the departments of
revenue and ecology of the account balance once a determination is
made. For each subsequent calendar quarter, the tax imposed by
subsection (1) of this section shall be imposed during the entire
calendar quarter unless:
(a) Tax was imposed under subsection (1) of this section during the
immediately preceding calendar quarter, and the most recent quarterly
balance is more than nine million dollars; or
(b) Tax was not imposed under subsection (1) of this section during
the immediately preceding calendar quarter, and the most recent
quarterly balance is more than eight million dollars.
Sec. 10 RCW 82.23B.030 and 1992 c 73 s 9 are each amended to read
as follows:
The taxes imposed under this chapter ((shall)) only apply to the
first receipt of crude oil or petroleum products at a marine or bulk
oil terminal in this state and not to the later transporting and
subsequent receipt of the same oil or petroleum product, whether in the
form originally received at a marine or bulk oil terminal in this state
or after refining or other processing.
Sec. 11 RCW 82.23B.040 and 1992 c 73 s 10 are each amended to
read as follows:
Credit ((shall)) must be allowed against the taxes imposed under
this chapter for any crude oil or petroleum products received at a
marine or bulk oil terminal and subsequently exported from or sold for
export from the state.
Sec. 12 RCW 88.40.011 and 2007 c 347 s 4 are each amended to read
as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Barge" means a vessel that is not self-propelled.
(2) "Cargo vessel" means a self-propelled ship in commerce, other
than a tank vessel, fishing vessel, or a passenger vessel, of three
hundred or more gross tons.
(3) "Bulk" means material that is stored or transported in a loose,
unpackaged liquid, powder, or granular form capable of being conveyed
by a pipe, bucket, chute, or belt system.
(4) "Covered vessel" means a tank vessel, cargo vessel, or
passenger vessel.
(5) "Department" means the department of ecology.
(6) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology.
(7)(a) "Facility" means any structure, group of structures,
equipment, pipeline, or device, other than a vessel, located on or near
the navigable waters of the state that transfers oil in bulk to or from
any vessel with an oil carrying capacity over two hundred fifty barrels
or pipeline, that is used for producing, storing, handling,
transferring, processing, or transporting oil in bulk.
(b) A facility does not include any: (i) Railroad car, motor
vehicle, or other rolling stock while transporting oil over the
highways or rail lines of this state; (ii) retail motor vehicle motor
fuel outlet; (iii) facility that is operated as part of an exempt
agricultural activity as provided in RCW 82.04.330; (iv) underground
storage tank regulated by the department or a local government under
chapter 90.76 RCW; or (v) marine fuel outlet that does not dispense
more than three thousand gallons of fuel to a ship that is not a
covered vessel, in a single transaction.
(8) "Fishing vessel" means a self-propelled commercial vessel of
three hundred or more gross tons that is used for catching or
processing fish.
(9) "Gross tons" means tonnage as determined by the United States
coast guard under 33 C.F.R. section 138.30.
(10) "Hazardous substances" means any substance listed as of March
1, 2003, in Table 302.4 of 40 C.F.R. Part 302 adopted under section
((101(14))) 102(a) of the federal comprehensive environmental response,
compensation, and liability act of 1980, as amended by P.L. 99-499.
The following are not hazardous substances for purposes of this
chapter:
(a) Wastes listed as F001 through F028 in Table 302.4; and
(b) Wastes listed as K001 through K136 in Table 302.4.
(11) "Navigable waters of the state" means those waters of the
state, and their adjoining shorelines, that are subject to the ebb and
flow of the tide and/or are presently used, have been used in the past,
or may be susceptible for use to transport intrastate, interstate, or
foreign commerce.
(12) "Oil" or "oils" means oil of any kind that is liquid at
((atmospheric temperature)) twenty-five degrees Celsius and one
atmosphere of pressure and any fractionation thereof, including, but
not limited to, crude oil, bitumen, synthetic crude oil, natural gas
well condensate, petroleum, gasoline, fuel oil, diesel oil, biological
oils and blends, oil sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with wastes
other than dredged spoil. Oil does not include any substance listed as
of March 1, 2003, in Table 302.4 of 40 C.F.R. Part 302 adopted under
section ((101(14))) 102(a) of the federal comprehensive environmental
response, compensation, and liability act of 1980, as amended by P.L.
