Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 100 Part 2.djvu/530

 100 STAT. 1632

PUBLIC LAW 99-499—OCT. 17, 1986

six years" and inserting in lieu thereof "as quickly as can reasonably be achieved but in no event more than 4 years". (c) DIRECT AcTiON; LiABiliTY.—Subsections (c) and (d) of section 108 of CERCLA are amended to read as follows:

Claims. 42 USC 9608.

"(c) DIRECT ACTION.— ^* "(1) RELEASES FROM VESSELS.—In

the case of a release or • '• ^ threatened release from a vessel, any claim authorized by section 107 or 111 may be asserted directly against any guarantor providing evidence of financial responsibility for such vessel under subsection (a). In defending such a claim, the guarantor " may invoke all rights and defenses which would be available to ^' the owner or operator under this title. The guarantor may also «> invoke the defense that the incident was caused by the willful ^ • misconduct of the owner or operator, but the guarantor may not invoke any other defense that the guarantor might have been entitled to invoke in a proceeding brought by the owner or operator against him. "(2) RELEASES FROM FACILITIES.—In the case of a release or threatened release from a facility, any claim authorized by section 107 or 111 may be asserted directly against any guarantor providing evidence of financial responsibility for such facility under subsection 0)), if the person liable under section 107 is in bankruptcy, reorganization, or arrangement pursuant to the 11 USC 101 et Federal Bankruptcy Code, or if, with reasonable diligence, juris««9diction in the Federal courts cannot be obtained over a person liable under section 107 who is likely to be solvent at the time of . judgment. In the case of any action pursuant to this paragraph, the guarantor shall be entitled to invoke all rights and defenses which would have been available to the person liable under section 107 if any action had been brought against such person by the claimant and all rights and defenses which would have been available to the guarantor if an action had been brought against the guarantor by such person. fl

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42 USC 9603.

"(d) LIMITATION OF GUARANTOR LIABILITY.—

"(1) TOTAL LIABILITY.—The total liability of any guarantor in a direct action suit brought under this section shall be limited to the aggregate amount of the monetary limits of the policy of insurance, guarantee, surety bond, letter of credit, or similar instrument obtained from the guarantor by the person subject to liability under section 107 for the purpose of satisfying the requirement for evidence of financial responsibility. "(2) OTHER LIABILITY.—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit any other State or Federal statutory, contractual, or common law liability of a guarantor, including, but not limited to, the liability of such guarantor for bad faith either in negotiating or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any claim. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed, interpreted, or applied to diminish the liability of any person under section 107 of this Act or other applicable law.". SEC. 109. PENALTIES. (a) VIOLATIONS AND CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—

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(1) NOTICE.—Section 103(b) of CERCLA is amended as follows: (A) Insert after "knowledge of such release" the following: "or who submits in such a notification any information which he knows to be false or misleading".

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