§ 13-20-703 — Environmental third-party liability - ownership

(1) Except as
preempted by federal law, no person or entity shall be deemed to be an owner or
operator of real or personal property who, without participating in the management
of the subject real or personal property, holds indicia of ownership primarily to
protect a security or lienhold interest in the subject real or personal property or in
the property in which the subject real or personal property is located.

(2) No lender-owner or representative shall, by virtue of becoming the owner
of real or personal property, be liable for any third-party liability arising from
contamination or pollution emanating from said property prior to the date that title
vests in the lender-owner or representative.

(3) No lender-owner or representative shall, by virtue of becoming the owner
of real or personal property, be liable for any third-party liability arising from
contamination or pollution emanating from said property during the period of
ownership so long as, and to the extent that, it does not knowingly or recklessly
cause new contamination or pollution or does not knowingly or recklessly allow
others to cause new contamination or pollution if lender-owner has caused an
environmental professional to conduct a visual inspection of the property and a
record search of the recorded chain of title documents regarding the real property
for the prior fifty years to determine the presence and condition of hazardous waste
or substances, obvious contamination, or pollution and, if found by the enforcing
agency to be in noncompliance with federal or state laws, takes steps to assure
compliance with applicable laws. This subsection (3) shall apply to the lender-owner as long as it makes reasonable efforts to resell the property.

(4) This section shall not affect any liability expressly created under federal
or state health or environmental statutes, regulations, permits, or orders.

Legislative History

Source: L. 90: Entire part added, p. 865, � 2, effective July 1.