§ 192-C — Motor fuel standards and labelling; grade of diesel fuel; alcohol content

§ 192-c. Motor fuel standards and labelling; grade of diesel fuel;\nalcohol content. 1. As used in this section, the following terms shall\nhave the following meanings:\n a. "Co-solvent" means an alcohol with a higher molecular weight than\nmethanol which is blended with methanol to prevent phase separation in\ngasoline.\n b. "Diesel motor fuel" means any fuel sold in this state and for use\nin diesel engines which is commercially known or offered for sale as\ndiesel motor fuel.\n c. "Cetane rating" means the property of a diesel motor fuel expressed\nas a number determined pursuant to a method adopted by the American\nSociety of Testing and Materials, concerning the fuel's ignition\nproperties.\n d. "Gasoline" means any fuel sold in this state for use in internal\ncombustion engines which is commercially known or offered for sale as\ngasoline.\n e. "Refiner" means a person, firm or corporation who owns, leases,\noperates, controls or supervises a commercial entity producing gasoline\nor diesel motor fuel.\n f. "Distributor" means any person, firm or corporation who purchases,\ntransports, stores or causes the transportation or storage of gasoline\nor diesel motor fuel at any point between commercial entities.\n g. "Reseller" means any person who purchases gasoline identified by\nthe corporate, trade or brand name of a refiner from such refiner or a\ndistributor and resells or transfers it to retailers or wholesale\npurchaser-consumers displaying the refiner's brands, and whose assets or\nfacilities are not substantially owned, leased or controlled by such\nrefiner.\n h. "Retailer" means a person, firm or corporation who owns, leases,\noperates, controls or supervises a commercial entity at which gasoline\nor diesel motor fuel is sold or offered for sale to the general public.\n i. "Wholesale purchaser-consumer" means any organization that is an\nultimate consumer of gasoline and which purchases or obtains gasoline\nfrom a supplier for use in motor vehicles and receives delivery of that\nproduct into a storage tank which has a capacity of five hundred fifty\ngallons or more and is substantially under the control of that\norganization.\n j. "Ultimate purchaser" means the first person who purchases gasoline\nfor purposes other than resale.\n 2. No refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer shall transfer, sell,\ndispense or offer any grade of diesel motor fuel for sale in this state\nunless said diesel motor fuel meets the standards and specifications\nestablished for such product by regulations promulgated by the\ncommissioner or by the commissioner of environmental conservation, after\ndue notice and public hearing. No refiner, distributor, reseller or\nretailer shall transfer, sell, dispense or offer gasoline for sale in\nthis state unless said gasoline meets the standards and specifications,\nother than those relating to octane and lead content, established for\nsuch product by regulations promulgated by the commissioner or by the\ncommissioner of environmental conservation, after due notice and public\nhearing.\n 3. a. A refiner, distributor or reseller shall not transfer, sell or\ndispense gasoline for sale in this state without delivering to the\npurchaser a bill, invoice or other instrument evidencing the transaction\nwhich shall indicate:\n (i) the presence of methanol and co-solvent, each as a percentage of\nthe total volume, if the quantity of methanol exceeds three-tenths of\none percent; and\n (ii) the presence of ethanol, as a percentage of the total volume, if\nsuch quantity exceeds one percent of the total volume.\n b. A refiner, distributor or reseller shall not transfer, sell or\ndispense diesel motor fuel in this state without delivering to the\npurchaser a bill, invoice or other instrument evidencing the transaction\nwhich shall indicate the grade of such diesel motor fuel.\n c. For the purposes of this section, the instrument evidencing the\ntransaction shall be on such form as may be required by the\ncommissioner. The commissioner shall consult with the department of\ntaxation and finance and to the extent practicable, the form used for\ncertification of prepayment of the sales tax and payment of motor fuel\ntax shall be modified and adapted for this purpose, such that said form\nshall indicate the brand, type and quality of each product delivered.\n 4. a. A refiner, distributor or reseller shall not transfer, sell,\ndispense, or offer gasoline or diesel motor fuel for sale in this state\nto a retailer unless the refiner, distributor or reseller provides to\nthe retailer the materials necessary to comply with the posting\nrequirements contained in this section.\n b. It shall be a defense to any violation of paragraph a of this\nsubdivision that a refiner, distributor or reseller, if acting in good\nfaith, had reasonable cause to believe that the retailer had the\nmaterials necessary to comply with the posting requirements contained in\nthis section. No common carrier shall be held liable for any violation\nof paragraph a of this subdivision to the extent that the materials\nnecessary to comply with such posting requirements were not transferred\nto him or her or his or her agent along with such gasoline or diesel\nmotor fuel.\n c. Each retailer shall record, for each day during which gasoline or\ndiesel motor fuel is sold or offered for sale to the general public the\ncumulative gallon meter readings for each retail petroleum dispensing\ndevice and the volume contained in each gasoline and diesel motor fuel\nstorage tank. These records shall be maintained for a period of one\nyear.\n 5. a. A retailer or reseller shall not transfer, sell, dispense or\noffer gasoline for sale in this state if it contains more than:\n (i) one percent by total volume of ethanol unless the retail petroleum\ndispensing device displays a sign with at least one-quarter inch block\nletters on a contrasting background, reading "Contains.....% Ethanol",\nthe blank being filled in with the maximum percentage of ethanol in the\ngasoline; and\n (ii) three-tenths of one percent of total volume of methanol unless\nthe retail petroleum dispensing device displays a sign with at least\none-quarter inch block letters on a contrasting background reading\n"Contains.....% Methanol" and "Contains.....% Co-Solvent", the blanks\nbeing filled in with the maximum percentage of methanol and minimum\npercentage of co-solvent in the gasoline.