(a) There is established on the books of the Treasurer of State, the Auditor of State, and the Chief Fiscal Officer of the State a fund to be known as the "Petroleum Storage Tank Trust Fund", hereinafter referred to as the "fund".

(b) The fund will be administered by the Director of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, who shall make disbursements from the fund as authorized by this subchapter.

(c) The fund shall consist of gifts, grants, donations, and such other funds as may be made available by the General Assembly, including all interest earned upon money deposited into the fund, fees assessed under this subchapter, any moneys recovered by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, the proceeds of bonds issued by the Arkansas Development Finance Authority for the benefit of the fund, and any other moneys legally designated for the fund.

(d) Moneys in the fund may be expended by the director solely for the following purposes, as limited by the provisions of subsection (e) of this section:

(1) The state share mandated by the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976;

(2) To pay costs incurred by the Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission, the director, the Attorney General, or the Advisory Committee on Petroleum Storage Tanks in the performance of their duties under this subchapter;

(3) To pay reimbursement to owners and operators for taking corrective action or to pay third parties for compensatory damages caused by accidental releases from qualified storage tanks;

(4) To pay reasonable and necessary costs and expenses of the department for taking corrective action caused by accidental releases from a storage tank of unknown ownership or when corrective action is not commenced by the owner or operator in a timely manner;

(5)

(A) To reimburse owners and operators in the vicinity of the release for performing short-term testing or monitoring which is in addition to that required by the department's rules and regulations if the department has a reasonable basis for believing that the petroleum underground storage tank or tanks may be the source of the release.

(B) The owners and operators of petroleum underground storage tanks, including out-of-service and nonoperational tanks, not found to be the source of the release and who cooperate with the department may apply to the fund for reimbursement for such testing and monitoring costs, not including lost managerial time or loss of revenues because of temporary business closure; and

(6) To reimburse a consultant under § 8-7-907(k) for the purchase of equipment needed to undertake corrective action.

(e) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subchapter, the director, upon finding that a release may present an imminent and substantial hazard to the health of persons or to the environment and that an emergency exists requiring immediate action to protect the public health and welfare or the environment, may, without receiving prior advice from the committee, issue an order reciting the existence of such an imminent hazard and emergency and ordering a disbursement or reimbursement of up to fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) from the fund so that such action may be taken as he or she determines to be necessary to protect the health of such persons or the environment and to meet the emergency.

(f)

(1) No expenditure from the fund shall be made for expenses for retrofitting or replacement of petroleum storage tanks.

(2) No expenditure from the fund pursuant to subdivisions (d)(3) and (5) of this section shall be made for attorney's fees.

(g) The liability or obligation of the fund is not the liability or obligation of the State of Arkansas. However, this subsection shall not be construed as relieving the fund of any liability or obligation prescribed in this subchapter upon the entry of a valid court order or valid final order of the Arkansas State Claims Commission establishing a judgment against any state agency, board, department, or commission or where a settlement agreement has been reached arising from third-party claims against any state agency, board, department, or commission where the state agency, board, department, or commission is determined to be the owner or operator.

(h) Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed to abrogate or waive the provisions of Arkansas Constitution, Article 5, § 20.

(i)

(1) An owner or operator who considers himself or herself injured in his or her business, person, or property by a final decision of the director or the director's delegatee under this subchapter may appeal the decision to the Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission within thirty (30) days after the date of the final decision of the director or the director's delegatee.

(2) The procedures of the department and the Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission for issuance of rules and regulations, conduct of hearings, notice, power of subpoena, right of appeal, presumptions, finality of actions, and related matters shall be as provided in §§ 8-4-202, 8-4-210 -- 8-4-214, and 8-4-218 -- 8-4-229, and in rules and regulations applicable to administrative procedures of the department and the Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission to the extent they are not in conflict with the provisions of this subchapter.