Section 49-17-421 - Annual tank regulatory fee; computation of fee(1) After receiving the annual report and recommendation of the Underground Storage Tank (UST) Advisory Council, the commission may assess and collect an annual tank regulatory fee in an amount sufficient to administer Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435, but not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) per tank. The fee, as set by the commission, shall be assessed per tank per year and shall be collected from the owner of each underground storage tank available for use in Mississippi on July 1, 1988, or brought into use or available for use after that date, as provided in the Mississippi Underground Storage Tank Act of 1988 (Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435). The fee assessed under this section is a debt due by the owner of each tank in use in Mississippi on July 1, 1988, or brought into use after that date.(2) The commission shall establish the amount of the tank regulatory fee to cover the costs of the Underground Storage Tank Program. The fee for each state fiscal year shall be set by order of the commission, which shall include: (a) A receipt of the report and recommendations of the UST Advisory Council, and(b) A public notice to allow the public a period of at least thirty (30) days to provide comments regarding the underground storage tank fee report and recommendation, or to request a public hearing in accordance with Section 49-17-29(4)(a). The department may conduct a public hearing on the tank regulatory fee when a significant level of public interest exists or when warranted by other factors. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (2), the commission may proceed with entry of the order if the UST Advisory Council fails to submit its report in a timely manner.
The tank regulatory fee shall be due July 1 of each year, and if any part of the fee is not paid within thirty (30) days after the due date, a penalty of fifty percent (50%) of the amount due shall accrue at once and be added to the fee, unless the owner of the underground storage tank demonstrates to the commission that the failure to make timely payment was unavoidable due to financial hardship or otherwise beyond the control of the owner.
Monies collected under this section shall be deposited in a special fund which is created in the State Treasury. Unexpended amounts remaining in the special fund at the end of the fiscal year shall not lapse into the General Fund and any interest earned on amounts in the special fund shall be credited to the special fund by the Treasurer. The fund may receive monies from any available public or private source, including, but not limited to, the fund, collection of fees, interest, grants, taxes, public or private donations and judicial actions. Monies in this special fund shall be expended by annual appropriation approved by the Legislature to administer Sections 49-17-401 through 49-17-435.
Laws, 1988, ch. 547, § 11; Laws, 1993, ch. 470, § 2; Laws, 1996, ch. 334, § 1, eff. 7/1/1996.Amended by Laws, 2022, ch. 460, SB 2158,§ 3, eff. 4/18/2022.Amended by Laws, 2018, ch. 397, HB 813,§ 2, eff. 7/1/2018.