99-499.
(13) "Offshore facility" means any facility located in, on, or
under any of the navigable waters of the state, but does not include a
facility any part of which is located in, on, or under any land of the
state, other than submerged land.
(14) "Onshore facility" means any facility any part of which is
located in, on, or under any land of the state, other than submerged
land, that because of its location, could reasonably be expected to
cause substantial harm to the environment by discharging oil into or on
the navigable waters of the state or the adjoining shorelines.
(15)(a) "Owner or operator" means (i) in the case of a vessel, any
person owning, operating, or chartering by demise, the vessel; (ii) in
the case of an onshore or offshore facility, any person owning or
operating the facility; and (iii) in the case of an abandoned vessel or
onshore or offshore facility, the person who owned or operated the
vessel or facility immediately before its abandonment.
(b) "Operator" does not include any person who owns the land
underlying a facility if the person is not involved in the operations
of the facility.
(16) "Passenger vessel" means a ship of three hundred or more gross
tons with a fuel capacity of at least six thousand gallons carrying
passengers for compensation.
(17) "Ship" means any boat, ship, vessel, barge, or other floating
craft of any kind.
(18) "Spill" means an unauthorized discharge of oil into the waters
of the state.
(19) "Tank vessel" means a ship that is constructed or adapted to
carry, or that carries, oil in bulk as cargo or cargo residue, and
that:
(a) Operates on the waters of the state; or
(b) Transfers oil in a port or place subject to the jurisdiction of
this state.
(20) "Waters of the state" includes lakes, rivers, ponds, streams,
inland waters, underground water, salt waters, estuaries, tidal flats,
beaches and lands adjoining the seacoast of the state, sewers, and all
other surface waters and watercourses within the jurisdiction of the
state of Washington.
Sec. 13 RCW 88.46.010 and 2011 c 122 s 1 are each reenacted and
amended to read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Best achievable protection" means the highest level of
protection that can be achieved through the use of the best achievable
technology and those staffing levels, training procedures, and
operational methods that provide the greatest degree of protection
achievable. The director's determination of best achievable protection
shall be guided by the critical need to protect the state's natural
resources and waters, while considering:
(a) The additional protection provided by the measures;
(b) The technological achievability of the measures; and
(c) The cost of the measures.
(2)(a) "Best achievable technology" means the technology that
provides the greatest degree of protection taking into consideration:
(i) Processes that are being developed, or could feasibly be
developed, given overall reasonable expenditures on research and
development; and
(ii) Processes that are currently in use.
(b) In determining what is best achievable technology, the director
shall consider the effectiveness, engineering feasibility, and
commercial availability of the technology.
(3) "Bulk" means material that is stored or transported in a loose,
unpackaged liquid, powder, or granular form capable of being conveyed
by a pipe, bucket, chute, or belt system.
(4) "Cargo vessel" means a self-propelled ship in commerce, other
than a tank vessel or a passenger vessel, of three hundred or more
gross tons, including but not limited to, commercial fish processing
vessels and freighters.
(5) "Covered vessel" means a tank vessel, cargo vessel, or
passenger vessel.
(6) "Department" means the department of ecology.
(7) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology.
(8) "Discharge" means any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring,
emitting, emptying, or dumping.
(9)(a) "Facility" means any structure, group of structures,
equipment, pipeline, or device, other than a vessel, located on or near
the navigable waters of the state that transfers oil in bulk to or from
a tank vessel or pipeline, that is used for producing, storing,
handling, transferring, processing, or transporting oil in bulk.
(b) A facility does not include any: (i) Railroad car, motor
vehicle, or other rolling stock while transporting oil over the
highways or rail lines of this state; (ii) retail motor vehicle motor
fuel outlet; (iii) facility that is operated as part of an exempt
agricultural activity as provided in RCW 82.04.330; (iv) underground
storage tank regulated by the department or a local government under
chapter 90.76 RCW; or (v) marine fuel outlet that does not dispense
more than three thousand gallons of fuel to a ship that is not a
covered vessel, in a single transaction.
