Financial Assurance Requirements: Underground Petroleum Storage Tanks

What are the policy period requirements?

The policy effective date must be current, cannot take effect in the future, and cannot be expired.

TCEQ will reject policies that have a future effective date or have expired.

Are handwritten corrections acceptable?

The only handwritten item should be the wet/handwritten signature by the insurance representative.

Anything handwritten on a policy other than a signature can cause TCEQ to reject the financial assurance.

Are the financial assurance documents altered?

Any corrections needed must appear to be a cohesive part of the rest of the financial assurance.

Any appearance of alteration will cause TCEQ to reject the financial assurance.

Can the financial assurance just list the facility name in the named insured or as a DBA under the named insured?

The facility name must be listed in the endorsement, certificate of insurance, or schedule of covered locations and should match TCEQ’s records. The named insured may list the facility name after DBA, but doing so is not required and does not substitute for listing the facility in in the endorsement, certificate of insurance, or schedule of covered locations.

TCEQ will not accept financial assurance that lists the facility name just under the named insured and not in the endorsement, certificate of insurance, or schedule of covered locations.

Can organizational endings such as LLC, CO, Inc, be included in the facility name?

The financial assurance must list the facility name with no organizational ending. The facility name is not the same as the owner/operator’s name. The facility name is chosen by the customer and is an identifier of the facility at a particular address.

The facility name is the same as the tank owner and/or operator name and includes an organizational ending such as LLC, CO, Inc. For example, the facility name is Gas Go Markets, but the financial assurance has the facility name as Gas Go Markets Co.

Is the street type similar?

Street type abbreviations are acceptable. For example, “Hwy” instead of instead of “Highway”, “State Hwy”, or “TX Hwy”.

Street type does not match. For example, “Street” or “St” instead of “Road” or “Rd.”

Does the street direction in the policy match the street direction listed in Section 2?

The street direction (N, S, E, W, NE, SE, NW, SW) must be the same.

• The address can have a singular direction indication (N, S, W, or E) missing.
• The address must include multiple direction indications (NW, SW, NE, SE), if applicable.

• Singular direction indication is incorrect. For example, the financial assurance has “1204 N Main St” instead of “1204 S Main St”.
• Missing multiple direction indication. For example, the address is “1204 SW Main St” and the financial assurance has “1204 Main St”.

Does the address include a suite indicator?

The address listed on the policy must include any applicable suite indicator for the location listed in Section 2. For example, “1204 S Main St Suite (or Ste) A”.

Missing suite indicator. For example, the address is “1204 S Main St Ste A”, but the financial assurance has “1204 S Main St”.

Is the zip code present, and correct?

Listing the zip+4 with no hyphen is acceptable. For example, 787010101.

Zip code is incorrect and/or missing. For example, “1204 S Main St.”

4201 Main St Ste B, Austin TX 78752-3434
(“S” before “Main” is missing but not required)

4201 S Main Rd Ste B, Austin TX 78752-3434
(“Rd” is not the correct street type)

4201 South Main Street Suite B, Austin TX 78752-3434
(South, Street, and Suite are not abbreviated)

4201 N Main St Ste B, Austin TX 78752-3434
(street direction is incorrect)

4201 S Main St Ste B, Austin TX 787523434
(hyphen in zip code is missing but not required)

4201 S Main St, Austin TX 78752-3434
(suite missing)

4201 S Main Street Suite B, Austin TX 78752-3434
(street and suite not abbreviated)

4201 S Main St Ste B, Austin TX 90210
(zip code is incorrect)

4201 S Main St Ste B, Austin TX 78752
(+4 of the zip code is missing but not required)

4201 S Main St Ste B, Austin TX
(zip code is missing)

Do the number of Tank IDs on the 00724 and the number of tanks in the financial assurance need to match?

• The number of tanks listed on the financial assurance must match the number of tanks listed in the self-certification section of the 00724 registration form.
• TCEQ will accept financial assurance that lists different tank identification numbers. For example, Tank IDs are 4A and 4b, but financial assurance lists them as 1A and 1B.

The listed number of tanks on the financial assurance is different than the number of tanks listed in the self-certification section of the 00724 registration form. For example, Tank IDs are 4A and 4B, but the financial assurance listed 1A, 4A and 4B.

Is it ok for the multiple compartment tanks to count towards the number of tanks?

• The financial assurance can list tank compartments as multiple tanks as long as it’s clear that each compartment is listed as a tank.
• TCEQ will accept financial assurance with more than the number of registered tanks, but not with less. For example, the financial assurance lists a single tank that has two compartments (4A and 4B) as 2 tanks.

A facility lists less than the number of “in use” or “temporarily out of service tanks” on their financial assurance. For example, the facility has one single compartment tank and one multiple compartment tank but lists only one tank on the financial assurance.

Does the financial assurance need to list tank details such as capacity or installation dates?

• No, listing such detail is not required.
• If the insurer chooses to list additional tank details, such as tank capacity and installation dates, they must match the same detail on the 00724 registration form.

