ARTICLE 5.5. Financial Responsibility [8670.37.51. - 8670.37.58.]

Cal. Government Code - GOV 5.5.

in effect

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.51. Section 8670.37.51.

(a) A tank vessel or vessel carrying oil as a secondary cargo shall not be used to transport oil across waters of the state unless the owner or operator has applied for and obtained a certificate of financial responsibility issued by the administrator for that vessel or for the owner of all of the oil contained in and to be transferred to or from that vessel. (b) An operator of a marine terminal within the state shall not transfer oil to or from a tank vessel or vessel carrying oil as a secondary cargo unless the operator of the marine terminal has received a copy of a certificate of financial responsibility issued by the administrator for the operator of that vessel or for all of the oil contained in and to be transferred to or from that vessel. (c) An operator of a marine terminal within the state shall not transfer oil to or from any vessel that is or is intended to be used for transporting oil as cargo to or from a second vessel unless the operator of the marine terminal has first received a copy of a certificate of financial responsibility issued by the administrator for the person responsible for both the first and second vessels or all of the oil contained in both vessels, as well as all the oil to be transferred to or from both vessels. (d) (1) An owner or operator of a facility where a spill could impact waters of the state shall apply for and obtain a certificate of financial responsibility issued by the administrator for the facility or the oil to be handled, stored, or transported by the facility. (2) The administrator shall publicly post on the Office of Spill Prevention and Response internet website a list of all applications for certificates of financial responsibility submitted by facility owners and operators. The posting shall include the legal name of the applicant, the name and reasonable worst case spill volume of the facility to be covered by the certificate, the amount of financial responsibility demonstrated, and the type of evidence furnished to demonstrate the financial responsibility. The administrator shall post this information within seven business days of receiving an application. (3) Commencing January 15, 2027, and at least once every 10 years thereafter, in order to increase public participation, the administrator shall solicit public input regarding the appropriateness of the financial responsibility requirements for facilities. Based on this feedback, the administrator shall review and, as appropriate, revise the criteria and formulas for calculating the financial assurances and setting the maximum amount of a certificate of financial responsibility necessary to respond to an oil spill to reflect the best available information, pursuant to the rulemaking requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3), which includes a public notice and comment process. (e) Pursuant to Section 8670.37.58, nontank vessels shall obtain a certificate of financial responsibility.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.52. Section 8670.37.52.

The certificate of financial responsibility shall be conclusive evidence that the person or entity holding the certificate is the party responsible for the specified vessel, facility, or oil for purposes of determining liability pursuant to this chapter.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.53. Section 8670.37.53.

(a) To receive a certificate of financial responsibility for a tank vessel or for all of the oil contained within that vessel, the applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the administrator the financial ability to pay at least one billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) for any damages that may arise during the term of the certificate. (b) The administrator may establish a lower standard of financial responsibility for small tank barges, vessels carrying oil as a secondary cargo, and small marine fueling facilities. The standard shall be based on the quantity of oil that can be carried or stored and the risk of spill into waters of the state. The administrator shall not set a standard that is less than the expected costs from a reasonable worst case oil spill into waters of the state. (c) (1) To receive a certificate of financial responsibility for a facility, the applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the administrator the financial ability to pay for any damages that might arise during a reasonable worst case oil spill into waters of the state that results from the operations of the facility. The administrator shall consider criteria including, but not necessarily limited to, the amount of oil that could be spilled into waters of the state from the facility, the cost of cleaning up spilled oil, the frequency of operations at the facility, and the damages that could result from a spill. (2) The administrator shall adopt regulations to implement this section.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.54. Section 8670.37.54.

(a) For the purposes of this chapter, financial responsibility may be demonstrated by evidence of insurance, surety bond, letter of credit, qualifications as a self-insurer, or any combination thereof or other evidence of financial responsibility. (b) In adopting requirements under this article, the administrator may specify policy or other contractual terms, conditions, or defenses which are necessary or which are unacceptable in establishing evidence of financial responsibility, in order to effectuate the purposes of this article.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.55. Section 8670.37.55.

(a) An owner or operator of more than one tank vessel, vessel carrying oil as a secondary cargo, nontank vessel, or facility shall only be required to obtain one certificate of financial responsibility for all of those vessels and facilities owned or operated. (b) If a person holds a certificate for more than one tank vessel, vessel carrying oil as a secondary cargo, nontank vessel, or facility and a spill or spills occurs from one or more of those vessels or facilities for which the owner or operator may be liable for damages in an amount exceeding 5 percent of the financial resources reflected by the certificate, as determined by the administrator, the certificate shall immediately be considered inapplicable to any vessel or facility not associated with the spill. In that event, the owner or operator shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the administrator the amount of financial ability required pursuant to this article, as well as the financial ability to pay all damages that arise or have arisen from the spill or spills that have occurred.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.56. Section 8670.37.56.

If the administrator determines that, because of a spill outside of the state or some other action or potential liability, the holder of a certificate may not have the financial resources to pay damages for the spill or liability and have resources remaining available to meet the requirements of this chapter, the administrator may suspend the certificate.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.57. Section 8670.37.57.

No certificate of financial responsibility shall have a term greater than two years. The administrator may issue certificates for shorter periods where appropriate.

Cal. Government Code - GOV § 8670.37.58. Section 8670.37.58.

(a) A nontank vessel shall not enter waters of the state unless the nontank vessel owner or operator has provided to the administrator evidence of financial responsibility that demonstrates, to the administrator’s satisfaction, the ability to pay at least three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) to cover damages caused by a spill, and the owner or operator of the nontank vessel has obtained a certificate of financial responsibility from the administrator for the nontank vessel. (b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the administrator may establish a lower standard of financial responsibility for a nontank vessel that has a carrying capacity of 6,500 barrels of oil or less, or for a nontank vessel that is owned and operated by California or a federal agency and has a carrying capacity of 7,500 barrels of oil or less. The standard shall be based upon the quantity of oil that can be carried by the nontank vessel and the risk of an oil spill into waters of the state. The administrator shall not set a standard that is less than the expected cleanup costs and damages from an oil spill into waters of the state. (c) A nontank vessel fee shall be submitted along with the application for the certificate, as required pursuant to Section 8670.41. (d) The administrator may adopt regulations to implement this section.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026