House Ag panel advances bill to adopt ASTM fuel standards and shore up petroleum storage fund

The House Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee on April 7 advanced Senate Bill 122 to the Committee of the Whole after sponsors and industry witnesses said the bill would protect rural fuel supplies and improve cleanup capacity without raising taxes.

Sponsors Representative Emma Winter and Representative Tricia Lukens (co‑sponsors) told the committee the measure adopts the newest American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) fuel specifications by reference and eases a long‑standing $2,000,000 incident cap on the Colorado Petroleum Storage Tank Fund so the state can exceed the cap when needed to complete costly cleanups. "As states come on board with the standards, it's not uniformly," Winter said in opening remarks, warning that unequal standards around state lines can force fuel distributors to make long trips and raise local prices.

Lukens framed the bill as technical and targeted: it authorizes the Division of Oil and Public Safety to issue narrowly tailored exceptions where national ASTM standards do not fit Colorado conditions, and it updates the fund mechanism to allow the department and the committee to exceed the incident liability cap when remediation costs require it. "This allows the committee and the department, as amended in the Senate, to exceed the cap when warranted to protect the environment and continue remediation work at sites that are increasingly expensive to mitigate," Lukens said.

Industry witnesses supported the change. Greg Bailey, executive director of Colorado Wyoming Fuel Marketers, said the bill would reduce vehicle miles traveled and logistics costs for rural distributors by allowing them to source from terminals in neighboring states during winter months. "The benefit of this bill is that during the winter months when there's no ozone issues and there's no volatility issues that we can continue to bring in fuel from North Platte, Cheyenne and Salt Lake City and meet the need for marketers without making the trip all the way up to Denver," Bailey said.

Other supporters urged guardrails for administrative discretion. Mike Rollick, speaking for himself, said the bill’s language gives the director flexibility to grant waivers but asked the committee to consider standards, time limits or oversight so that exceptions are predictable and appealable. Civil and structural engineer Eric Bodenstabb recommended a specific amendment to permit affected parties an appeal right to ensure consistent and transparent use of director authority.

Rep. Lukens said the fund — paid by an environmental response surcharge on fuel distributors and long used for cleanup and oversight — has not had its reimbursement cap raised since 2005 and that modest flexibility is needed so remediation work can continue without shifting costs to taxpayers.

The committee took no amendments and, after sponsor closing remarks, Rep. Lukens moved Senate Bill 122 to the Committee of the Whole; the motion was seconded. A roll call later recorded a committee vote advancing the bill 12–0 with one member excused.

What happens next: SB122 is scheduled for further consideration by the Committee of the Whole. If it advances from that stage, members will consider final passage and any technical or fiscal amendments that may arise in subsequent committee work.

Sources: Committee testimony and roll call during the Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee hearing on April 7.