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SB 25-286

Petroleum Products Fees & Penalties

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Shannon Bird and 7 co-sponsors

OPS can levy up to $5,000/day penalties on retailers/distributors selling reformulated gasoline in Colorado nonattainment areas that fail fuel specs, with an affirmative defense.

Governor Signed
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Bill Summary · SB 25-286

SB 25-286 — Petroleum Products Fees & Penalties

Status: Governor signed (June 4, 2025)
Introduced: April 9, 2025
Primary sponsors: Sen. Nick Hinrichsen; Sen. Marc Snyder; Rep. Shannon Bird

Main purpose

Authorize the Division of Oil and Public Safety (OPS) to impose civil penalties for the retail distribution of reformulated gasoline that fails to meet applicable fuel-quality specifications in areas where the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires reformulated gasoline due to air quality (nonattainment) status. The measure also requires OPS to notify affected gas station owners of the penalty.

Key provisions

  • OPS authority to impose civil penalties:
    • When EPA requires the sale of reformulated gasoline in a Colorado nonattainment area, the Director of OPS may assess a civil penalty of up to $5,000 per day for retail distribution of reformulated gasoline that violates the applicable fuel-quality specification.
    • The statute expressly provides an affirmative defense for a retailer or licensed fuel distributor who reasonably relied on a product transfer document that clearly demonstrates a compliant fuel specification.
  • Notification requirement:
    • On or before August 15, 2025, OPS must notify by email any owner of a gas station located in a nonattainment area of the penalty amount established by the statute.
  • Definitions:
    • “Nonattainment area” is defined by reference to section 24-38.5-116(2)(h) (state law cross-reference).
  • Effective and applicability dates:
    • The act’s administrative effective-date clause follows the standard post-adjournment timing (90 days after final adjournment unless a referendum is filed). The statute specifically authorizes OPS actions “on and after August 15, 2025,” and applies to violations committed on or after the applicable effective date.

Who is affected

  • Primary: retail gasoline sellers and licensed fuel distributors operating in EPA-designated nonattainment areas in Colorado.
  • Secondary: Division of Oil and Public Safety (Colorado Department of Labor and Employment) — enforcement and notification responsibilities; Judicial Department — potential, but limited, civil litigation workload.
  • Fiscal recipients: penalty revenues, if collected, are expected to flow to petroleum-related funds (the fiscal notes reference the Petroleum Cleanup Redevelopment Fund); related court filing fees could affect judicial cash funds.

Fiscal and administrative impact

  • Final fiscal analysis (post-enactment) projects:
    • Minimal ongoing state workload for OPS to assess penalties and for courts if cases are litigated.
    • No appropriation required.
    • Potential but uncertain increases in state revenue from assessed civil penalties and filing fees — expected to be modest and subject to TABOR where applicable.
  • Note on earlier drafts: initial fiscal notes and earlier bill drafts proposed additional changes (e.g., using the Petroleum Storage Tank Fund to relocate OPS’s petroleum laboratory and creating other penalty adjustments). These larger expenditure and continuous-appropriation provisions were not part of the final enacted text reflected in the Governor-signed act.

Implementation / timeline highlights

  • OPS must send the statutorily required email notification to affected gas-station owners on or before August 15, 2025.
  • OPS may impose civil penalties for qualifying violations on and after August 15, 2025 (subject to the bill’s overall effective-date clause).
  • The act is subject to referendum timelines; if a referendum petition were filed within the statutory period, the act would not take effect unless approved by voters.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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