2018 Louisiana Laws
Revised Statutes
TITLE 30 - Minerals, Oil, and Gas and Environmental Quality
RS 30:2489 - Reimbursement of fund
§2489. Reimbursement of fund
A. The coordinator shall diligently pursue reimbursement to the fund of any sum expended or paid from the fund in accordance with the state and national oil spill contingency plans.
B. The coordinator shall recover for the use of the fund, either from persons responsible for the unauthorized discharge or otherwise liable, or from the federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, all sums owed to or expended from the fund. The coordinator, on behalf of the state of Louisiana and the trustees, shall seek reimbursement from the federal fund for damages to natural resources in excess of the liability limits prescribed by this Chapter. If that request is denied or additional money is required following receipt of the federal money, the coordinator has the authority to pay the requested reimbursement from the fund for a period of two years from the date the federal fund grants or denies the request for reimbursement.
C. In any action to recover such sums, the coordinator shall submit to the court a written report of the amounts paid from or owed by the fund to claimants. The amounts paid from or owed by the fund to the claimants stated in the report shall create a rebuttable presumption of the amount of the fund's damages. The written report shall be admissible in evidence.
D. The coordinator shall ensure that there will be no double recovery of damages or response costs.
Acts 1991, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 7, §1, eff. April 23, 1991; Acts 1995, No. 740, §1.
