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Commitments and Contingencies (Notes)
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2016
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments and Contingencies

Litigation

In the ordinary conduct of our business, we are from time to time subject to lawsuits, investigations and claims, including environmental claims and employee-related matters. Although we cannot predict with certainty the ultimate resolution of lawsuits, investigations and claims asserted against us, including civil penalties or other enforcement actions, we do not believe that any currently pending legal proceeding or proceedings to which we are a party will have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. See "Crude Oil Releases" below for additional information on a potential enforcement action.

Environmental, Health and Safety

We are subject to extensive and periodically changing federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment, health and safety. Among other things, these laws and regulations govern the emission or discharge of pollutants into or onto the land, air and water, the handling and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes and the remediation of contamination and the protection of workers and the public. Compliance with existing and anticipated environmental laws and regulations increases our overall cost of business, including our capital costs to develop, maintain, operate and upgrade equipment and facilities. Numerous permits or other authorizations are required under these laws for the operation of our terminals, pipelines, and related operations, and may be subject to revocation, modification and renewal. These laws and permits may become the basis for future claims and lawsuits involving environmental and safety matters, which could include soil and water contamination, air pollution, personal injury and property damage allegedly caused by substances which we manufactured, handled, used, released or disposed of, or that relate to pre-existing conditions for which we have assumed or are assigned responsibility.

We believe that our current operations are in substantial compliance with existing environmental, health and safety requirements. However, these laws and regulations are subject to changes by regulatory authorities, or to changes in the interpretation of such laws and regulations, by regulatory or judicial authorities. The legislative and regulatory trend has been to place increasingly stringent restrictions and limitations on activities that may affect the environment. Continued and future compliance with such laws and regulations may require us to incur significant expenditures. Violation of environmental laws, regulations and permits can result in the imposition of significant administrative, civil and criminal penalties, monetary fines and penalties, injunctions limiting our operations, investigatory or remedial liabilities or construction bans or delays in the construction of additional facilities or equipment. Additionally, a release of hydrocarbons or hazardous substances into the environment could, to the extent the event is not insured or a reimbursable event under the Third Restated Omnibus Agreement, subject us to substantial expenses, including costs to respond to, contain and remediate a release, to comply with applicable laws and regulations and to resolve claims by third parties for personal injury, property damage, or natural resources damages. These impacts could directly and indirectly affect our business. We cannot currently determine the amounts of such future impacts. There have been and will continue to be ongoing discussions about environmental and safety matters between us and federal and state authorities, including notices of violations, citations and other enforcement actions, some of which have resulted or may result in changes to operating procedures and in capital expenditures.

Crude Oil Releases

We have experienced several crude oil releases involving our assets, including, but not limited to, the following releases:

In January 2016, a crude oil release of less than 30 barrels occurred from a gathering line at the Modisette pumping station near El Dorado, Arkansas (the "Modisette Release");
In January 2016, a release of approximately 350 barrels occurred from the Paline Pipeline near Woodville, Texas (the "Paline Release"); and
In March 2013, a release of approximately 5,900 barrels of crude oil, the majority of which was contained on-site, occurred from a pumping facility at our Magnolia Station located west of the El Dorado Refinery (the "Magnolia Release").

Cleanup operations and site maintenance and remediation efforts on these and other releases have been substantially completed with the exception of the Paline Release, for which remediation is expected to continue through the third quarter of 2016. We may incur additional expenses as a result of further scrutiny by regulatory authorities and continued compliance with laws and regulations to which our assets are subject. As we are unable to estimate these additional expenses, we have accrued $0.2 million and $1.0 million as of March 31, 2016 for the Paline Release and the Magnolia Release, respectively.

In June 2015, the United States Department of Justice notified the Partnership that it was evaluating an enforcement action on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA") with regard to potential Clean Water Act violations arising from the Magnolia Release. We are currently attempting to negotiate a resolution to this matter with the EPA and the state of Arkansas, which may include monetary penalties and/or other relief.

During the three months ended March 31, 2016, we incurred costs of $0.3 million and $0.6 million related to the Modisette Release and the Paline Release, respectively. These costs are included in operating expenses in our consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income. We were reimbursed $0.9 million for the costs related to these spills pursuant to the terms of the Third Restated Omnibus Agreement. These reimbursements are recorded as a reduction to operating expense.

Contracts and Agreements

The majority of the petroleum products we sell in west Texas are purchased from Noble Petro, Inc. ("Noble Petro"). Under the terms of a supply contract (the "Abilene Contract") with Noble Petro, we have the right to purchase up to 20,350 bpd of petroleum products at the Abilene, Texas terminal, which we own, for sales and exchange with third parties at the Abilene and San Angelo terminals. We lease the Abilene and San Angelo, Texas terminals to Noble Petro, under a separate Terminal and Pipeline Lease and Operating Agreement, with a term that runs concurrent with that of the Abilene Contract. The Abilene Contract expires on December 31, 2017 and does not include any options for renewal. We also purchase spot barrels from various third parties and from Delek for sale to wholesale customers in west Texas.

Letters of Credit

As of March 31, 2016, we had in place letters of credit totaling $5.0 million under the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, primarily securing obligations with respect to gasoline and diesel purchases. No amounts were drawn under these letters of credit at March 31, 2016.

Operating Leases

We lease certain equipment and have surface leases under various operating lease arrangements, most of which provide the option, after the initial lease term to renew the leases. None of these lease arrangements include fixed rental rate increases. Lease expense for all operating leases totaled $0.3 million and $0.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively.