Michael L. ParsonGovernor
Governor Office Building, Room 470
Jefferson City, MO
Start Time: 9:30 a.m.
Chairman McNutt called the meeting to order.
Trustees Present:
Don McNutt, Chairman
John Albert
James Greer
Tom Kolb
Ski Mariea
Marty Miller
Renee Slusher
Absent:
Jim Ford, Vice Chairman
Danny Opie
Tom Pfeiffer
Staff Present:
Tim Duggan, Assistant Attorney General
Carol R. Eighmey, Executive Director
H. Patrick Eriksen, President, Williams & Company Consulting
Dan Henry, Williams & Company Consulting
Diane James, Executive Assistant
Patrick J. Vuchetich, Williams & Company Consulting, Inc.
David Walters, Williams & Company Consulting, Inc.
Others Present:
Thais Folta, Attorney General’s Office
Ken Koon, Chief, Tanks Section, Hazardous Waste Program, DNR
David Lamb, Hazardous Waste Program, DNR
Ron Leone, Executive Director, MPCA
Rick McKay, Neumayer Equipment Company
Heather Peters, Compliance/Enforcement Section, Hazardous Waste Program, DNR
Amanda Sappington, Environmental Works, Inc.
Renee Slusher moved that the minutes from the July 29, 2015 Board meeting be approved with corrections to the attendee list. Tom Kolb seconded. Motion carried.
Monthly Reports
Chairman McNutt reminded Trustees there may be a few minor adjustments to these reports after the audit is complete; he announced the actuary and auditor will present their reports at the next meeting. There were no questions on the reports.
Proposed New DNR UST Rules
Chairman McNutt invited Heather Peters to summarize plans for amending the DNR’s UST rules. She emphasized DNR staff is engaging as many people as possible in discussions and offered to meet with anyone the Trustees suggest. Carol Eighmey noted the Board’s Underwriting Manager, Dorcee Lauen, is working closely with Ms. Peters to review and revise the rules and complimented them both on their knowledge.
Chairman McNutt said the Board appreciates the Department’s willingness to stretch the compliance deadlines out over the next few years, but observed owners will face challenges complying with these new rules.
Other DNR Issues
Ms. Eighmey directed Trustees’ attention to the quarterly report summarizing DNR’s tanks-related expenditures, noting overall expenditures have remained relatively constant for the last several years.
She then discussed ongoing efforts to accelerate the pace and improve the quality of cleanups, expressing disappointment that the pace is not picking up. She reviewed the list of 27 “remedial claims” where there was known petroleum impact before the owner got insured and pointed out all 27 releases were confirmed 20+ years ago, all 27 locations are still operating gas stations, there is little or no risk to human health or the environment, and a more efficient cleanup can be accomplished when the old UST systems are removed; she opined many of these files should be closed, but DNR disagrees.
Tom Kolb said he’s seen examples where DNR requires groundwater monitoring for years, for reasons that are not apparent. Don McNutt commented the property owners need to be involved in pushing to complete work and close files. Ms. Eighmey said the Board’s new rule requiring a schedule for each phase of work was intended to help everyone know how long the consultant thinks it will take to meet DNR’s requirements, but some consultants have been reticent to provide a schedule. She said PSTIF staff is continuing to engage consultants in dialogue on these issues, noting David Walters and Ken Koon will visit a second consulting firm that does a lot of tank site work before the next Board meeting. Two upcoming training events were noted.
Regarding DNR’s air pollution rules, Ms. Eighmey said the dialogue with affected owners and equipment companies continues and she expects to have more information to report at future meetings.
Finally, Ms. Eighmey reminded Trustees of DNR’s plan to put tank sites on a mapping application on the Internet and noted the project design will be discussed with the Advisory Committee.
Review/Approve FY17 Appropriations Requests
Department of Revenue – Chairman McNutt asked the Trustees to consider this request, noting it is the same as in previous years and will support one person; he also noted Keith Gast is no longer managing the collection of petroleum fees. He commented it doesn’t look likely the Department of Revenue plans to compel the federal government to pay the transport load fee, as their demand has been outstanding since about 2011.
Renee Slusher moved to approve the Department of Revenue’s funding request for FY17 of $28,905 for salary, expenses and equipment, plus fringe benefits and any COLA added by the Legislature. Ski Mariea seconded. Motion carried.
Attorney General’s Office – Chairman McNutt reminded Trustees they’ve traditionally provided funding to support one-half of an attorney’s time, but for FY15 and FY16, the Board had agreed to fund an additional full-time person to work on the double dip cases. He asked Ms. Eighmey if the AGO had indicated how many more years they expect to need the extra funding. Ms. Eighmey said she had not received that information. Chairman McNutt announced the Board would postpone its decision on the AGO’s funding request.
Department of Natural Resources – The chairman next invited the Trustees to review the DNR’s request, distributed at the meeting. He introduced David Lamb, who briefly summarized the request, noting it maintains the same funding as for FY16; he mentioned he may approach the Board again in the future with a request to approve additional funding for the “Integrated Data Project,” since there is an appropriation from the PSTIF for that project in DNR’s budget.
Chairman McNutt thanked Mr. Lamb for his presentation. Ski Mariea moved to approve the Department’s funding request for FY17 of $1,066,803, plus fringe benefits and any COLA added by the Legislature and Governor. Tom Kolb seconded. Motion carried.
Office of Administration – Chairman McNutt said the request from OA for money to help pay for “central state services” would not be available until the first quarter of next year.
PSTIF Board of Trustees – The chairman then invited a motion regarding appropriations for the Board’s operations in FY17; Ski Mariea moved to request $125,049 for salaries, plus associated fringe benefits and any COLA enacted; $2,095,354 for expense and equipment; $20,000,000 for claims and refunds of participation fees, for an estimated total of $22,290,403. Renee Slusher seconded. Motion carried.
Review of FY15 UST Losses
Chairman McNutt introduced David Walters, Claims Manager, who made a presentation on the claims made by insured UST owners/operators who had leaks during FY15, what caused them, costs incurred, and subrogation potential.
Administrative Issues
Report on National Tanks Conference – Ms. Eighmey briefly summarized the conference, noting Missouri was well-represented by staff from the PSTIF, DNR, and AGO, and at least one owner. She said attendance was the highest ever, with more than 800 people registered.
Advisory Committee Meeting – Chairman McNutt noted the Advisory Committee will meet on October 22 and said he hopes Ms. Peters gets some good feedback from the Committee on the proposed changes to the UST rules.
Board Meeting Dates for 2016 – The chairman invited changes to the proposed board meeting dates for 2016; none were suggested. Ski Mariea moved to approve the meeting dates for 2016 as presented. James Greer seconded. Motion carried.
Billings – Chairman McNutt invited questions about the billings; there were none.
He then thanked those in attendance for coming and reminded all present the next meeting would be in Jefferson City on November 18 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel.
Chairman McNutt then asked the Trustees to go into closed session to:
Tom Kolb moved to go into closed session to discuss the matters identified by the Chairman, as authorized by Section 610.021, RSMo. Ski Mariea seconded. A roll call vote was taken; motion carried without dissent.
Chairman McNutt adjourned the open session meeting at 10:51 a.m.