[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1285 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1285

 To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
     Liability Act of 1980 to provide a specific definition of the 
  requirement that a purchaser of real property make all appropriate 
 inquiry into the previous ownership and uses of the real property in 
        order to qualify for the ``innocent landowner'' defense.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 21, 1995

 Mr. Weldon of Pennsylvania (for himself and Mr. Upton) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in 
 addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
     Liability Act of 1980 to provide a specific definition of the 
  requirement that a purchaser of real property make all appropriate 
 inquiry into the previous ownership and uses of the real property in 
        order to qualify for the ``innocent landowner'' defense.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Innocent Landowner Defense Amendment 
of 1995''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO SUPERFUND PERTAINING TO INNOCENT LANDOWNER 
              DEFENSE.

    Section 101(35) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) is 
amended by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as subparagraphs (D) 
and (E), respectively, and inserting after subparagraph (B) the 
following:
    ``(C)(i) A defendant who has acquired real property shall have 
established a rebuttable presumption that he has made all appropriate 
inquiry within the meaning of subparagraph (B) if he establishes that, 
immediately prior to or at the time of acquisition, he obtained a Phase 
I Environmental Audit of the real property which meets the requirements 
of this subparagraph.
    ``(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the term `environmental 
professional' means an individual, or an entity managed or controlled 
by such individual who, through academic training, occupational 
experience and reputation (such as engineers, environmental consultants 
and attorneys), can objectively conduct one or more aspects of a Phase 
I Environmental Audit. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term 
`Phase I Environmental Audit' means an investigation of the real 
property, conducted by environmental professionals, to determine or 
discover the obviousness of the presence or likely presence of a 
release or threatened release of hazardous substances on the real 
property and which consists of a review of each of the following 
sources of information concerning the previous ownership and uses of 
the real property:
            ``(I) Recorded chain of title documents regarding the real 
        property, including all deeds, easements, leases, restrictions, 
        and covenants for a period of 50 years.
            ``(II) Aerial photographs which may reflect prior uses of 
        the real property and which are reasonably obtainable through 
        State or local government agencies.
            ``(III) Determination of the existence of recorded 
        environmental cleanup liens against the real property which 
        have arisen pursuant to Federal, State, and local statutes.
            ``(IV) Reasonably obtainable Federal, State, and local 
        government records of sites or facilities where there has been 
        a release of hazardous substances and which are likely to cause 
        or contribute to a release or threatened release of hazardous 
        substances on the real property, including investigation 
        reports for such sites or facilities; reasonably obtainable 
        Federal, State, and local government environmental records of 
        activities likely to cause or contribute to a release or a 
        threatened release of hazardous substances on the real 
        property, including landfill and other disposal location 
        records, underground storage tank records, hazardous waste 
        handler and generator records and spill reporting records; and 
        such other reasonably obtainable Federal, State, and local 
        government environmental records which report incidents or 
        activities which are likely to cause or contribute to a release 
        or threatened release of hazardous substances on the real 
        property. A record is considered to be reasonably obtainable 
        for purposes of this subclause if a copy or reasonable 
        facsimile of the record is obtainable from the government 
        agency by request.
            ``(V) A visual site inspection of the real property and all 
        facilities and improvements on the real property, and a visual 
        inspection of immediately adjacent properties from the real 
        property, including an investigation of any chemical use, 
        storage, treatment and disposal practices on the property.
    ``(iii) No presumption shall arise under clause (i) unless the 
defendant has maintained a compilation of the information reviewed in 
the course of the Phase I Environmental Audit.
    ``(iv) Notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, if 
the Phase I Environmental Audit discloses the presence or likely 
presence of a release or threatened release of hazardous substances on 
the real property to be acquired, no presumption shall arise under 
clause (i) with respect to such release or threatened release unless 
the defendant has taken reasonable steps, in accordance with current 
technology available, existing regulations, and generally acceptable 
engineering practices, as may be necessary to confirm the absence of 
such release or threatened release.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    Subparagraph (C) of section 101(35) of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as 
added by section 2, shall take effect on the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
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