(10) "Marine facility" means any facility used for tank vessel
wharfage or anchorage, including any equipment used for the purpose of
handling or transferring oil in bulk to or from a tank vessel.
(11) "Navigable waters of the state" means those waters of the
state, and their adjoining shorelines, that are subject to the ebb and
flow of the tide and/or are presently used, have been used in the past,
or may be susceptible for use to transport intrastate, interstate, or
foreign commerce.
(12) "Offshore facility" means any facility located in, on, or
under any of the navigable waters of the state, but does not include a
facility any part of which is located in, on, or under any land of the
state, other than submerged land. "Offshore facility" does not include
a marine facility.
(13) "Oil" or "oils" means oil of any kind that is liquid at
((atmospheric temperature)) twenty-five degrees Celsius and one
atmosphere of pressure and any fractionation thereof, including, but
not limited to, crude oil, bitumen, synthetic crude oil, natural gas
well condensate, petroleum, gasoline, fuel oil, diesel oil, biological
oils and blends, oil sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with wastes
other than dredged spoil. Oil does not include any substance listed in
Table 302.4 of 40 C.F.R. Part 302 adopted August 14, 1989, under
section ((101(14))) 102(a) of the federal comprehensive environmental
response, compensation, and liability act of 1980, as amended by P.L.
99-499.
(14) "Onshore facility" means any facility any part of which is
located in, on, or under any land of the state, other than submerged
land, that because of its location, could reasonably be expected to
cause substantial harm to the environment by discharging oil into or on
the navigable waters of the state or the adjoining shorelines.
(15)(a) "Owner or operator" means (i) in the case of a vessel, any
person owning, operating, or chartering by demise, the vessel; (ii) in
the case of an onshore or offshore facility, any person owning or
operating the facility; and (iii) in the case of an abandoned vessel or
onshore or offshore facility, the person who owned or operated the
vessel or facility immediately before its abandonment.
(b) "Operator" does not include any person who owns the land
underlying a facility if the person is not involved in the operations
of the facility.
(16) "Passenger vessel" means a ship of three hundred or more gross
tons with a fuel capacity of at least six thousand gallons carrying
passengers for compensation.
(17) "Person" means any political subdivision, government agency,
municipality, industry, public or private corporation, copartnership,
association, firm, individual, or any other entity whatsoever.
(18) "Race Rocks light" means the nautical landmark located
southwest of the city of Victoria, British Columbia.
(19) "Regional vessels of opportunity response group" means a group
of nondedicated vessels participating in a vessels of opportunity
response system to respond when needed and available to spills in a
defined geographic area.
(20) "Severe weather conditions" means observed nautical conditions
with sustained winds measured at forty knots and wave heights measured
between twelve and eighteen feet.
(21) "Ship" means any boat, ship, vessel, barge, or other floating
craft of any kind.
(22) "Spill" means an unauthorized discharge of oil into the waters
of the state.
(23) "Strait of Juan de Fuca" means waters off the northern coast
of the Olympic Peninsula seaward of a line drawn from New Dungeness
light in Clallam county to Discovery Island light on Vancouver Island,
British Columbia, Canada.
(24) "Tank vessel" means a ship that is constructed or adapted to
carry, or that carries, oil in bulk as cargo or cargo residue, and
that:
(a) Operates on the waters of the state; or
(b) Transfers oil in a port or place subject to the jurisdiction of
this state.
(25) "Umbrella plan holder" means a nonprofit corporation
established consistent with this chapter for the purposes of providing
oil spill response and contingency plan coverage.
(26) "Vessel emergency" means a substantial threat of pollution
originating from a covered vessel, including loss or serious
degradation of propulsion, steering, means of navigation, primary
electrical generating capability, and seakeeping capability.
(27) "Vessels of opportunity response system" means nondedicated
boats and operators, including fishing and other vessels, that are
under contract with and equipped by contingency plan holders to assist
with oil spill response activities, including on-water oil recovery in
the near shore environment and the placement of oil spill containment
booms to protect sensitive habitats.
