The cash
balance in the trust fund is still far below what is needed to fully
finance all ongoing cleanups. Though the Fund has a current balance
of more than $40 million, its current liabilities exceed $94 million.
The Trustees believe future revenues will be sufficient to cover the
$54 million deficit, but will continue to monitor the trust fund's
finances closely.
Claims
costs have been slightly below projections for FY03, which allowed
the Board to commit funds to additional projects without risking the
future solvency of the trust fund. The Board again put new projects
on hold, and will review the number of claims on the waiting list
and the Fund's financial status at each meeting.
The Board's
careful management and regular review of claim costs and projections
has succeeded in avoiding the cash flow crises experienced by some
other states' tank funds, while allowing cleanups of old tank sites
to proceed within a reasonable timeframe. The Board continues to view
its commitment to its policyholders as a higher priority than cleanup
of old tank sites, and no policyholder's claim has ever been delayed.
The waiting list is only for old tank sites that were never insured.
Actuarial
Study
An actuarial
study commissioned by the PSTIF Board of Trustees has confirmed that
current and projected claims costs are reasonable. Matthews Actuarial
prepared the report, which will be presented to the Board at its March
26 meeting. It concludes case reserving practices are consistent and
claim reserve estimates are realistic.
The report
concludes there is a 52% chance of PSTIF's funds being depleted before
2010. Other outcomes are also possible; the report presents probabilities
for these also. The text of
the report may be accessed after March 26 on the PSTIF web
site, www.pstif.org. A complete copy is available from the PSTIF office
for $29, which is the cost for copying.
Legislative
Activity
The
following bills which could affect PSTIF are under consideration by
the Missouri General Assembly:
SB414
(Steelman) - Amends state Sunshine Law by increasing fines for violations
and requiring roll call on every vote of public bodies, including
the PSTIF Board.
SS for
SCS for SB36 (Klindt) - Requires that before any new regulations which
"prescribe environmental conditions or standards" are promulgated,
a regulatory impact report must be prepared by DNR staff. The bill
applies to DNR, various environmental commissions, and the PSTIF Board
of Trustees. The sponsor has indicated he does not think the bill
would impact PSTIF, since the PSTIF Board of Trustees does not issue
environmental regulations, but the PSTIF Board is still named in the
bill. The bill has passed the Senate and is under consideration in
the House.
A similar
bill, HB295 (Sander), was filed in the House of Representatives.
SB334
(Goode) - Transfers rule-making authority for USTs from the Clean
Water Commission to the Hazardous Waste Commission.
SB398
(Griesheimer) - Abolishes several DNR commissions and replaces them
with one Environmental Commission. The PSTIF Board is not abolished,
but the bill apparently would eliminate the PSTIF Board's opportunity
to hear and resolve claim disputes, and would instead require that
dissatisfied Fund participants and beneficiaries hire a lawyer to
present their appeal to the new Commission.
SB654
(Steelman) -- Requires that persons who repair, remove or close in
place underground storage tanks have insurance or a bond in the amount
of $1 million, and that proof of such be filed with the Department
of Agriculture's Division of Weights and Measures.
SB675
(Gross) - Abolishes PSTIF and all other special state funds and transfers
their fund balances to general revenue. Does not eliminate the "original
purpose established by law" for any program, so apparently the state
would continue to insure tanks and pay for cleanups, but the money
would come from general revenue.
Copies
of the bills and status reports on legislative activity can be found
at www.senate.state.mo.us/
or www.house.state.mo.us/.
Leak
Detection Seminar
A seminar
on leak detection methods will be offered in Kansas City on June 3
& 4, sponsored by the Mid America Regional Council and the DNR. A
wide range of methods and devices will be discussed, including automatic
tank gauges, SIR, and line leak detectors. Speakers include Ken Wilcox
& Associates, Simmons, and Tanknology. The class size is limited;
interested persons should contact Marty Vodicka, DNR, 816-622-7009.
New
Officers Elected
At
its January meeting, the Board of Trustees elected Bob Abernathy to
serve as chairman and Judith Baker to serve as vice-chairman.
Mr. Abernathy
has served as a PSTIF trustee since the Board was formed in 1997,
and as vice-chairman of the Board for 4.5 years. He is owner of Briggs
and Tillman, a petroleum distributing company in Clinton, Missouri.
Bob is married and has two children.
Ms.
Baker was appointed to the PSTIF Board in April 2000, and serves in
one of the two positions reserved for members of the public. Ms. Baker
has just completed her master's degree in healthcare administration
and information technology, and manages a consulting business. Judith
lives in Columbia with her husband and three children.
The
Board also expressed its appreciation to William "Bart" Creech, III,
who served as chairman for the last 4.5 years, and will continue serving
as a trustee. Mr. Creech manages operations for his family's business,
Creech Brothers Truck Lines, yet always found time for numerous meetings
and phone calls on behalf of the PSTIF. Thanks, Linda (Bart's wife)
for sharing him with us -- and thanks, Bart, for a job well done!
Let's
Talk About Economic Development
There
is much attention being given to Missouri's economy, and rightly so.
Civic leaders are working hard to make sure Missourians have opportunities
for good jobs and economic prosperity, and that businesses can thrive.
The PSTIF's
contribution to this effort bears notice. Cumulative claim payments
by PSTIF surpassed $90 million in February. We have spent money on
cleanups at 1,372 sites, and economic development was enhanced at
about 1,800 other properties where PSTIF shouldered the environmental
risk, but costs ended up being less than the deductible.
That
is more than 3,000 individual property transactions and/or redevelopment
projects made possible by the PSTIF in the last 10 years!
Web
Help
Don't
forget… Our web site, www.pstif.org,
contains a lot of helpful information, including the list of known
tank sites, as of June 2000. Use it early and use it often!
Latest
Leaks is a newsletter of the Missouri Petroleum Storage Tank
Insurance Fund.
Board
of Trustees
William
"Bart" Creech III, Chairman
Bob Abernathy, Vice Chairman
Judith W. Baker
Gary D. Collins
James P. Ford
Neal A. Gibbons, Sr.
Ron Hooker
Robert "Bob" Jackson
Donald W. McNutt
Joyce Murphy
Dan Schuette
Executive
Director
Carol R. Eighmey
PO Box 836
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-522-2352
Third
Party Administrator
Williams & Company Consulting, Inc.
1-800-765-2765
Send
address changes to:
PSTIF, PO Box 104116
Jefferson City, MO 65110
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