§ 44-96-160 — Used oil.

(A) Twelve months after this chapter is effective, no person shall knowingly: (1) place used oil in municipal solid waste, discard or otherwise dispose of used oil, except by delivery to a used oil collection facility, used oil energy recovery facility, oil recycling facility, or to an authorized agent for delivery to a used oil collection facility, used oil energy recovery facility, or oil recycling facility; (2) dispose of used oil in a solid waste disposal facility unless such disposal is approved by the department; (3) collect, transport, store, recycle, use or dispose of used oil in any manner which may endanger public health and welfare or the environment; (4) discharge used oil into sewers, drainage systems, septic tanks, surface water or groundwater, or any other waters of this State, or onto the ground; or (5) mix or commingle used oil with hazardous substances that make it unsuitable for recycling or beneficial use. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person who knowingly disposes of any used oil which has not been properly segregated or separated from other solid wastes by the generator is guilty of a violation of this subsection and shall be subject to a fine not to exceed two hundred dollars. This provision may be enforced by a state, county, or municipal law enforcement official, or by the department. (B) No person shall knowingly dispose of used oil filters in a landfill unless the filter has been crushed to the smallest practical volume possible or unless the filter has been hot drained, as established by the department in regulations. (C) The utilization of used oil for road oiling, dust control, weed abatement, or other similar uses which has the potential to cause harm to the environment is prohibited. (D) The department shall encourage the voluntary establishment of used oil collection centers and recycling programs and provide technical assistance to persons who organize such programs. If a hazardous substance is mixed with used oil accepted at a volunteer used oil collection center, any costs for the proper disposal of this contaminated waste will be incurred by the Petroleum Fund, if no more than five gallons of used oil was accepted from any one person at any one time. (E) All government agencies and private businesses that change motor oil for the public and major retail dealers of motor and lubricating oil are encouraged to serve as used oil collection centers. The Department of Transportation shall establish or contract for at least one used oil collection center in every county unless it can certify to the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling that a private used oil collection center is in operation in a county and is accepting up to five gallons of used oil from any member of the public. A retail dealer of motor oil who maintains a separate tank for a voluntary used oil collection center as approved by the department under this section is eligible for a payment from the South Carolina Department of Revenue from fees collected pursuant to subsection (W) of five cents for every gallon of motor oil that is properly returned on a voluntary basis to a registered used oil transporter or permitted used oil recycling facility upon proper verification. (F) A person who maintains a used oil collection facility that receives a volume of used oil annually, which exceeds a limit to be determined by the department, must register with the department. (G) A used oil collection center must report annually to the department by a date to be determined by the department and must indicate if it is accepting used oil from the public, the quantities of used oil collected in the previous year, and the total quantity of used oil handled in the previous year. (H) No person may recover from the owner or operator of a used oil collection center any costs of response actions resulting from a release of either used oil or a hazardous substance from a used oil collection center if such used oil is: (1) not mixed with any hazardous substance by the owner or operator of the used oil collection center; (2) not knowingly accepted with any hazardous substances contained in it; (3) transported from the used oil collection center by a registered transporter; or (4) stored in a used oil collection center that is in compliance with this section. This subsection applies only to that portion of the used oil collection center utilized for the collection of used oil and does not apply if the owner or operator is grossly negligent in the operation of the public used oil collection center. Nothing in this section shall affect or modify in any way the obligations or liability of a person under any other provisions of state or federal law, including common law, for injury or damage resulting from the release of used oil or hazardous substances. For the purpose of this subsection, the owner or operator of a used oil collection center may presume that a quantity of no more than five gallons of used oil accepted from a member of the public is not mixed with a hazardous substance, if the owner or operator acts in good faith and in the belief the oil is generated from the individual's personal activity. (I) Any motor, lubricating, or other oil offered for sale, at retail or at wholesale for direct retail sale, for use off the premises, must be clearly marked or labeled as containing a recyclable material which must be disposed of only at a used oil collection center. A statement on a container of lubricating or other oil offered for sale is in compliance with this section if it contains the following statement: "Don't pollute. Conserve resources. Return used oil to collection centers." (J) Motor oil retailers shall post and maintain, at or near the point of sale, a durable and legible sign, not less than eleven inches by fifteen inches in size, informing the public of the importance of the proper collection and disposal of used oil and how and where used oil may be properly disposed. (K) The department may inspect any