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Regulatory Development 51
provide financial assistance and allow states to participate in specific aspects of the program (e.g.,
assisting in permit evaluation, conducting inspections), while working to achieve full authorization
by the EPA (McCarthy and Tiemann, no date).

3.2.6 UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANK MANAGEMENT
At the same time when regulators and the public were expressing concerns regarding environmen-
tal contamination from improper waste management practices, concerns were heightened about the
underground storage of fuels and hazardous substances. To address the issue of leaking under-
ground storage tanks (USTs), Congress established a leak prevention, detection, and cleanup pro-
gram through the 1984 RCRA amendments and the 1986 Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act (SARA).
The RCRA Subtitle I UST program regulates underground tanks that store either petroleum or
hazardous substances. The UST regulations govern tank design, construction, installation, opera-
tion, release detection, release response, corrective action, closure, and financial responsibility.
Similar to RCRA Subtitle C, Subtitle I contains provisions that allow the EPA to authorize state
government implementation and enforcement of the UST regulatory program.
The provisions of Subtitle I created a Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Trust Fund
to finance the clean-up of leaks from petroleum USTs in cases where the UST owner or operator
does not remediate a site or when a release from the tank requires emergency response. The Trust
Fund provides money for the EPA to administer the program and for states to direct the clean-up
operations, take enforcement actions, and conduct clean-ups when necessary. The money to support
the fund is obtained via a 0.1 cent-per-gallon federal tax on motor vehicle fuels and other petroleum
products.
UST management is not covered in this book.

3.2.7 AMENDMENTS TO RCRA
RCRA has been amended nine times. Some of the amendments have been relatively minor, for
example those involving clarification to portions of the law. The most significant amendments came
into effect in 1980, 1984, and 1992.

3.2.7.1 The 1980 Amendments
The RCRA Amendments of 1980 provided the U.S. EPA with greater enforcement capabilities to
handle illegal dumpers of hazardous waste. Funds were authorized to conduct an inventory of haz-
ardous waste sites, and RCRA authorizations for appropriations were extended through 1982. Also
under the 1980 amendments, the EPA’s authority to regulate certain high-volume, low-hazard
wastes (initially designated “special wastes”) was restricted.

3.2.7.2 The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability
Act of 1980
Public law 96–510, 42 U.S.C. Article 9601, The Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980 was promulgated in order to address the man-
agement of uncontrolled and abandoned hazardous waste sites in a timely fashion. CERCLA, com-
monly known as Superfund, imposed a tax on chemical and petroleum industries and provided
broad federal authority to respond directly to releases or threatened releases of hazardous sub-
stances that may endanger public health or the environment. Since CERCLA’s creation, several bil-
lion dollars in taxes have been collected and held in a trust fund for cleaning up the nation’s most
hazardous sites. Of great practical importance, CERCLA established liability criteria for persons or
facilities responsible for the disposal and release of hazardous waste at affected sites.