Authority: IC 13-14-8; IC 13-22-2; IC 13-22-8-1; IC 13-22-9-7

Affected: IC 13-22

Sec. 40. (a) A standby trust agreement, as required in section 24(h) of this rule or 329 IAC 3.1-15-8(g) (see 329 IAC 3.1-15-10(n)), must be worded as follows except that the instructions in brackets are to be replaced with the relevant information and the brackets deleted: Standby Trust Agreement

Trust Agreement, the "Agreement", entered into as of [date] by and between [name of the owner or operator], a [name of state] [insert "corporation", "partnership", "association", or "proprietorship"], the "Grantor", and [name of corporate trustee], [insert "incorporated in the state of _________" or "a national bank"], the "Trustee".

Whereas, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), an agency of Indiana, has established certain rules applicable to the Grantor, requiring that an owner or operator of a hazardous waste management facility or group of facilities shall demonstrate financial responsibility for bodily injury and property damage to third parties caused by sudden, nonsudden, or sudden and nonsudden accidental occurrences arising from operations of the facility or group of facilities.

Whereas, the Grantor has elected to establish a standby trust into which the proceeds from a letter-of-credit may be deposited to provide all or part of such financial assurance for the facilities identified herein.

Whereas, the Grantor, acting through its duly authorized officers, has selected the Trustee to be the Trustee under this Agreement, and the Trustee is willing to act as Trustee.

Now, Therefore, the Grantor and the Trustee agree as follows:

Section 1. Definitions. As used in this Agreement:

1. (a) The term "Grantor" means the owner or operator who enters into this Agreement and any successors or assigns of the Grantor.
2. (b) The term "Trustee" means the Trustee who enters into this Agreement and any successor Trustee.

Section 2. Identification of Facilities. This Agreement pertains to the facilities identified on attached Schedule A [on Schedule A, for each facility list the U.S. EPA identification number, name, and address of the facility or facilities and the amount of liability coverage, or portions thereof, if more than one (1) instrument affords combined coverage as demonstrated by this Agreement].

Section 3. Establishment of Fund. The Grantor and the Trustee hereby establish a standby trust fund, the "Fund", for the benefit of any and all third parties injured or damaged by [sudden, nonsudden, or sudden and nonsudden] accidental occurrences arising from the operation of the facility or facilities covered by this guarantee in the amounts of ________________ [up to one million dollars ($1,000,000)] per occurrence and ________________ [up to two million dollars ($2,000,000)] annual aggregate for sudden accidental occurrences and ________________ [up to three million dollars ($3,000,000)] per occurrence and ________________ [up to six million dollars ($6,000,000)] annual aggregate for nonsudden occurrences, except that the Fund is not established for the benefit of third parties for the following:

1. (a) Bodily injury or property damage for which [insert Grantor] is obligated to pay damages by reason of the assumption of liability in a contract or agreement. This exclusion does not apply to liability for damages that [insert Grantor] would be obligated to pay in the absence of the contract or agreement.
2. (b) Any obligation of [insert Grantor] under workers' compensation, disability benefits, unemployment compensation law, or any similar law.

3. (c) Bodily injury to:

   1. (i) an employee of [insert Grantor] arising from and in the course of employment by [insert Grantor]; or
   2. (ii) the spouse, child, parent, brother, or sister of that employee as a consequence of, or arising from, and in the course of employment by [insert Grantor].
4. This exclusion applies whether [insert Grantor] may be liable as an employer or in any other capacity and applies to any obligation to share damages with or repay another person who shall pay damages because of the injury to persons identified in this paragraph.
5. (d) Bodily injury or property damage arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or entrustment to others of any aircraft, motor vehicle, or watercraft.

6. (e) Property damage to any of the following:

   1. (i) Any property owned, rented, or occupied by [insert Grantor].
   2. (ii) Premises that are sold, given away, or abandoned by [insert Grantor] if the property damage arises out of any part of those premises.
   3. (iii) Property loaned to [insert Grantor].
   4. (iv) Personal property in the care, custody, or control of [insert Grantor].
   5. (v) That particular part of real property on which [insert Grantor] or any contractors or subcontractors working directly or indirectly on behalf of [insert Grantor] are performing operations if the property damage arises out of these operations.

