[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 40, Volume 24]
[Revised as of January 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 40CFR304.30]

[Page 363-365]
 
                   TITLE 40--PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT
 
         CHAPTER I--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED)
 
PART 304--ARBITRATION PROCEDURES FOR SMALL SUPERFUND COST RECOVERY CLAIMS--Table of Contents
 
                Subpart C--Hearings Before the Arbitrator
 
Sec. 304.30  Filing of pleadings.


    (a) Discovery shall be in accordance with this section and 
Sec. 304.31 of this part.
    (b) Within thirty days after receipt of the notice of appointment of 
the Arbitrator (see Sec. 304.22 of this part), EPA shall submit to the 
Arbitrator two copies of a written statement and shall serve a copy of 
the written statement

[[Page 364]]

upon all other parties. The written statement shall in all cases include 
the information requested in paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(6), and (b)(7) of 
this section, shall include the information requested in paragraph 
(b)(2) of this section if the issue of liability of any participating 
PRP has been submitted for resolution, shall include the information 
requested in paragraph (b)(3) of this section if any issue concerning 
the adequacy of EPA's response action has been submitted for resolution 
or may arise during the Arbitrator's determination of the dollar amount 
of response costs recoverable by EPA, shall include the information 
requested in paragraph (b)(4) of this section if the issue of the dollar 
amount of response costs recoverable by EPA has been submitted for 
resolution, and shall include the information requested in paragraph 
(b)(5) of this section if any issue concerning allocation of liability 
for payment of EPA's award has been submitted for resolution.
    (1) A statement of facts, including a description of the facility, 
the EPA response action taken at the facility, the response costs 
incurred and to be incurred by the United States in connection with the 
response action taken at the facility, and the parties;
    (2) A description of the evidence in support of the following four 
elements of liability of the participating PRP(s) whose liability 
pursuant to section 107(a) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607(a), is at issue, 
and any supporting documentation therefor:
    (i) The site at which EPA's response action was taken is a facility 
as defined by section 101(9) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9601(9);
    (ii) There was a release or threat of release within the meaning of 
sections 101(22) and 104(a) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9601(22) and 9604(a), 
of a hazardous substance as defined by section 101(14) of CERCLA, 42 
U.S.C 9601(14), at the facility at which EPA's response action was 
taken;
    (iii) The release or threat of release caused the United States to 
incur response costs as defined in Sec. 304.12(o) of this part; and
    (iv) The participating PRP is in one of the categories of liable 
parties in section 107(a) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607(a);
    (3) An index of any documents which formed the basis for the 
selection of the response action taken at the facility (all indexed 
documents shall be made available to any participating PRP);
    (4) A summary, broken down by category, of all response costs 
incurred and to be incurred by the United States in connection with the 
response action taken by EPA at the facility (supporting documentation 
for the summary shall be made available to any participating PRP 
pursuant to the procedures described in Rule 1006 of the Federal Rules 
of Evidence);
    (5) To the extent such information is available, the names and 
addresses of all identified PRPs for the facility, the volume and nature 
of the substances contributed to the facility by each identified PRP, 
and a ranking by volume of the substances contributed to the facility;
    (6) A recommended location for the pre-hearing conference and the 
arbitral hearing; and
    (7) Any other statement or documentation that EPA deems necessary to 
support its claim.
    (c) Within thirty days after receipt of EPA's written statement, 
each participating PRP shall submit to the Arbitrator two copies of an 
answer and shall serve a copy of the answer upon all other parties. The 
answer shall in all cases include the information requested in 
paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(6), and (c)(7) of this section, shall include the 
information requested in paragraph (c)(2) of this section if the issue 
of the liability of the answering participating PRP has been submitted 
for resolution, shall include the information requested in paragraph 
(c)(3) of this section if any issue concerning the adequacy of EPA's 
response action has been submitted for resolution or may arise during 
the Arbitrator's determination of the dollar amount of response costs 
recoverable by EPA, shall include the information requested in paragraph 
(c)(4) of this section if the issue of the dollar amount of response 
costs recoverable by EPA has been submitted for resolution, and shall 
include the information requested in paragraph (c)(5) of this

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section if any issue concerning the allocation of responsibility for 
payment of EPA's award has been submitted for resolution:
    (1) Any objections to the statement of facts in EPA's written 
statement, and, if so, a counterstatement of facts;
    (2) Any objections to EPA's position on the liability of the 
answering participating PRP pursuant to section 107(a) of CERCLA, 42 
U.S.C. 9607(a), a description of the evidence in support of the defenses 
to liability of the answering participating PRP which are specifically 
enumerated in section 107(b) of CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. 9607(b) (i.e., that 
the release or threat of release of a hazardous substance at the 
facility was caused solely by an act of God, an act of war, an act or 
omission of an unrelated third party, or any combination thereof), and 
any supporting documentation thereof;
    (3) Any objections to the response action taken by EPA at the 
facility based upon any documents which formed the basis for the 
selection of the response action;
    (4) Any objections to EPA's summary and supporting documentation for 
all response costs incurred and to be incurred by the United States in 
connection with the response action taken by EPA at the facility;
    (5) Any documentation which the participating PRP deems relevant to 
the allocation of responsibility for payment of EPA's award.
    (6) A recommended location for the pre-hearing conference and the 
arbitral hearing; and
    (7) Any other statement or documentation that the participating PRP 
deems necessary to support its claim.
    (d) EPA may file a response to any participating PRP's answer within 
twenty days of receipt of such answer. Two copies of any such response 
shall be served upon the Arbitrator, and a copy of any such response 
shall be served upon all parties.
    (e) If EPA files a response, any participating PRP may file a reply 
thereto within ten days after receipt of such response. Two copies of 
any such reply shall be served upon the Arbitrator, and a copy of any 
such reply shall be served upon all parties.