(28) "Volunteer coordination system" means an oil spill response
system that, before a spill occurs, prepares for the coordination of
volunteers to assist with appropriate oil spill response activities,
which may include shoreline protection and cleanup, wildlife recovery,
field observation, light construction, facility maintenance, donations
management, clerical support, and other aspects of a spill response.
(29) "Waters of the state" includes lakes, rivers, ponds, streams,
inland waters, underground water, salt waters, estuaries, tidal flats,
beaches and lands adjoining the seacoast of the state, sewers, and all
other surface waters and watercourses within the jurisdiction of the
state of Washington.
(30) "Worst case spill" means: (a) In the case of a vessel, a
spill of the entire cargo and fuel of the vessel complicated by adverse
weather conditions; and (b) in the case of an onshore or offshore
facility, the largest foreseeable spill in adverse weather conditions.
Sec. 14 RCW 90.56.010 and 2007 c 347 s 6 are each amended to read
as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Best achievable protection" means the highest level of
protection that can be achieved through the use of the best achievable
technology and those staffing levels, training procedures, and
operational methods that provide the greatest degree of protection
achievable. The director's determination of best achievable protection
shall be guided by the critical need to protect the state's natural
resources and waters, while considering (a) the additional protection
provided by the measures; (b) the technological achievability of the
measures; and (c) the cost of the measures.
(2) "Best achievable technology" means the technology that provides
the greatest degree of protection taking into consideration (a)
processes that are being developed, or could feasibly be developed,
given overall reasonable expenditures on research and development, and
(b) processes that are currently in use. In determining what is best
achievable technology, the director shall consider the effectiveness,
engineering feasibility, and commercial availability of the technology.
(3) "Board" means the pollution control hearings board.
(4) "Cargo vessel" means a self-propelled ship in commerce, other
than a tank vessel or a passenger vessel, three hundred or more gross
tons, including but not limited to, commercial fish processing vessels
and freighters.
(5) "Bulk" means material that is stored or transported in a loose,
unpackaged liquid, powder, or granular form capable of being conveyed
by a pipe, bucket, chute, or belt system.
(6) "Committee" means the preassessment screening committee
established under RCW 90.48.368.
(7) "Covered vessel" means a tank vessel, cargo vessel, or
passenger vessel.
(8) "Department" means the department of ecology.
(9) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology.
(10) "Discharge" means any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring,
emitting, emptying, or dumping.
(11)(a) "Facility" means any structure, group of structures,
equipment, pipeline, or device, other than a vessel, located on or near
the navigable waters of the state that transfers oil in bulk to or from
a tank vessel or pipeline, that is used for producing, storing,
handling, transferring, processing, or transporting oil in bulk.
(b) A facility does not include any: (i) Railroad car, motor
vehicle, or other rolling stock while transporting oil over the
highways or rail lines of this state; (ii) underground storage tank
regulated by the department or a local government under chapter 90.76
RCW; (iii) motor vehicle motor fuel outlet; (iv) facility that is
operated as part of an exempt agricultural activity as provided in RCW
82.04.330; or (v) marine fuel outlet that does not dispense more than
three thousand gallons of fuel to a ship that is not a covered vessel,
in a single transaction.
(12) "Fund" means the state coastal protection fund as provided in
RCW 90.48.390 and 90.48.400.
(13) "Having control over oil" shall include but not be limited to
any person using, storing, or transporting oil immediately prior to
entry of such oil into the waters of the state, and shall specifically
include carriers and bailees of such oil.
(14) "Marine facility" means any facility used for tank vessel
wharfage or anchorage, including any equipment used for the purpose of
handling or transferring oil in bulk to or from a tank vessel.
(15) "Navigable waters of the state" means those waters of the
state, and their adjoining shorelines, that are subject to the ebb and
flow of the tide and/or are presently used, have been used in the past,
or may be susceptible for use to transport intrastate, interstate, or
foreign commerce.
(16) "Necessary expenses" means the expenses incurred by the
department and assisting state agencies for (a) investigating the
source of the discharge; (b) investigating the extent of the
environmental damage caused by the discharge; (c) conducting actions
necessary to clean up the discharge; (d) conducting predamage and
damage assessment studies; and (e) enforcing the provisions of this
chapter and collecting for damages caused by a discharge.
