Hazardous materials management: Rural CUPA Reimbursement Account.

Assembly Member Hadwick's proposal to modify California's hazardous materials management funding would expand access to the Rural CUPA Reimbursement Account for counties with populations under 150,000. The measure removes existing requirements that counties must have achieved Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) status by January 2000 or implemented specific unified program protocols to receive funding.

Under the revised framework, eligible counties could receive allocations based on their population size: up to 75% of budgeted costs for counties under 70,000 residents, 50% for those between 70,000 and 100,000 residents, and 35% for counties with 100,000 to 150,000 residents. The bill institutes a $60,000 cap on total allocations per county and maintains requirements for CUPAs to operate single fee systems that, combined with state funds, cover program implementation costs. These changes would take effect only upon legislative appropriation of necessary funds.

The measure preserves existing provisions requiring CUPAs to conduct workload analyses documenting direct and indirect costs, while using any allocated funds according to implementation agreements with the Secretary for Environmental Protection. Counties must continue obtaining local governing body approval for unified program budgets to qualify for state reimbursement through the account.