Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB4746
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Full Text of HB4746  100th General Assembly

HB4746sam001 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Chapin Rose

Filed: 5/17/2018

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4746

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4746 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Illinois Oil and Gas Act is amended by
5adding Sections 7.5 and 7.6 as follows:
 
6    (225 ILCS 725/7.5 new)
7    Sec. 7.5. Natural gas storage field; natural gas incident;
8public notice. In addition to the requirements of this Section
9and any applicable State and federal law, an operator of a
10natural gas storage field that lies on the footprint of a Sole
11Source Aquifer designated as such in 2015 by the United States
12Environmental Protection Agency must immediately notify the
13following parties located within 5 miles of the boundaries of a
14natural gas incident:
15        (1) The Illinois Emergency Management Agency and all
16    municipalities and counties.

 

 

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1        (2) All emergency service agencies serving that area.
2        (3) All owners and operators of public water supplies,
3    community water supplies, and non-community water
4    supplies.
5    As soon as practicable, but no later than 3 months after
6the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 100th General
7Assembly, the Department shall adopt rules establishing the
8minimum criteria for an unintentional release of natural gas
9that would constitute an incident for purposes of this Section.
10In determining what constitutes an incident, the Department
11shall consider, but is not limited to, the following criteria:
12        (1) the amount of natural gas or other substances that
13    were released as a result of the incident;
14        (2) the duration of the natural gas incident before it
15    was resolved; and
16        (3) whether there is an imminent threat of danger to
17    property or public safety.
18    The rules shall be at least as stringent as the definition
19of "incident" as promulgated by the United States Secretary of
20Transportation under 49 CFR 191.3(1)(iii). The Department
21shall maintain the rules so that the rules are at least as
22stringent as the definition of "incident" from time to time in
23effect under 49 CFR 191.3(1)(iii).
24    In addition, all private residents, owners and operators of
25private water systems, or businesses, including agricultural
26operations, located within one and a half miles of the

 

 

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1boundaries of the natural gas incident must be notified as soon
2as practically possible.
3    Notices to private residents and businesses must be
4attempted through verbal communication, whether in person or by
5telephone. If verbal communication cannot be established, a
6physical notice must be posted on the premises of the private
7residence or business in a conspicuous location where it is
8easily seen by the inhabitants of the private residence or
9employees at the business. The physical notice shall carry the
10following text in at least 18-point font: "NATURAL GAS INCIDENT
11NOTICE - READ IMMEDIATELY". Notices required under this Section
12shall be provided whether or not the threat of exposure has
13been eliminated. Both verbal and physical notices shall include
14the location of the natural gas incident, the date and time
15that the natural gas incident was discovered, contact
16information of the operator of the natural gas storage field,
17and any applicable safety information.
18    The operator of a natural gas storage field has a
19continuous and ongoing obligation to further notify the
20affected parties as necessary if it is determined that the
21boundaries of the natural gas incident have increased, moved,
22or shifted. This notice requirement shall be construed as
23broadly as possible.
 
24    (225 ILCS 725/7.6 new)
25    Sec. 7.6. Gas storage field inspection. The Department

 

 

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1shall conduct annual inspections at all gas storage fields
2lying on the footprint of a Sole Source Aquifer designated as
3such in 2015 by the United States Environmental Protection
4Agency in the State to ensure that there are no infrastructure
5deficiencies or failures that could pose any harm to public
6health. The owner of the gas storage field shall cover the
7costs of the annual inspection.".