(17) "Oil" or "oils" means oil of any kind that is liquid at
((atmospheric temperature)) twenty-five degrees Celsius and one
atmosphere of pressure and any fractionation thereof, including, but
not limited to, crude oil, bitumen, synthetic crude oil, natural gas
well condensate, petroleum, gasoline, fuel oil, diesel oil, biological
oils and blends, oil sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with wastes
other than dredged spoil. Oil does not include any substance listed in
Table 302.4 of 40 C.F.R. Part 302 adopted August 14, 1989, under
section ((101(14))) 102(a) of the federal comprehensive environmental
response, compensation, and liability act of 1980, as amended by P.L.
99-499.
(18) "Offshore facility" means any facility located in, on, or
under any of the navigable waters of the state, but does not include a
facility any part of which is located in, on, or under any land of the
state, other than submerged land.
(19) "Onshore facility" means any facility any part of which is
located in, on, or under any land of the state, other than submerged
land, that because of its location, could reasonably be expected to
cause substantial harm to the environment by discharging oil into or on
the navigable waters of the state or the adjoining shorelines.
(20)(a) "Owner or operator" means (i) in the case of a vessel, any
person owning, operating, or chartering by demise, the vessel; (ii) in
the case of an onshore or offshore facility, any person owning or
operating the facility; and (iii) in the case of an abandoned vessel or
onshore or offshore facility, the person who owned or operated the
vessel or facility immediately before its abandonment.
(b) "Operator" does not include any person who owns the land
underlying a facility if the person is not involved in the operations
of the facility.
(21) "Passenger vessel" means a ship of three hundred or more gross
tons with a fuel capacity of at least six thousand gallons carrying
passengers for compensation.
(22) "Person" means any political subdivision, government agency,
municipality, industry, public or private corporation, copartnership,
association, firm, individual, or any other entity whatsoever.
(23) "Ship" means any boat, ship, vessel, barge, or other floating
craft of any kind.
(24) "Spill" means an unauthorized discharge of oil or hazardous
substances into the waters of the state.
(25) "Tank vessel" means a ship that is constructed or adapted to
carry, or that carries, oil in bulk as cargo or cargo residue, and
that:
(a) Operates on the waters of the state; or
(b) Transfers oil in a port or place subject to the jurisdiction of
this state.
(26) "Waters of the state" includes lakes, rivers, ponds, streams,
inland waters, underground water, salt waters, estuaries, tidal flats,
beaches and lands adjoining the seacoast of the state, sewers, and all
other surface waters and watercourses within the jurisdiction of the
state of Washington.
(27) "Worst case spill" means: (a) In the case of a vessel, a
spill of the entire cargo and fuel of the vessel complicated by adverse
weather conditions; and (b) in the case of an onshore or offshore
facility, the largest foreseeable spill in adverse weather conditions.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 15 If any provision of this act or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other
persons or circumstances is not affected.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 16 This act may be known and cited as the
spill prevention and response act."
SSB 6567 -
By Senator
On page 1, line 2 of the title, after "rail;" strike the remainder of the title and insert "amending RCW 82.23B.010, 82.23B.020, 82.23B.030, 82.23B.040, 88.40.011, and 90.56.010; reenacting and amending RCW 88.46.010; adding new sections to chapter 90.56 RCW; and creating new sections."
EFFECT: Adds studies of rail and waterborne transport of crude
oil;
Requires Ecology to contract out completion of at least 50% of
geographic response plans;
Requires facilities receiving crude oil by rail to report, on a
monthly basis, volume and type and origin;
Provides confidentiality procedures for facilities reporting crude
oil volume and type;
Requires Ecology, in consultation with the Senate EET Committee and
House Environment Committee to hold a work session and a regional
meeting, coinciding with PNWER annual summit, on transportation of
liquid bulk crude in the Pacific Northwest region;
Requires Ecology to provide grants to emergency first responders
for oil spill response equipment and resources;
Applies the barrel tax to crude oil by rail; and
Amends the definition of "oil" and "oils" to include bitumen,
synthetic crude, etc., for the purposes of oil spill prevention and
response, vessel oil spill and response, and financial responsibilities
of the transport of petroleum statutes.