In the event of combination with another mechanism for liability coverage, the Fund will be considered [insert "primary" or "excess"] coverage.

The Fund is established initially as consisting of the proceeds of the letter-of-credit deposited into the Fund. Such proceeds and any other property subsequently transferred to the Trustee is referred to as the Fund, together with all earnings and profits therein, less any payments or distributions made by the Trustee pursuant to this Agreement. The Fund must be held by the Trustee, IN TRUST, as hereinafter provided. The Trustee shall neither be responsible nor shall it undertake any responsibility for the amount or adequacy of, nor any duty to collect from the Grantor, any payments necessary to discharge any liabilities of the Grantor established by IDEM.

Section 4. Payment for Bodily Injury or Property Damage. The Trustee shall satisfy a third party liability claim by drawing on the letter-of- credit described in Schedule B and by making payments from the Fund only upon receipt of one (1) of the following documents, either (a) or (b):

1. (a) Certification from the Grantor and the third party claimant or claimants that the liability claim must be paid. The certification must be worded as follows, except that instructions in brackets are to be replaced with the relevant information and the brackets deleted: Certification of Valid Claim
2. The undersigned, as parties [insert Grantor] and [insert name and address of third party claimant or claimants], hereby certify that the claim of bodily injury, property damage, or bodily injury and property damage caused by a [sudden or nonsudden] accidental occurrence arising from operating [Grantor's] hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facility must be paid in the amount of [in words] U.S. dollars $________.
3. [Signature]
4. Grantor______________________________________
5. [Signature or signatures]
6. Claimant or claimants______________________________________
7. (b) A valid final court order establishing a judgment against the Grantor for bodily injury or property damage caused by sudden or nonsudden accidental occurrences arising from the operation of the Grantor's facility or group of facilities.

Section 5. Payments Comprising the Fund. Payments made to the Trustee for the Fund must consist of the proceeds from the letter-of-credit drawn upon by the Trustee in accordance with the requirements of 329 IAC 3.1-14-37 and Section 4 of this Agreement.

Section 6. Trustee Management. The Trustee shall invest and reinvest the principal and income of the Fund in accordance with general investment policies and guidelines that the Grantor may communicate in writing to the Trustee from time to time, subject, however, to the provisions of this section. In investing, reinvesting, exchanging, selling, and managing the Fund, the Trustee shall discharge the duties of the Trustee with respect to the trust fund solely in the interest of the beneficiary and with the care, skill, prudence, and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that persons of prudence, acting in a like capacity and familiar with such matters, would use in the conduct of an enterprise of a like character and with like aims except that:

1. (a) securities or other obligations of the Grantor, or any other owner or operator of the facilities, or any of their affiliates as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, 15 U.S.C. 80a-2(a), must not be acquired or held, unless they are securities or other obligations of the federal or state government;
2. (b) the Trustee is authorized to invest the Fund in time or demand deposits of the Trustee, to the extent insured by an agency of the federal or state government; and
3. (c) the Trustee is authorized to hold cash awaiting investment or distribution uninvested for a reasonable time and without liability for the payment of interest therein.

Section 7. Commingling and Investment. The Trustee is expressly authorized in its discretion:

1. (a) to transfer from time to time any or all of the assets of the Fund to any common, commingled, or collective trust fund created by the Trustee in which the Fund is eligible to participate, subject to all of the provisions thereof, to be commingled with the assets of other trusts participating therein; and
2. (b) to purchase shares in any investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, 15 U.S.C. 80a-1 et seq., including one that may be created, managed, underwritten, or to which investment advice is rendered or the shares of which are sold by the Trustee. The Trustee may vote such shares in its discretion.

