§ 6603j. Curbside collection of waste oil

(a) Municipalities that have more than 4,000 residents or that have mandatory curbside collection of recyclables shall be eligible for State grants under this section if they implement a program for the curbside collection of used oil by July 1, 1996. A private hauler that, by July 1, 1996, implements or participates in a program for the curbside collection of used oil shall be eligible if the private hauler serves a community or group of communities with a population of more than 4,000 or serves a community with mandatory curbside collection of recyclables. Eligibility in all cases shall depend upon the municipality's or the hauler's compliance with all State program requirements and upon the taking of all necessary precautions to minimize contamination while collecting used oil.

(b) Municipalities that provide curbside collection services as specified in subsection (a) of this section, and private haulers that provide such services may apply to the Secretary for grants under this subsection. Financial assistance may be provided in the form of grants to compensate up to 60 percent of the costs incurred:

(1) to retrofit collection vehicles to collect used oil at the curb (in an amount not to exceed $360.00 per truck); and

(2) to purchase pumps necessary to transfer oil from collection vehicles to the larger aggregation container (in an amount not to exceed $300.00 per pump), as part of the operations of a used oil collection program that is part of the State program.

(c) Funding for this program shall come from the Petroleum Cleanup Fund, from which funds may be disbursed for this purpose in addition to those purposes authorized under 10 V.S.A. § 1941. The Secretary shall allocate grants under this section in amounts totalling not more than $20,000.00 per year, after consulting with the technical advisory committee on solid waste, and after establishing equitable limits on the number of grants that may be awarded, under this section, to particular areas of the State.

(d) Recipients of grants under this section, for a period of three years from the date of receipt of the grant, shall be required to provide to their customers, on a quarterly basis, information that encourages those customers to participate in the curbside used oil collection program.

(e) The Secretary may adopt rules establishing criteria for eligible collection programs and rules to manage grant allocation under this section. (Added 1993, No. 220 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)