(a)  The secretary shall expend the funds from the Cleanup Loans and Environmental Assistance to Neighborhoods Account established pursuant to Section 25395.20 that are made available in the annual Budget Act for expenditure to subsidize the cost of the environmental insurance products offered by the insurance company selected pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 25395.41, in accordance with subdivision (b).

(b)  The secretary shall provide the following subsidies, in accordance with the application process specified in Section 25395.43, from the funds made available pursuant to subdivision (a):

(1)  Up to 50 percent of the cost of the premiums for the environmental insurance products provided pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 25395.41.

(2)  (A)  Up to 80 percent of the self-insured retention amount of the cost overrun insurance provided pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 25395.41, up to a maximum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).

(B)  The secretary may expend the funds available to pay a portion of the self-insured retention amount of the cost overrun insurance provided pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 25395.41 only under all of the following conditions:

(i)  The insured demonstrates that it exercised reasonably prudent business judgment in insuring the cost overrun, consistent with an attempt to minimize the incurred costs, and incurred the costs through no fault of its own.

(ii)  The insured pays, at a minimum, the first 20 percent of the self-insured retention amount.

(iii)  The secretary determines that the amount of the payment is in the best interests of the state, taking into account the environmental and economic benefits of the specified project, as compared to the benefit of conserving funds for assistance at other sites.

(Added by Stats. 2001, Ch. 549, Sec. 4. Effective January 1, 2002.)