Section 8. Express Powers of Trustee. Without in any way limiting the powers and discretions conferred upon the Trustee by the other provisions of this Agreement or by law, the Trustee is expressly authorized and empowered:

1. (a) to sell, exchange, convey, transfer, or otherwise dispose of any property held by it, by public or private sale. No person dealing with the Trustee shall be bound to see to the application of the purchase money or to inquire into the validity or expediency of any such sale or other disposition;
2. (b) to make, execute, acknowledge, and deliver any and all documents of transfer and conveyance and any and all other instruments that may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the powers herein granted;
3. (c) to register any securities held in the Fund in its own name or in the name of a nominee and to hold any security in bearer form or in book entry, or to combine certificates representing such securities with certificates of the same issue held by the Trustee in any other fiduciary capacity, or to deposit or arrange for the deposit of such securities in a qualified central depository even though, when so deposited, such securities may be merged and held in bulk in the name of the nominee of such depository with other securities deposited therein by another person, or to deposit or arrange for the deposit of any securities issued by the United States Government, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, with a Federal Reserve bank, but the books and records of the Trustee must at all times show that all such securities are part of the Fund;
4. (d) to deposit any cash in the Fund in interest-bearing accounts maintained or savings certificates issued by the Trustee, in its separate corporate capacity, or in any other banking institution affiliated with the Trustee, to the extent insured by an agency of the federal or state government; and
5. (e) to compromise or otherwise adjust all claims in favor of or against the Fund.

Section 9. Taxes and Expenses. All taxes of any kind that may be assessed or levied against or in respect of the Fund and all brokerage commissions incurred by the Fund must be paid from the Fund. All other expenses incurred by the Trustee in connection with the administration of this trust, including fees for legal services rendered to the Trustee, the compensation of the Trustee to the extent not paid directly by the Grantor, and all other proper charges and disbursements of the Trustee must be paid from the Fund.

Section 10. Advice of Counsel. The Trustee may from time to time consult with counsel, who may be counsel to the Grantor, with respect to any question arising as to the construction of this Agreement or any action to be taken hereunder. The Trustee shall be fully protected, to the extent permitted by law, in acting upon the advice of counsel.

Section 11. Trustee Compensation. The Trustee shall be entitled to reasonable compensation for its services as agreed upon in writing from time to time with the Grantor.

Section 12. Successor Trustee. The Trustee may resign or the Grantor may replace the Trustee, but such resignation or replacement must not be effective until the Grantor has appointed a successor Trustee and this successor accepts the appointment. The successor Trustee shall have the same powers and duties as those conferred upon the Trustee hereunder. Upon the successor Trustee's acceptance of the appointment, the Trustee shall assign, transfer, and pay over to the successor Trustee the funds and properties then constituting the Fund. If for any reason the Grantor cannot or does not act in the event of the resignation of the Trustee, the Trustee may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction for the appointment of a successor Trustee or for instructions. The successor Trustee shall specify the date on which it assumes administration of the trust in writing sent to the Grantor, the IDEM commissioner, and the present Trustee by certified mail ten (10) days before such change becomes effective. Any expenses incurred by the Trustee as a result of any of the acts contemplated by this section must be paid as provided in Section 9.

Section 13. Instructions to the Trustee. All orders, requests, certifications of valid claims, and instructions by the Grantor to the Trustee must be in writing, signed by such persons as are designated in the attached Exhibit A or such other designees as the Grantor may designate by amendment to Exhibit A. The Trustee shall be fully protected in acting without inquiry in accordance with the Grantor's orders, requests, and instructions. All orders, requests, and instructions by the IDEM commissioner to the Trustee must be in writing, signed by the IDEM commissioner, or designee of the commissioner, and the Trustee shall act and shall be fully protected in acting in accordance with such orders, requests, and instructions. The Trustee shall have the right to assume, in the absence of written notice to the contrary, that no event constituting a change or a termination of the authority of any person to act on behalf of the Grantor or the IDEM hereunder has occurred. The Trustee shall have no duty to act in the absence of such orders, requests, and instructions from the Grantor or IDEM or both except as provided for herein.

