Bill No.: SF0019                  Drafter:  LGC

LSO No.:  08LSO-0032              Effective Date:

Enrolled Act No.:

Chapter No.:

Prime Sponsor:     Senator Fecht

Catch Title:       Clandestine drug laboratories-remediation.

Subject:                Provides a process for remediation of property which housed a clandestine laboratory.

Summary/Major Elements:

· The act includes discovery of a clandestine laboratory operation in the types of incidents that may be responded to under the state emergency response statutes.  The act requires the state emergency response commission to promulgate rules establishing standards for determining a site uninhabitable, determining the extent of contamination and determining what remediation is required to render a former clandestine laboratory operation site to be safe for reentry.

· The act gives an incident commander authority to order a clandestine laboratory site be declared uninhabitable and provides a process by which the owner of the land may have a hearing in district court to determine if the order is appropriate.

· The act provides that a civil action may be taken to recover expenses for remediation of a clandestine laboratory site.  The local authority must first make a claim against the party responsible for the operation then may make a claim for additional expenses against the landowner.  A landowner who did not know or could not have known with reasonable diligence about the operation may only be liable for up to 1% of the fair market value of the building, structure or land declared uninhabitable.  The amount allowed against the landowner constitutes a lien against the property.  If the cost of the remediation exceeds amounts awarded from the operator and the landowner, the emergency responder may apply for funds from legislative appropriations returned to the division of victims services under W.S. 1-40-118(g)(i)(C).  If the emergency responder still has unawarded expenses at that time they may apply to be reimbursed through a special account created by the act.

· The act appropriates $150,000 to the special account for reimbursement of remediation expenses.

Comment:  Final action on this bill was not taken at the time this summary was prepared.  Should changes be made to the bill upon final passage, an updated summary will be transmitted to all legislators.