place, building, or premises subject to subsections (I) and (J) and issue warnings and citations to a person who fails to comply with the requirements of those subsections. Failure to comply following a warning shall constitute a violation punishable by a fine not to exceed one hundred dollars per day. Each day on which an establishment fails to comply shall constitute a separate violation. The proceeds of a fine imposed pursuant to this subsection must be remitted to the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund. (L) The following persons shall register annually with the department pursuant to department regulations on forms prescribed in such regulations: (1) a person who transports over public highways more than five hundred gallons of used oil weekly; (2) a person who maintains a collection facility that receives more than six thousand gallons of used oil annually; and (3) a facility that recycles more than six hundred gallons of used oil annually. (M) The department shall require each registered person to submit by a date to be determined by the department an annual report which specifies the type and quantity of used oil transported, collected, and recycled during the preceding year. The department also shall require each registered person who transports or recycles used oil to maintain records which identify the: (1) source of the materials transported or recycled; (2) quantity of materials received; (3) date of receipt; and (4) destination or the end use of the materials. (N) The department shall require sample analyses of used oil at facilities of representative used oil transporters and at representative recycling facilities to determine the incidence of contamination of used oil with hazardous, toxic, or other harmful substances. (O) The following entities are exempted from the requirements of subsection (L): (1) an on-site burner which only burns a specification used oil generated by the burner, if the burning is done in compliance with any air permits issued by the department; or (2) an electric utility which generates during its operation used oil that is then reclaimed, recycled, or refined by the electric utility for use in its operations. (P) A person who fails to register with the department as required by subsection (L), or to file the annual report required by subsection (M), is subject to a fine not to exceed three hundred dollars per day. Each day on which the person fails to comply shall constitute a separate violation. The proceeds of a fine imposed pursuant to this subsection must be remitted to the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund. (Q) After the effective date of regulations promulgated by the department pursuant to this section, a person who transports over public highways more than five hundred gallons of used oil weekly must be a registered transporter. (R) The department shall promulgate regulations establishing a registration program for transporters of used oil and shall issue, deny, or revoke registrations authorizing the holder to transport used oil. Registration requirements must ensure that a used oil transporter is familiar with applicable regulations and used oil management procedures. The department shall promulgate regulations governing registration which must include requirements for the following: (1) registration and annual reporting; (2) evidence of familiarity with laws and regulations governing used oil transportation; and (3) proof of liability insurance or other means of financial responsibility for any liability which may be incurred in the transport of used oil. (S) Each person who intends to operate, modify, or close a used oil recycling facility shall obtain an operation or closure permit from the department before operating, modifying, or closing the facility. (T) Not later than eighteen months after this chapter is effective, the department shall develop a permitting system for used oil recycling facilities. (U) Permits must not be required under subsection (S) for the burning of used oil as a fuel, provided: (1) a valid air permit, if required, issued by the department is in effect for the facility; (2) the facility burns used oil in accordance with applicable state and local government regulations, and the requirements and conditions of its air permit; and (3) the on specification used oil is burned in industrial furnaces and boilers and nonindustrial furnaces and boilers. (V) No permit is required under this section for the use of used oil for the benefaction or flotation of phosphate rock. (W)(1) For sales made after October 31, 1991, a person making wholesale sales of motor oil or similar lubricants, and a person importing into this State ex-tax motor oil or similar lubricants, shall pay a fee on a monthly basis of eight cents for each gallon of motor oil or similar lubricants sold at wholesale or ex-tax motor oil or similar lubricants imported. As used in this provision, "ex-tax motor oil or similar lubricants" means motor oil or similar lubricants upon which the fee imposed has not been levied and which is not sold at wholesale in this State. The fee imposed must be imposed only once with respect to each gallon of motor oil or similar lubricants. The South Carolina State Department of Revenue shall administer, collect, and enforce this fee in the same manner the sales and use taxes are collected pursuant to Chapter 36 of Title 12. However, taxpayers are not required to make payments pursuant to Section 12-36-2600. Instead of the discount allowed pursuant to Section 12-36-2610, the taxpayer may retain three percent of the total fees collected as an administrative collection allowance. This allowance applies whether or not the return is timely filed. A motor carrier which purchases lubricating oils not for resale used in its fleet is exempt from the fee. The motor carrier must: (a) have a maintenance facility to service its own fleet and properly store waste oil for recycling collections; (b) have on file with the Environmental Protection Agency the existence of storage