The financial assurance lists tank details that do not match the 00724 registration form. For example, the tank capacity on the registration for Tank IDs 4A and 4B is 18,000 gallons, but the financial assurance lists 10,000 gallons.

Does the customer’s name have the exact same consecutive letters included in the named insured on the policy?

The named insured can have different spacing and additional characters before or after the name but must have the same constructive letters included. For example, the named insured reads “Gasgo Markets Co.”, “Gas Go Markets Co. DBA ABC Inc.”, or “John Smith & Gas Go Markets Co.”

The named insured is misspelled or has missing letters. For example, the named insured reads as “Gas Go Market Co.” or “Gasgo Market Co.” (missing “s” after “Market”)

Are abbreviations acceptable?

Abbreviations such as ISD for Independent School District or MUD for Municipal Utility District in the named insured are acceptable. For example, Austin ISD instead of Austin Independent School District.

Abbreviated company names. For example, “GGMC” instead of “Gas Go Markets Co.”

Is the customer name listed before “DBA”?

If the named insured has a DBA included, the customer name must be before the DBA. Anything after DBA in the named insured is irrelevant. (See also, DBAs for facility name.) For example, the name insured is Gas Go Markets Co. DBA ABC Inc.

The named insured has the customer name after the DBA. For example, “ABC Inc. DBA Gas Go Markets Co.”

What if the named insured includes another name?

TCEQ will accept financial assurance that lists the consecutive letters of the customer name as part of the named insured. For example, the name insured is “John Sugar & Gas Go Markets Co.”

The named insured does not list all consecutive letters of the customer name. For example, the name insured is “John Sugar & Gas Go” is unacceptable because “Markets Co.” is missing.

Endorsement

“I hereby certify that the wording of this instrument is identical to the wording in 30 TAC §37.835(b)(1)”

Certificate of Insurance

“I hereby certify that the wording of this instrument is identical to the wording in §37.835(b)(2)”

What does the financial test need to contain?

Per 30 TAC §37.825 , the financial test must list the following:

• The name of each facility (matching Section 2 of the 00724 form,)
• The address for each facility (matching Section 2 of the 00724 form,) and
• The TCEQ Facility ID (registration number) unless the financial test covers a local government and uses the wording from 40 CFR 280 listed below.

• For entities other than local governments: the financial test does not have the facility name, the facility address, or the facility ID.
• For local governments: the financial test does not have:
  • the facility name,
  • the facility address, or
  • the facility ID or the wording from 40 CFR 280.

What are the name requirements?

The owner or owner/operator name in Section 1 on the 00724 registration form (aka, the customer name) needs to be the same as the name listed in the first sentence.

• Refer to the requirements under Named Insured on Policy and replace “named insured” with “name in first sentence.”
• If an entity other than the customer name in Section 1 of the 00724 registration form executes the financial test, that entity must execute the financial test as a guarantor and include a corporate guarantee on behalf of the customer. For example, if the owner/operator is Transporter Freight, Inc. but Transporter Corporation executes the financial test, then Transporter Corporation must execute the financial test as a guarantor and include a corporate guarantee on behalf of Transporter Freight, Inc.

The name of the company in the first sentence does not match the owner/operator in Section 1 on the 00724 registration form and no guarantor or corporate guarantee are provided. For example, the owner/operator is Transporter Freight, Inc. and Transporter Corporation executes the financial test by listing Transporter Corporation in the first sentence, but Transporter Corporation does not execute the financial test as a guarantor or include a corporate guarantee on behalf of Transporter Freight, Inc.

Does the financial test have to be submitted with each facility’s renewal?

A customer that uses a financial test for multiple facilities on different renewal schedules must include a copy with every submission throughout the year. Renewals submitted at the same time (within a few days) can include a single copy of the financial test.

A customer that only submits the financial test with a single renewal within the year under the assumption that they will not need to include the financial test again in their subsequent submissions.

Does the financial test need to provide an address for the owner/operator/guarantor?

• TCEQ can accept a financial test that only has the city and state listed for owner/operator/guarantor address.
• If the letterhead of the financial test contains a company address, TCEQ can accept the address in the letterhead in lieu of listing the owner/operator/guarantor address in the first sentence.

No address provided for the owner/operator/guarantor in either the letterhead or the first sentence.

What are the certification requirements?

Unless the financial test is for a local government, the certification in the last paragraph must state, “I hereby certify that the wording of this letter is identical to the wording specified in §37.825…”

The financial test states, “I hereby certify that the wording of this letter is identical to the wording specified in 40 CFR 280.95(d)…”

Who can sign the financial test?

• The person who signs the financial test does not have to have the title “Chief Financial Officer.” The most senior finance employee can sign the financial test. (For instance, a Vice President of Finance/Treasury/Accounting, a Chief Accountant, a Controller, or a County Auditor.)
• The signature on the financial test must be an original (wet) signature.

• Someone other than the most senior finance employee signs the financial test.
• The signer uses e-sign programs such as DocuSign or Adobe eSign for the signature on the financial test.