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Interim Guidance Regarding Criteria Landowners Must Meet in Order to Qualify for Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser, Contiguous Property Owner, or Innocent Landowner Limitations on CERCLA Liability

by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Site Remediation Enforcement

Download: Interim Guidance Regarding Criteria Landowners Must Meet in Order to Qualify for Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser, Contiguous Property Owner, or Innocent Landowner Limitations on CERCLA Liability
(PDF, 375 Kb, 22 pages)

This interim guidance, prepared by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Site Remediation and Enforcement, discusses landowner liability protections included in the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. The document provides EPA personnel with general guidance on the "common elements" of landowner liability protections. Specifically, the document provides guidance on threshold criteria, as well as continuing obligations, that landowners must satisfy in order to qualify for liability protection as: 1) bona fide prospective purchasers, 2) contiguous property owners, or 3) innocent landowners. The guidance first describes the threshold criteria of performing “all appropriate inquiry” and demonstrating no “affiliation” with a liable party. The guidance then discusses the six continuing responsibilities that landowners must fulfill in order to maintain liability protection.