KRS 353.592: Powers of the department.

In addition to the powers conferred upon the department by KRS 353.500 to 353.720 and

notwithstanding any provision of KRS 353.500 to 353.720, the department is authorized

but not obligated to develop and promulgate a regulatory program for the purpose of

accepting primary responsibility for administration of the Underground Injection Control

Program under Section 1425 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (Public Law 93 -523 as

amended). To that end, the department shall include in any regulatory program developed

and promulgated under this provision:

(1) Regulations regarding the drilling, casing, operation, plugging, construction,

conversion, maintenance, and abandonment of class II wells to protect underground

sources of drinking water and to prevent their endangerment;

(2) Regulations prohibiting underground injection through class II wells except as

authorized by such regulations or by a permit issued pursuant thereto;

(3) Regulations requiring owners or operators of class II wells to demonstrate financial

responsibility for the costs of closure of all class II wells. Such demonstration of

financial responsibility may include but need not be limited to the well plugging

bond required by KRS 353.590(7) and (12);

(4) Regulations providing for reasonable public not ice of applications for permits for

class II wells and providing for public participation in the issuance of such permits;

(5) Regulations establishing a schedule of fees for the mechanical integrity testing and

periodic registration of class II wells to b e paid by the owners or operators thereof.

The schedule of fees shall be based upon the reasonable cost to the department of

administering the underground injection control program. The regulations may

provide for the collection of a fee prior to delegatio n of authority by the Federal

Environmental Protection Agency which shall be refunded by the department if the

department does not receive said delegation.

No regulation promulgated pursuant to this section shall authorize the endangerment of

an undergroun d source of drinking water or be more stringent than regulations

promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the Underground

Injection Control Program of the Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C. sec. 300f et seq.