Sec. 1. 38 MRSA §1318-B, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1997, c. 364, §39, is further amended to read:

1. Reporting. Except as provided in this subsection, the responsible party or person causing the discharge shall report a discharge that poses a potential threat to human health or the environment immediately to the Department of Public Safety, which shall immediately notify the Commissioner of Environmental Protection and the public safety agency of the municipality in which the discharge takes place. Upon submission to the commissioner of a written spill prevention control and clean-up plan that meets the criteria of section 1318-C, subsection 1, a discharge containing a hazardous matter that is covered by the plan must be reported only if the discharge equals or exceeds the applicable reportable quantity for that particular hazardous matter as specified in Code of Federal Regulations, Title 40, Parts 302.4, 302.5 and 302.6 (b)(1), revised as of July 1, 1996, or when the discharge extends or spreads beyond the area on the site covered by the spill prevention control and clean-up plan.

The department shall adopt rules to define when a responsible party or person__must report a discharge pursuant to this subsection.__These rules are routine technical rules pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter II-A.

SUMMARY

This bill requires that a party or person who is responsible for causing a discharge of hazardous matter report the discharge immediately to the Department of Public Safety only if the discharge poses a potential threat to human health or the environment. Under current law, a responsible party or person must report any discharge of hazardous matter into the waters of the State, onto the land or into the ambient air.