Section 14. Amendment of Agreement. This Agreement may be amended by an instrument, in writing, executed by the Grantor, the Trustee, and the IDEM commissioner, or by the Trustee and the IDEM commissioner if the Grantor ceases to exist.

Section 15. Irrevocability and Termination. Subject to the right of the parties to amend this Agreement as provided in Section 14, this trust must be irrevocable and must continue until terminated at the written agreement of the Grantor, the Trustee, and the IDEM commissioner, or by the Trustee and the IDEM commissioner if the Grantor ceases to exist. Upon termination of the trust, all remaining trust property, less final trust administration expenses, must be delivered to the Grantor.

The commissioner will agree to termination of the trust when the owner or operator substitutes alternate financial assurance as specified in this section.

Section 16. Immunity and Indemnification. The Trustee shall not incur personal liability of any nature in connection with any act or omission, made in good faith, in the administration of this trust, or in carrying out any directions by the Grantor or the IDEM commissioner issued in accordance with this Agreement. The Trustee shall be indemnified and saved harmless by the Grantor or from the trust fund, or both, from and against any personal liability to which the Trustee may be subjected by reason of any act or conduct in its official capacity, including all expenses reasonably incurred in its defense in the event the Grantor fails to provide such defense.

Section 17. Choice of Law. This Agreement must be administered, construed, and enforced according to the laws of Indiana.

Section 18. Interpretation. As used in this Agreement, words in the singular include the plural and words in the plural include the singular. The descriptive headings for each section of this Agreement must not affect the interpretation or the legal efficacy of this Agreement.

In Witness Whereof the parties have caused this Agreement to be executed by their respective officers duly authorized and their corporate seals to be hereunto affixed and attested as of the date first above written. The parties below certify that the wording of this Agreement is identical to the wording specified in 329 IAC 3.1-14-40 as such rule was constituted on the date first above written.

[Signature of Grantor]

[Title] Attest:

[Title]

[Seal]

[Signature of Trustee] Attest:

[Title]

[Seal] (Note: Corporate seal is not required by Indiana law.)

(b) The following is an example of the certification of acknowledgement that must accompany the trust agreement for a standby trust fund as specified in 329 IAC 3.1-14-24(h) or 329 IAC 3.1-15-8(g):

Form of certification of acknowledgement.

State of______________________________________

County of______________________________________

On this [date], before me personally came [owner or operator] to me known, who, being by me duly sworn, did depose and say that she/he resides at [address], that she/he is [title] of [corporation], the corporation described in and that executed the above instrument, that she/he knows the seal of said corporation, that the seal affixed to such instrument is such corporate seal, that it was so affixed by order of the Board of Directors of said corporation, and that she/he signed her/his name thereto by like order.

[Signature of Notary Public]

(c) The following is an example of the Indiana form of acknowledgement (Trust agreements notarized in Indiana must use this form of acknowledgement.):

Form of Indiana certification of acknowledgement.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

State of______________________________________

County of______________________________________

Before me, the undersigned, a Notary Public in and for said County and State, personally appeared [owner or operator] to be known by me to be the person who [(only for corporate party)], as [insert title] of _______, Inc., the corporation that executed the foregoing instrument, signed the same and acknowledged to me that he/she did so sign the same [in the name and on behalf of the said corporation as such officer], and the same is his free act and deed [and the free corporate act and deed of said corporation, and that he/she was duly authorized by the Board of Directors of said corporation] and the statements made in the foregoing instrument are true.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have set my hand and official seal this _______ day of ______, 199__. State of:______________________________________ County of residence:______________________________________ Notary Public Commission Expires:______________________________________

(Solid Waste Management Division; 329 IAC 3.1-14-40; filed Apr 1, 1996, 11:00 a.m.: 19 IR 2013; readopted filed Jan 10, 2001, 3:25 p.m.: 24 IR 1535; errata filed May 13, 2021, 3:03 p.m.: 20210609-IR-329210194ACA; readopted filed Oct 16, 2024, 11:58 a.m.: 20241113-IR-329230812RFA)