Hazardous Chemical Fees

PURPOSE: This rule describes the hazardous chemical fee system, how to calculate these fees, and when and where to submit them. (1) Fees for Tier Two forms (see 11 CSR 10-11.220) are payable at the time Tier Two forms are due, each March 1 for the previous calendar year. (A) Fees shall be calculated as described in this section. It shall be the employer’s responsibility to calculate the required fees on the fee calculation worksheet which can be accessed on the Internet at www.sema.state.mo.us/mercc.htm and to remit them to the Missouri Emergency Response Commission (MERC) at PO Box 3133, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Family farm operations and local government facilities are exempt from paying fees under this chapter. (B) Fees that are owed are due at the MERC or postmarked no later than March 1 each year along with the Tier Two forms and the fee calculation worksheet. A late charge of ten percent (10%) of the fees owed will be assessed for fees that are not paid on time. An additional one percent (1%) per month of fees owed plus late charges will also be assessed for late submittal of fees. (C) Owners or operators of petroleum retail facilities shall pay fifty dollars ($50) for each facility. (D) Owners or operators of other facilities shall pay one hundred dollars ($100) for up to three (3) reportable hazardous chemicals listed on the Tier Two form and twenty dollars ($20) for each additional reportable hazardous chemical in excess of three (3). (E) For each calendar year, fees shall be calculated based on each hazardous chemical on hand at any one (1) time at a facility in excess of ten thousand pounds (10,000 lbs.) or for extremely hazardous substances on hand at any one (1) time in excess of five hundred pounds (500 lbs.) or the threshold planning quantity, whichever is less, or for explosives or blasting agents on hand at any one (1) time in excess of one hundred pounds (100 lbs.). (F) For the purpose of calculating fees, all grades of gasoline are considered to be one (1) product; all grades of heating oils, diesel fuels, kerosenes, naphthas, aviation turbine fuel, and all other heavy distillate products except for grades of gasoline are considered to be one (1) product, and all varieties of motor lubricating oil are considered to be one (1) product. (2) Petroleum-Related Employers. (A) Any employer that wants to be considered a petroleumrelated employer must certify to the commission that more than fifty percent (50%) of the employer’s hazardous chemical revenue is from the sale, delivery, or transport of petroleum products. This certification shall be in writing, signed by an officer of the company and shall pertain to the calendar year for which Tier Two forms are filed. The commission may require that additional documentation be provided on request to establish that an employer is a petroleum-related employer. (B) An employer whose primary hazardous chemical business is petroleum related and who has paid federal hazardous materials transportation fees during the calendar year for which the Tier Two form is filed may deduct the amount of the transportation fee from the amount owed to MERC. (C) In order to deduct transportation fees from fees otherwise owed to MERC, petroleum-related employers shall provide documentation with their Tier Two forms on the amount of transportation fees paid to the United States Department of Transportation. The transportation fees may be deducted only for the same calendar year that the Tier Two forms cover. (D) If the federal transportation fees exceed the fees that would otherwise be owed to MERC, no fees shall be required to be paid to the MERC. (E) In order to deduct federal transportation fees from those owed to the commission, a petroleum-related employer shall file all his/her Tier Two forms together, along with a list of the employer’s facilities by county. Also, that employer shall calculate and list the fees that would be paid for each facility, total those fees and subtract the federal transportation fee from that total. (3) Any one employer shall not be required to pay more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per year in fees to MERC under sections (1)–(5) of this rule. (A) Any employer requesting the use of this ten thousand dollar ($10,000)-cap on fees shall file all of his/her Tier Two forms together along with a list of each of the employer’s facilities by county. (B) The employer also shall calculate and list the fee that would apply to each facility in the absence of the ten thousand dollar ($10,000)-cap. (4) Employers, at their discretion, may list hazardous chemicals on their Tier Two form for which reporting is not required. The employer shall designate which chemicals are not required to be reported and shall not be required to pay fees for these chemicals. (5) Employers engaged in transporting hazardous chemicals by pipeline, except local gas distribution companies regulated by the Missouri Public Service Commission, shall pay a fee of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for each county in which they operate. (A) These fees are due March 1 each year for pipelines operated during the previous calendar year. (B) Along with the fees, an employer reporting under this section shall list the counties in which they operated during the previous calendar year. (C) A late charge of ten percent (10%) of the fees owed under this section will be assessed for fees that are not paid on time. An additional one percent (1%) per month of fees owed plus late charges also will be assessed for late submittal of fees. (6) Fees collected by the department and all funds provided to local emergency planning committees shall be used for chemical emergency preparedness purposes as outlined in sections 292.600 to 292.625, RSMo, and the federal act, including: (A) Contingency planning for chemical releases; (B) Exercising, evaluating, and distributing plans; (C) Providing training related to chemical emergency preparedness and prevention of chemical accidents; (D) Identifying facilities required to report; (E) Processing the information submitted by facilities and making it available to the public; (F) Receiving and handling emergency notifications of chemical releases; (G) Operating a local emergency planning committee; (H) Providing public notice of chemical preparedness activities. (7) Local emergency planning committees receiving funds under this section may combine such funds with other local emergency planning committees to further the purposes of sections 292.600 to 292.625, RSMo, or the federal act. (8) The commission shall establish criteria and guidance on how funds received by local emergency planning committees may be used. MANAGEMENT AGENCY (9) No funds provided to the local emergency planning committees under this program shall be used for salaries for full-time employee. AUTHORITY: section 292.613, RSMo 2016.* This rule previously filed as 11 CSR 40-4.050, 10 CSR 24-5.010, and 11 CSR 10-11.250. Emergency rule filed Dec. 2, 1992, effective Jan. 1, 1993, expired April 30, 1993. Original rule filed Oct. 5, 1992, effective April 8, 1993. Amended: Filed Nov. 5, 1993, effective June 6, 1994. Changed to 11 CSR 10-11.250. Amended: Filed Dec. 19, 2001, effective June 30, 2002. Moved to 11 CSR 20-1.250, effective Dec. 8, 2022. *Original authority: 292.613, RSMo 1988, amended 1993, 1995.