State Water Resources Control Board - Proposed Chapter 16 Rewrite Regulations

New UST Regulations: Effective January 1, 2026

• Appendix 1 - Statement of Understanding and Compliance Form
• Appendix 3 - Facility Employee Training Certificate
• Appendix 3.1 - Facility Employee Training Certificate Continuation Page
• Appendix 4 - Designated UST Operator Visual Inspection Report Form
• Appendix 4.1 - Designated UST Operator Visual Inspection Report Containment Sump Inspection Continuation Page
• Appendix 4.2 - Designated UST Operator Visual Inspection Report Spill Containment Inspection Continuation Page
• Appendix 4.3 - Designated UST Operator Visual Inspection Report Under-Dispenser Containment Inspection Continuation Page
• Appendix 5 - Release Detection Equipment Testing Report Form
• Appendix 5.1 - Release Detection Equipment Testing Report Form Sensor Test Results Continuation Page
• Appendix 5.2 - Release Detection Equipment Testing Report Form Line Leak Detector Test Results Continuation Page
• Appendix 6 - Spill Containment Testing Report Form
• Appendix 6.1 - Spill Containment Testing Report Form Continuation Page
• Appendix 7 - Overfill Prevention Equipment Testing Report Form
• Appendix 7.1 - Overfill Prevention Equipment Testing Report Form Continuation Page
• Appendix 8 - Secondary Containment Testing Report Form
• Appendix 8.1 - Secondary Containment Testing Report Form Tank Test Continuation Page
• Appendix 8.2 - Secondary Containment Testing Report Form Pipe Test Continuation Page
• Appendix 8.3 - Secondary Containment Testing Report Form Containment Sump and UDC Test Continuation Page

As this is a complete rewrite of current UST regulations, an unofficial crosswalk has been provided to assist in reviewing the documents.

• Chapter 16 Crosswalk: Proposed Regulations (Unofficial)
• Chapter 16 Crosswalk: Modified Regulations (Unofficial)

• Public Notice: 15-Day Comment Period
• Public Notice: 45-Day Comment Period Extension
• Public Notice: 45-Day Comment Period
• Proposed Regulations
• Current Regulations
• Originally Proposed Regulations
• Modified Regulations
• Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR)
• Final Statement of Reasons (FSOR)
• Revised Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement (Std. Form 399)
• Revised Supplemental Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement
• Preliminary Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement (Std. Form 399)
• Preliminary Supplemental Economic and Fiscal Impact Statement

State Water Board staff held informational webinars during OAL’s formal review to discuss the changes to the UST Regulations, including updates to definitions, certification and licensing requirements, construction, monitoring, and testing standards, and cleanup and closure procedures.

There were five webinars available through Zoom at the following times, with a maximum capacity of 300 participants per session. Each webinar covered the same material.

• October 14, 2025, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. https://waterboards.zoom.us/j/84003663799
• October 16, 2025, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. https://waterboards.zoom.us/j/82141118960
• October 21, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. https://waterboards.zoom.us/j/89923433911
• November 4, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. https://waterboards.zoom.us/j/83327571564
• November 6, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. https://waterboards.zoom.us/j/86836241436

A recording of the webinars is available on the State Water Board’s YouTube channel:

• English
• Hindi
• Spanish
• Vietnamese

Presentation Slides

• Fall Webinars
• Fall Webinars (Hindi)
• Fall Webinars (Spanish)
• Fall Webinars (Vietnamese)

The 45-day written comment period was extended to 55 days and closed Tuesday, January 17, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. The State Water Board reviewed the comments received and made modifications to the regulations or provided responses to the comments based on the feedback received.

The State Water Board held a public hearing at 12:00 p.m. on Monday January 13, 2025, in the Sierra Hearing Room at the Joe Serna Jr./Cal-EPA Headquarters Building, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, California 95814. The Joe Serna Jr./Cal-EPA Headquarters Building is accessible to people with disabilities. The hearing provided the opportunity for any person, either virtually or physically present, to present statements or arguments orally or in writing relevant to the proposed regulatory action described in the Informative Digest/ Policy Statement Overview. The State Water Board encouraged members of the public to bring to the attention of staff in advance of the hearing any suggestions for modifications of the proposed regulations. The State Water Board did not accept oral statements subsequent to the public hearing.

All major regulatory milestones will be distributed through the State Water Board’s GovDelivery email list serv. To receive these notifications, please make sure you are subscribed to the list.

Requests for copies of the text of the regulations, the statement of reasons, or other information upon which the rulemaking was based, or other inquiries should be addressed to the following:

Tom Henderson, Manager
State Water Resources Control Board
Division of Water Quality
1001 "I" Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 319-9128
Tom.Henderson@waterboards.ca.gov

The backup contact person is:

Austin Lemire-Baeten
State Water Resources Control Board
Division of Water Quality
1001 "I" Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 327-5612
Austin.Lemire-Baeten@waterboards.ca.gov