A. The department may provide reimbursement from the underground storage tank revolving fund under the preapproval process prescribed in section 49-1051 in the amounts authorized by section 49-1054 of the costs incurred for the following:

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1. Sampling, analysis and reporting that are initiated pursuant to section 49-1004 and that confirm the presence of a release that requires corrective action pursuant to section 49-1005.

2. Sampling, analysis and reporting that are initiated pursuant to section 49-1008 and that confirm the presence of a release that requires corrective action pursuant to section 49-1005.

3. Corrective actions initiated pursuant to section 49-1005.

4. Preparation of the initial approved preapproval application and the consulting expenses incurred in participating in the initial preapproval meeting but not more than two percent of the amount incurred for the project cost in the first year. Costs must be submitted in the first reimbursement request for corrective actions that is submitted pursuant to section 49-1054.

B. The department may provide the reimbursement required by this section either by paying the owner, the operator or a designated representative of the owner or operator or any combination of these persons or a political subdivision pursuant to subsection F of this section. If the department determines that an application for reimbursement is incomplete, the department within forty-five days after receiving the application shall notify the applicant of the missing information as specifically as possible and shall allow the applicant to provide the additional information within thirty days. On the request of an applicant, the department shall grant an additional sixty days to submit the missing information. The grant of additional time tolls the period for making an interim determination on matters relating to reimbursement pursuant to section 49-1091.

C. The department may not pay for eligible costs unless the department determines that the eligible activities have met, or when completed will meet, the applicable requirements of section 49-1004 or 49-1005. The department may require by rule that persons that perform payable eligible activities meet specified standards of qualification and be approved by the department.

D. The department may not provide any reimbursement described in this article to an owner or operator of underground storage tanks described in section 49-1031, subsection C. The department may not provide any reimbursement described in this article with respect to the substances described in section 49-1031, subsection C, unless the tax imposed by article 2 of this chapter applies to such substances.

E. The department shall establish criteria for determining priorities among the applications from small owners for reimbursement under this article. For all other owners that are eligible for reimbursement from the fund through the cost sharing prescribed in Section 49-1006.02, subsection B, priority shall be based on the date of completion of the work. The criteria for small owners shall include:

1. The need for financial assistance.

2. The extent to which a delay in providing reimbursement will affect an eligible activity in progress.

3. The date on which an application for reimbursement is submitted to the department.

4. Whether the payment has been previously deferred because of insufficient monies in the underground storage tank revolving fund and, if deferred, the length of the deferral.

F. The department may provide the reimbursement described in this article for eligible activity costs incurred by a political subdivision with respect to a release from an underground storage tank if the underground storage tank or the property where the underground storage tank is located comes into the possession or control of the political subdivision under Title 12, Chapter 8, Article 2 or 3.

G. Subject to section 38-503 and other applicable statutes and rules, the department may contract with a private consultant for the purpose of assisting the department in reviewing preapproval and reimbursement applications, site characterization reports, corrective action plans, monitoring reports and other information to determine whether corrective actions meet the criteria and requirements of this chapter and the rules adopted by the director.

H. Requests by the department for additional information from applicants shall be reasonably related to the determination of the validity of the claim as prescribed by this article.

I. Except for appeals costs authorized pursuant to Section 49-1091.01, applications for reimbursement under a preapproved scope of work shall be submitted to the department not more than one year after the applicant receives a closure letter sent by the department by certified mail with notice that the applicant has one year to submit a claim for that release. Failure to submit a timely reimbursement request under a preapproved scope of work shall result in denial of the claim. The time limit prescribed by this subsection does not apply to closed releases that are subsequently reopened for the performance of additional corrective actions or at which corrective actions are proceeding pursuant to a work plan for preapproval submitted before the release was closed.

J. The department may provide reimbursement under a preapproved scope of work for the reasonable, necessary, cost-effective and technically feasible costs of corrective actions relating to soil remediation that are consistent with remediation standards adopted pursuant to chapter 1, article 4 of this title or site-specific, risk-based levels as determined under rules adopted pursuant to this chapter. The department may provide reimbursement under a preapproved scope of work for the reasonable, necessary, cost-effective and technically feasible costs of corrective actions relating to groundwater remediation to predetermined standards or site-specific, risk-based levels as determined under rules adopted pursuant to this chapter. The department may provide reimbursement for corrective actions related to the control and removal of a source of contamination. A source of contamination includes any one or more of the following:

1. Free product.

2. A regulated substance present in soil that causes or threatens to cause an exceedance of the aquifer water quality standards.

3. A regulated substance present in groundwater at levels that would prevent timely reduction of contaminant concentrations in comparison with the performance of active remediation.

4. Any other presence of a regulated substance causing an ongoing source of contamination, as determined by the department.

K. On preapproval by the department or its designated contractor of corrective action costs for small owners, the department or its designated contractor shall encumber monies in the corrective action allocation for that year. If monies are available in the corrective action allocation for that year, reimbursement shall be made when the corrective action for which the monies were encumbered is completed as determined by the department or its designated contractor.

L. If there are insufficient monies to pay for approved corrective actions in any annual corrective action allocation, the department or its designated contractor may preapprove reimbursement of corrective action costs for an owner that is not a small owner without encumbering monies. If monies are available in the corrective action allocation for that year at the end of the corrective action allocation year, reimbursement may be based on the date the corrective action is completed as determined by the department or its designated contractor.

M. If there are insufficient monies to pay for approved corrective action in any annual corrective action allocation, the department shall reimburse the corrective action from the next annual corrective action allocation, with the priority that reimbursements first go to small owners.

N. The department may not accept an application to the underground storage tank revolving fund for reimbursement from an applicant for costs associated with a single facility more frequently than once each calendar month, and the department may not accept an application for costs associated with a single facility for an amount of less than $5,000 unless the reimbursement is the final application associated with the facility.

O. An application for reimbursement pursuant to this section shall be on a form provided by the department and shall contain sufficient information to allow the director to make a determination of priority for that request.

P. For the purposes of this section, "small owner" means an owner that owns fewer than twenty underground storage tank facilities in this state.