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Activity is picking up at long-dormant national prior-ity list (NPL) sites nationwide as a result of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Pub. L. No. 117-58,135 Stat. 429 (Nov. 15, 2021) (Infrastructure Law), and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, Pub. L. No. 117-169, 136 Stat. 1818 (Aug. 16, 2022) (IRA).
The Infrastructure Law provided S3.5 billion in Compre-hensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) program appropriations (135 Stat. 1398) and reinstated the Hazardous Substance Superfund Trust Fund (Superfund) chemical taxes (section 80201, 135 Stat. 1328). The IRA reinstated the Superfund petroleum taxes (section 13601, 136 Stat. 1981). The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that through 2031, the Superfund chemical tax will generate $14.45 billion in revenue and the Superfund petroleum tax will generate an additional SI 1.72 billion in revenue, all of which must be dedicated to the Superfund and will vastly expand cleanup funds available to EPA.
The Infrastructure Laws S3.5 billion in new funding, which EPA is obligating at a rate of SI billion per year, eliminated the prior backlog of over 40 unfunded construction-ready projects, started cleanups at new construction-ready sites, and expedited ongoing cleanups. In 2022, using the initial SI billion, EPA started 81 new EPA-led nonfederal cleanups. EPA Press Release (Feb. 10, 2023). By way of comparison, EPA averaged just under 30 nonfederal EPA-led cleanups starts per year from 2000-
2021. See EPA Superfund Remedial Annual Accomplishments Reports; see also Katherine Probst, Superfund 2017: Cleanup Accomplishments and the Challenges Ahead (2017). In 2023, EPA used the second SI billion obligation to start new cleanups on another 22 superfund sites, as well as expediting cleanups at another 100 sites. EPA Press Release, supra.
A perk included in the Infrastructure Law waived state cost-share requirements relating to the S3.5 billion appropriation. Generally, 10% of EPA-led cleanup costs are required to be paid by the...