(1) A decommissioning warranty shall be subject to immediate forfeiture whenever the department determines that any one of the following circumstances exist:
The licensee has violated an emergency, abatement, or cease-and-desist order or court-ordered injunction or temporary restraining order related to decommissioning, decontamination, or disposal and, if decommissioning, decontamination, or disposal was required in such order, has failed to complete such decommissioning, decontamination, or disposal although reasonable time to have done so has elapsed; or
The licensee is in violation of decommissioning, decontamination, or disposal requirements as specified in the license and the regulations and has failed to cure such violation although the licensee has been given written notice thereof pursuant to section 25-11-107 (5) and has had reasonable time to cure such violation; or
The licensee has failed to provide an acceptable replacement warranty when:
The licensee's financial warrantor no longer has the financial ability to carry out obligations under this article; or
The department has received notice or information that the financial warrantor intends to cancel, terminate, or revoke the warranty; or
The licensee has failed to maintain its financial assurance warranty in good standingas required by section 25-11-110 (6)(a); or
An emergency endangering public health or safety has been caused by or resultedfrom the licensee's use or possession of radioactive materials.
(2) (a) Upon determining that a decommissioning warranty should be forfeited under subsection (1) of this section, the department shall issue to the licensee an order forfeiting the decommissioning warranty. The order shall contain written findings of fact and conclusions of law to support its decision and shall direct affected financial warrantors to deliver to the department the full amounts warranted by applicable decommissioning warranties within not more than thirty days after the date of the order.
(b) The licensee may request a hearing on the order of forfeiture that shall be conducted in accordance with section 24-4-105, C.R.S., and that, if the department alleges in the forfeiture order a violation of a license, regulation, or order, the hearing may be conducted in conjunction with a hearing requested under section 25-11-107 (5). Any request for a hearing pursuant to this part 1 shall be made within twenty days after the date of the order of forfeiture and shall not affect the obligation to submit to the department funds from decommissioning warranties forfeited by such order unless a stay of forfeiture is granted by the department or by administrative or judicial order.
The department may request the attorney general, and the attorney general is authorized, to commence legal proceedings necessary to secure or recover amounts warranted by decommissioning warranties. The attorney general shall have the power to collect, foreclose upon, present for payment, take possession of, or dispose of pledged property, and otherwise reduce to cash any financial assurance arrangement required by this article.
(a) Decommissioning funds recovered by the department pursuant to this section shall be immediately deposited into the decommissioning fund created in section 25-11-113 and shall be used solely for the disposal of radioactive materials for the facility covered by the forfeited financial assurance warranties; the decommissioning and decontamination of buildings, equipment, personal property, and lands covered by the forfeited financial assurance warranties; and to cover the department's reasonable attorney and administrative costs associated with disposal, decommissioning, and decontamination for such facility.
(b) The department or its agent shall have a right to enter property of the licensee to dispose of radioactive materials, decommission, and decontaminate buildings, equipment, personal property, and lands. Upon completion of disposal, decommissioning, and decontamination activities, the department shall present to the licensee a full accounting and shall refund all unspent decommissioning warranty moneys, including interest.
(5) Licensees shall remain liable for the total actual cost of disposal of, decommissioning, and decontaminating affected buildings, equipment, personal property, and lands, less any amounts expended by the department pursuant to subsection (4) of this section, notwithstanding any discharge of applicable financial assurance warranties.
Source: L. 97: Entire section added, p. 1635, § 2, effective August 15.