HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES SUPERFUND

A federal trust fund for use in the cleanup of spills or sites containing hazardous waste that pose a significant threat to the public health or the environment. The fund, originally called the Hazardous Substances Response Trust Fund, was established by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in 1980. Beginning that year $1.5 billion was to be collected over five years, mainly from taxes on crude oil, petroleum products, petrochemicals, and certain inorganic chemicals. The 1986 re-authorization of the law, which changed the fund's name to the Hazardous Substances Superfund (or just "Superfund"), increased the fund to $8.5 billion and broadened the tax base to include a general corporate Superfund tax. Another one-half billion dollars was included to clean up leaks from underground storage tanks. Also see U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).