\n b. A retailer shall not transfer, sell, dispense or offer diesel motor\nfuel for sale in this state unless the retail petroleum dispensing\ndevice displays a sign disclosing the grade.\n 6. No refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer shall store, sell,\ntransfer, dispense or offer for sale gasoline or diesel motor fuel in\nthis state without having in his or her possession a copy of the bill,\ninvoice, or other written instrument evidencing the transaction by which\nsuch refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer came into possession of\nthe gasoline or diesel motor fuel; provided, however, that this\nrequirement shall not apply to refiners with respect to gasoline or\ndiesel motor fuel which such refiner has produced from crude oil.\n 7. a. Except as otherwise provided, any retailer, reseller or\ndistributor charged with a violation under this section may plead and\nprove by a preponderance of the evidence that the violation was not\ncaused by him or her or his or her agent or employee as an affirmative\ndefense to such charge.\n b. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a common\ncarrier transporting gasoline or diesel motor fuel shall be deemed to be\nliable under the provisions of subdivision two of this section only if\nit is proved by a preponderance of the evidence that a violation was\ncaused by him or her or his or her agent or employee.\n 8. a. The commissioner or his authorized representative, upon\npresentation of appropriate credentials, shall have the right to enter\nduring regular business hours upon or through the premises or property\nof any refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer, and shall have the\nright to make inspections, take samples of gasoline and diesel motor\nfuel being stored, offered for sale or in the process of being delivered\nor transported, and conduct tests during normal business hours to\ndetermine compliance with this section.\n b. The commissioner may require a refiner, distributor, reseller or\nretailer to report information regarding the receipt, transfer, delivery\nor sale of gasoline and diesel motor fuel and to allow the reproduction\nof that information except that the refiner, distributor, reseller or\nretailer shall not be required to provide information not maintained in\nthe normal course of business, except as otherwise required in this\nsection. A refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer shall preserve\ninformation regarding the receipt, transfer, delivery, or sale of\ngasoline and diesel motor fuel for one year.\n 9. Any refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer who or which\nviolates this section shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed\nten thousand dollars for each violation, and for the first violation not\nto be less than two hundred fifty dollars, and for the second violation\nnot to be less than one thousand dollars. In the case of a violation\nthrough continuing failure to comply with any of the provisions of this\nsection, or any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder, each day of\nthe continuance of such failure shall be treated as a separate\nviolation. Provided, however, that the penalty for any violation of\nparagraph c of subdivision four of this section for failure to keep the\nrequired records shall be a maximum two hundred dollar civil penalty for\nthe first violation, and a maximum four hundred dollar civil penalty for\nthe second and subsequent violations. A right of action for the recovery\nof a liability for the civil penalties incurred as provided in this\nsection may be released, settled or compromised by the commissioner or\nthe director of a municipal consumer affairs office or a municipal\ndirector of weights and measures before the matter is referred to the\nattorney general as provided in section forty-four of this chapter, or\nby the attorney for the municipality, as the case may be, and thereafter\nmay be released, settled or compromised by the attorney general or the\nattorney for the municipality, as the case may be, either before or\nafter an action is brought to recover such penalty. The commissioner or\na director of a municipal consumer affairs office or a municipal\ndirector of weights and measures may apply to a court of appropriate\njurisdiction for an injunction to restrain any person subject to the\nprovisions of this section from the further violation of such provisions\nor for such other relief as the court deems proper. Any plaintiff\nseeking such relief shall not be required to furnish security and the\ncosts of the application may be granted in the discretion of the court.\nThe provisions of sections thirty-nine, forty and forty-one of this\nchapter shall not apply to a violation described in this subdivision.\n 10. Whenever the commissioner or an authorized representative of the\ncommissioner shall find that a refiner, distributor, reseller or\nretailer has transferred, sold, dispensed or offered gasoline or diesel\nmotor fuel for sale in this state in violation of this section, such\ncommissioner or his authorized representative may exercise any remedies\nauthorized by section one hundred eighty-five of this article. Any\nrefiner, distributor, reseller or retailer violating an order issued\npursuant to this subdivision shall be subject to an additional civil\npenalty not to exceed five thousand dollars, notwithstanding the penalty\nprovisions of section forty of this chapter which shall not apply to a\nviolation of such order.\n 11. The provisions of this section and the regulations promulgated\nhereunder may be enforced concurrently by the director of a municipal\nconsumer affairs office and/or a municipal director of weights and\nmeasures. Notwithstanding the provisions of section forty-five of this\nchapter, all moneys collected hereunder shall be retained by the\nmunicipality.\n 12. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or restrict the\nauthority of the commissioner of environmental conservation to adopt\nrules and regulations that affect the composition, storage, transport,\nhandling or commerce of petroleum products for the purpose of preventing\nor decreasing pollution pursuant to the environmental conservation law.\n 13. The commissioner shall have the authority to promulgate such rules\nand regulations as the commissioner shall deem necessary to effectuate\nthe purposes of this section, consistent with its provisions.\n