(a) All owners or operators of AST systems, within one hundred eighty (180) days of the effective date of this Chapter, shall establish and

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maintain evidence of financial responsibility, as provided for in this Section, for taking corrective action and compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental releases arising from the operation of aboveground storage tanks in at least the following per occurrence amounts:

(1) For all owners or operators of petroleum aboveground storage tanks that are located at petroleum marketing facilities, or that own or operate five (5) or more tanks, or that handle an average of more than ten thousand (10,000) gallons of petroleum per month based on annual throughput for the previous calendar year: Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000).

(2) For all other owners or operators of petroleum aboveground storage tanks: Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000).

(b) Owners or operators of petroleum aboveground storage tanks shall demonstrate financial responsibility for taking corrective action and for compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental release arising from the operation of petroleum aboveground storage tanks in at least the following annual aggregate amounts:

(1) For owners or operators of four (4) or fewer tanks, an annual aggregate amount of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000).

(2) For owners or operators of five (5) or more tanks, an annual aggregate amount of Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000).

(3) For owners or operators of ten (10) or more tanks, an annual aggregate amount of at least Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000), or such other higher aggregate amount as set forth in regulations promulgated by the Administrator.

(c) Subject to the approval of the Administrator, an owner or operator of an AST may establish evidence of financial responsibility by any one, or a combination of, the following methods:

(1) commercial or private insurance, including risk retention group;

(2) qualification as a self-insurer;

(3) a guarantee, surety bond, or letter of credit; or

(4) any other reasonable and economically practicable means.

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(d) The Administrator shall not approve any financial responsibility method or combination of methods, unless the owner or operator has demonstrated that such method(s):

(1) are valid and enforceable;
(2) are issued by a provider that is qualified or licensed in Guam; (3) do not permit cancellation without the Administrator’s
approval;

(4) shall only be directly used for corrective action and third party liability costs; and

(5) require the provider to notify the owner or operator and the Administrator of any circumstances that would impair or suspend coverage.

(e) Surety bonds shall be payable to the Guam Environmental Protection Agency, to include costs and expenses of the cleanup of any release, as well as damages incurred by the government, consistent with the provisions of this Chapter. Any bond filed with the Agency must be issued by a bonding company authorized to do business within Guam. The Agency is authorized to establish a special account, escrow, standby trust, or other trust or account mechanism into which funds established as financial assurance may be deposited when needed. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator may retain and use such amounts for the purposes for which the financial assurance was established.

(f) To qualify as a self-insurer, the AST system owner or operator shall:
(1) demonstrate a tangible net worth of at least ten (10) times: (A) the total of the aggregate amount required in Subsection
(b) of this Section;

(B) the sum of the corrective action cost estimates, the current closure and post-closure care cost estimates, and the amount of liability coverage required under this Chapter; and

(C) the sum of plugging and abandonment cost estimates in effect for which a financial test is used to demonstrate financial responsibility under this Chapter; and

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(2) the owner or operator shall have a tangible net worth of at least Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000).

(g) The total liability of any guarantor is limited to the aggregate amount that the guarantor has provided as evidence of financial responsibility to the AST system owner or operator under this Section. Nothing in this Subsection may be construed to limit any other territorial or federal statutory, contractual or common law liability of a guarantor to its owner or operator including, but not limited to, the liability of such guarantors for bad faith either in negotiating or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any claim. For the purposes of this Subsection, the term “”guarantor”” means any person, other than the owner or operator, who provides evidence of financial responsibility for an owner or operator pursuant to this Section.

(h) Any claim costs incurred by the Agency for taking emergency, preventive, corrective or enforcement action may be filed directly against the bonding company, the insurer, the guarantor, or any other person providing evidence of financial responsibility. Any amount collected or awarded under this Subsection shall be paid into Guam Environmental Protection Agency’s AST Fund.

(i) An owner or operator of an AST system shall designate a person within Guam as his/her resident agent for service of process, and such designation shall be filled in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the Agency.