NY Agric & Mkts L § 192-C (2021)
2021 New York Laws AGM - Agriculture and Markets Article 16 - Weights and Measures 192-C - Motor Fuel Standards and Labelling; Grade of Diesel Fuel; Alcohol Content.

§ 192-c.  Motor  fuel  standards  and labelling; grade of diesel fuel; alcohol content. 1. As used in this section, the following  terms  shall have the following meanings:   a.  "Co-solvent"  means an alcohol with a higher molecular weight than methanol which is blended with methanol to prevent phase  separation  in gasoline.   b.  "Diesel  motor fuel" means any fuel sold in this state and for use in diesel engines which is commercially known or  offered  for  sale  as diesel motor fuel.   c. "Cetane rating" means the property of a diesel motor fuel expressed as  a  number  determined  pursuant  to a method adopted by the American Society  of  Testing  and  Materials,  concerning  the  fuel's  ignition properties.   d.  "Gasoline"  means  any fuel sold in this state for use in internal combustion engines which is commercially known or offered  for  sale  as gasoline.   e.  "Refiner"  means  a  person, firm or corporation who owns, leases, operates, controls or supervises a commercial entity producing  gasoline or diesel motor fuel.   f.  "Distributor" means any person, firm or corporation who purchases, transports, stores or causes the transportation or storage  of  gasoline or diesel motor fuel at any point between commercial entities.   g.  "Reseller"  means  any person who purchases gasoline identified by the corporate, trade or brand name of a refiner from such refiner  or  a distributor  and  resells  or  transfers  it  to  retailers or wholesale purchaser-consumers displaying the refiner's brands, and whose assets or facilities are not substantially owned, leased  or  controlled  by  such refiner.   h.  "Retailer"  means  a person, firm or corporation who owns, leases, operates, controls or supervises a commercial entity at  which  gasoline or diesel motor fuel is sold or offered for sale to the general public.   i.  "Wholesale  purchaser-consumer"  means any organization that is an ultimate consumer of gasoline and which purchases  or  obtains  gasoline from  a supplier for use in motor vehicles and receives delivery of that product into a storage tank which has a capacity of five  hundred  fifty gallons  or  more  and  is  substantially  under  the  control  of  that organization.   j. "Ultimate purchaser" means the first person who purchases  gasoline for purposes other than resale.   2. No refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer shall transfer, sell, dispense  or offer any grade of diesel motor fuel for sale in this state unless said diesel motor fuel meets  the  standards  and  specifications established   for   such  product  by  regulations  promulgated  by  the commissioner or by the commissioner of environmental conservation, after due notice and public hearing.  No  refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or retailer  shall  transfer,  sell, dispense or offer gasoline for sale in this state unless said gasoline meets the standards and  specifications, other  than  those  relating to octane and lead content, established for such product by regulations promulgated by the commissioner  or  by  the commissioner  of environmental conservation, after due notice and public hearing.   3. a. A refiner, distributor or reseller shall not transfer,  sell  or dispense  gasoline  for  sale  in  this  state without delivering to the purchaser a bill, invoice or other instrument evidencing the transaction which shall indicate:  (i) the presence of methanol and co-solvent, each as a  percentage  of the  total  volume,  if the quantity of methanol exceeds three-tenths of one percent; and  (ii) the presence of ethanol, as a percentage of the total volume,  if such quantity exceeds one percent of the total volume.   b.  A  refiner,  distributor  or  reseller shall not transfer, sell or dispense diesel motor fuel in  this  state  without  delivering  to  the purchaser a bill, invoice or other instrument evidencing the transaction which shall indicate the grade of such diesel motor fuel.   c.  For  the  purposes  of this section, the instrument evidencing the transaction  shall  be  on  such  form  as  may  be  required   by   the commissioner.  The  commissioner  shall  consult  with the department of taxation and finance and to the extent practicable, the  form  used  for certification  of  prepayment of the sales tax and payment of motor fuel tax shall be modified and adapted for this purpose, such that said  form shall indicate the brand, type and quality of each product delivered.   4.  a.  A  refiner,  distributor or reseller shall not transfer, sell, dispense, or offer gasoline or diesel motor fuel for sale in this  state to  a  retailer  unless the refiner, distributor or reseller provides to the  retailer  the  materials  necessary  to  comply  with  the  posting requirements contained in this section.   b.  It  shall  be  a  defense  to any violation of paragraph a of this subdivision that a refiner, distributor or reseller, if acting  in  good faith,  had  reasonable  cause  to  believe  that  the  retailer had the materials necessary to comply with the posting requirements contained in this section. No common carrier shall be held liable for  any  violation of  paragraph  a  of  this  subdivision to the extent that the materials necessary to comply with such posting requirements were not  transferred to  him  or  her  or his or her agent along with such gasoline or diesel motor fuel.   c. Each retailer shall record, for each day during which  gasoline  or diesel  motor fuel is sold or offered for sale to the general public the cumulative gallon meter readings for each  retail  petroleum  dispensing device  and  the volume contained in each gasoline and diesel motor fuel storage tank. These records shall be maintained  for  a  period  of  one year.   5.  a.  A  retailer  or reseller shall not transfer, sell, dispense or offer gasoline for sale in this state if it contains more than:  (i) one percent by total volume of ethanol unless the retail petroleum dispensing device displays a sign with at least one-quarter  inch  block letters  on  a contrasting background, reading "Contains.....% Ethanol", the blank being filled in with the maximum percentage of ethanol in  the gasoline; and  (ii)  three-tenths  of  one percent of total volume of methanol unless the retail petroleum dispensing device displays a  sign  with  at  least one-quarter  inch  block  letters  on  a  contrasting background reading "Contains.....% Methanol" and "Contains.....%  Co-Solvent",  the  blanks being  filled  in  with  the  maximum percentage of methanol and minimum percentage of co-solvent in the gasoline.   