tanks for waste oil storage; (c) maintain records of the dispensing and servicing of lubrication oil in the fleet vehicles; and (d) have a written contractual agreement with an approved waste oil hauler. (2) The Department of Revenue shall remit fees collected pursuant to this section to the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund, less payments made pursuant to subsection (E). The fees must be reserved in a separate account designated as the Petroleum Fund. The Petroleum Fund must be under the administration of the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling. The funds generated by the fees authorized by this section and set aside for the Petroleum Fund must be used by the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling as follows: (a) Two-fifths of the funds must be used to establish incentive programs to encourage: (1) individuals who change their own oil to return their used oil to used oil collection centers; (2) the establishment and continued operation of collection centers which accept used oil, including a one-time rebate to retailers who maintain department approved used oil collection centers for equipment used in the used oil collection process, not to exceed five hundred dollars a location. The used oil collection center must maintain a separate tank for the collection of voluntarily returned used oil to be eligible for this rebate. This rebate must be distributed by the department upon approval of the collection center by the department and submittal of proof of purchase of the equipment. (3) the establishment and continued operation of recycling facilities which prepare used oil for reuses or which utilize used oil in a manner that substitutes for a petroleum product made from new oil. (b) Two-fifths of the funds must be used to provide grants for local government projects that the office determines will encourage the collection, reuse, and proper disposal of used oil and similar lubricants. Local government projects may include one or more of the following programs or activities: (1) curbside pickup of used oil containers by a local government or its designee; (2) retrofitting of solid waste equipment to promote curbside pickup or disposal of used oil at used oil collection centers designated by the local government; (3) establishment of publicly operated used oil collection centers at landfills or other public places; or (4) providing of containers and other materials and supplies that the public can utilize in an environmentally sound manner to store used oil for pickup or return to a used oil collection center. (c) One-fifth of the funds must be used for public education and research including, but not limited to, reuses, disposal, and development of markets for used oil and similar lubricants. The office may use funds set aside under subitem (a) of item (2) to contract for the development and implementation of incentive programs, and the office may use funds set aside under subitem (c) of item (2) to contract for the development and implementation of research and education programs. After the fee is imposed upon a distributor, the fee may not be imposed again upon a person who subsequently receives motor oil or similar lubricants from a distributor upon whom the fee already has been imposed. Motor oil or similar lubricants exported from this State in its original package or container must be exempt from the fee imposed in this section. A person purchasing motor oil or similar lubricants at wholesale in its original package or container and who exports such motor oil or similar lubricants from this State may certify in writing to the seller that the motor oil or similar lubricants will be exported, and such certification, if taken by the seller in good faith, will relieve the seller of the fee otherwise imposed. If the purchaser subsequently uses the motor oil or similar lubricants in this State, the purchaser shall be liable for the fee imposed and the purchaser's certification to the seller must include an acknowledgment to that effect. (X) The fee imposed under item (W) of this section must be imposed until the unobligated principal balance of the Petroleum Fund equals or exceeds three million dollars. Based upon the amount of revenue received and the time frame in which the amount is collected, the Department of Revenue is required to adjust the rate of the fee to reflect a full year's collection to produce the amount of revenue required in the fund. The increase or decrease in the fee made by the Department of Revenue must take effect for sales beginning on or after the first day of the third month following determination by the commission. (Y) The department shall promulgate regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section. Such regulations may include the imposition of reasonable registration and permitting fees to assist in defraying the costs of the regulatory activities of the department required by this section. (Z) All state agencies, all political subdivisions using state funds to procure items, and all persons contracting with such agency or political subdivision where such persons procure items with state funds shall procure used oil materials and products where practicable, subject to the provisions of Section 44-96-140(E). (AA) Beginning February 28, 1993, and no later than July first each year thereafter, the Office of Solid Waste and Recycling shall submit to the Governor and to the General Assembly a report for the previous calendar year, including: (1) the number of used oil collection sites available in each county to the general public; (2) the number and location of used oil collection sites in each county receiving ongoing and start-up assistance from the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling; and (3) the amount of used oil collected in each county.

Legislative History

HISTORY: 1991 Act No. 63, SECTION 1; 1992 Act No. 449, Part V, SECTIONS 5-8; 1993 Act No. 181, SECTION 1154; 1995 Act No. 145, Part II, SECTION 50; 2000 Act No. 405, SECTION 13.