Underground Storage Tanks | Notice of Proposed Rules Amendment | Comment Period Ends September 19, 2025
Rulemaking Background
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is proposing several amendments to Title 17, chapter 56 of the Administrative Rules of Montana, pertaining to the Montana Underground Storage Tank Act at Title 75, chapter 11, part 5, MCA.
The most significant of these changes is an increase to the tank registration fees.
Passage of SB46 during the 2025 Legislative Session increased the allowable annual fee caps for small and large tanks. However, while the fee caps are set by the legislature in state law, the fees themselves are set in rule by DEQ. The current fee was set in 2003, and inflation has far outpaced what the fees cover. DEQ is proposing to raise the annual fee for small tanks from $36 to $55, and the annual fee for large tanks from $108 to $165. These increases will bring the fees to levels necessary to maintain DEQ’s ability to administer the Underground Storage Tank Permitting Program as intended by the Montana Legislature.
The department additionally proposes to amend the licensing period from annual to triennial as described in 17.56.1404 subsection (2)(b). This change was inadvertently omitted from the rule making completed by the department in 2024. The licensing fee was properly adjusted in 2024, but the department neglected to update the licensing duration from annual to triennial in this section of rule.
Associated Materials:
Comment Period Ends: September 19, 2025
Send/Submit Comments To:
ATTN: MAR Notice 2025-205.1
Department of Environmental Quality
PO Box 200901
Helena, MT 59620
Fax: (406) 444-4386
Or electronically to: DEQRULEMAKING205@mt.gov
Accommodation statement
The department will make reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities who wish to participate in this public participation process or need an alternative accessible format of this notice. If you require an accommodation, contact the department no later than 5:00 P.M. on September 9, 2025, to advise us of the nature of the accommodation that you need. Please contact the Department of Environmental Quality at P.O. Box 200901, Helena, Montana 59620-0901; phone (406) 444-2802; or e-mail DEQRULEMAKING205@mt.gov.Tags: Public Comment and Rule Making