b. A retailer shall not transfer, sell, dispense or offer diesel motor fuel for sale in this  state  unless  the  retail  petroleum  dispensing device displays a sign disclosing the grade.   6.  No  refiner,  distributor, reseller or retailer shall store, sell, transfer, dispense or offer for sale gasoline or diesel  motor  fuel  in this  state  without having in his or her possession a copy of the bill, invoice, or other written instrument evidencing the transaction by which such refiner, distributor, reseller or retailer came into possession  of the  gasoline  or  diesel  motor  fuel;  provided,  however,  that  this requirement shall not apply to refiners  with  respect  to  gasoline  or diesel motor fuel which such refiner has produced from crude oil.    7.  a.  Except  as  otherwise  provided,  any  retailer,  reseller  or distributor charged with a violation under this section  may  plead  and prove  by  a  preponderance  of  the evidence that the violation was not caused by him or her or his or her agent or employee as  an  affirmative defense to such charge.   b.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision  of  this section, a common carrier transporting gasoline or diesel motor fuel shall be deemed to be liable under the provisions of subdivision two of this section  only  if it  is  proved  by  a preponderance of the evidence that a violation was caused by him or her or his or her agent or employee.   8.  a.  The  commissioner  or  his  authorized  representative,   upon presentation  of  appropriate credentials, shall have the right to enter during regular business hours upon or through the premises  or  property of  any  refiner,  distributor, reseller or retailer, and shall have the right to make inspections, take samples of  gasoline  and  diesel  motor fuel being stored, offered for sale or in the process of being delivered or  transported,  and  conduct  tests  during  normal  business hours to determine compliance with this section.   b. The commissioner may require a refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or retailer to report information regarding the receipt, transfer, delivery or  sale of gasoline and diesel motor fuel and to allow the reproduction of that information except that the refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or retailer  shall not be required to provide information not maintained in the normal course of business, except  as  otherwise  required  in  this section.  A  refiner,  distributor,  reseller or retailer shall preserve information regarding  the  receipt,  transfer,  delivery,  or  sale  of gasoline and diesel motor fuel for one year.   9.  Any  refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or  retailer  who  or which violates this section shall be liable for a civil penalty not to  exceed ten thousand dollars for each violation, and for the first violation not to  be less than two hundred fifty dollars, and for the second violation not to be less than one thousand dollars. In the  case  of  a  violation through  continuing failure to comply with any of the provisions of this section, or any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder, each day of the  continuance  of  such  failure  shall  be  treated  as  a  separate violation.    Provided,  however,  that the penalty for any violation of paragraph c of subdivision four of this section for failure to keep  the required records shall be a maximum two hundred dollar civil penalty for the first violation, and a maximum four hundred dollar civil penalty for the second and subsequent violations. A right of action for the recovery of  a  liability  for  the  civil penalties incurred as provided in this section may be released, settled or compromised by the  commissioner  or the  director  of  a  municipal  consumer  affairs office or a municipal director of weights and measures before the matter is  referred  to  the attorney  general  as provided in section forty-four of this chapter, or by the attorney for the municipality, as the case may be, and thereafter may be released, settled or compromised by the attorney general  or  the attorney  for  the  municipality,  as  the case may be, either before or after an action is brought to recover such penalty. The commissioner  or a  director  of  a  municipal  consumer  affairs  office  or a municipal director of weights and measures may apply to  a  court  of  appropriate jurisdiction  for  an  injunction  to restrain any person subject to the provisions of this section from the further violation of such provisions or for such other relief  as  the  court  deems  proper.  Any  plaintiff seeking  such  relief  shall not be required to furnish security and the costs of the application may be granted in the discretion of the  court. The  provisions  of  sections  thirty-nine,  forty and forty-one of this chapter shall not apply to a violation described in this subdivision.    10. Whenever the commissioner or an authorized representative  of  the commissioner  shall  find  that  a  refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or retailer has transferred, sold, dispensed or offered gasoline or  diesel motor  fuel  for  sale  in this state in violation of this section, such commissioner  or his authorized representative may exercise any remedies authorized by section one  hundred  eighty-five  of  this  article.  Any refiner,  distributor,  reseller  or  retailer violating an order issued pursuant to this subdivision shall be subject  to  an  additional  civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars, notwithstanding the penalty provisions  of  section forty of this chapter which shall not apply to a violation of such order.   11. The provisions of this section  and  the  regulations  promulgated hereunder  may  be  enforced concurrently by the director of a municipal consumer affairs office and/or  a  municipal  director  of  weights  and measures.  Notwithstanding  the provisions of section forty-five of this chapter, all  moneys  collected  hereunder  shall  be  retained  by  the municipality.   12.  Nothing  in this section shall be deemed to limit or restrict the authority of the commissioner of  environmental  conservation  to  adopt rules  and  regulations that affect the composition, storage, transport, handling or commerce of petroleum products for the purpose of preventing or decreasing pollution pursuant to the environmental conservation law.   13. The commissioner shall have the authority to promulgate such rules and regulations as the commissioner shall deem necessary  to  effectuate the purposes of this section, consistent with its provisions.