SECTION 4.445. Persons Released from Liability

(a) A person who is not a responsible person, as that term is defined in §4.405 of this title (relating to Definitions), at the time the person applies to participate in a voluntary cleanup does not become a responsible person solely because the person signs the application or the voluntary cleanup agreement.

(b) A participant who is not a responsible person at the time the Commission issues a certificate of completion under §4.440 of this title (relating to Certificate of Completion and Conditional Certificate of Completion) is released, as of the date of the certificate, from all liability to the state for cleanup of contaminants specified in the voluntary cleanup agreement for areas of the site covered by the certificate, except for releases and consequences that the participant causes.

(c) The release from liability provided by this subchapter does not apply to a person who:

(1) caused or contributed to the contamination at the site covered by the certificate;

(2) acquires a certificate of completion by fraud, misrepresentation, or knowing failure to disclose material information;

(3) knows at the time the person acquires an interest in the site for which the certificate of completion was issued that the certificate was acquired by fraud, misrepresentation, or knowing failure to disclose material information; or

(4) changes the land use from the use specified in the certificate of completion if the new use may result in increased risks to human health or the environment.

Source Note: The provisions of this §4.445 adopted to be effective June 10, 2002, 27 TexReg 4936