Supreme Court rules CERCLA does not preempt state statutes of repose

On Jun 9, 2014, the US Supreme Court decided CTS Corp v. Waldburger, quelling a state tort suit against Chicago Telephone Supply Co (CTS). CTS had owned an electroplating facility in Asheville, NC, until 1985. Plaintiffs/Respondents alleged that CTS's facility released trichloroethylene (TCE) and other contaminants into drinking water. The environmental conditions in the area remain fraught. Just three days before the decision, the US Environmental Protection Agency recommended that 13 area residents leave their homes because of unsafe levels of TCE. In 1986, Congress amended the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) to add a provision preempting state statutes of limitation for "personal injury, or property damages, which are caused or contributed to by exposure to any pollutant released into the environment from a facility." In its 7-2 decision, the Court held that the express preemption provision of § 9658 does not apply to statutes of repose and, therefore, Respondents' claims are time-barred under North Carolina law.