House File 1029 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 1029 BY COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 225) A BILL FOR An Act providing for regulation of certain noncoal mine sites, 1 including the reclamation of land above active underground 2 mine sites disturbed by the formation of sinkholes, 3 providing fees, making penalties applicable, and including 4 effective date provisions. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns
H.F. 1029 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 208.6 Maps. 1 Upon request by the division, the state geologist shall 2 furnish the division with the latest filed maps and extensions 3 of active mine sites pursuant to section 456.11 . 4 Sec. 2. Section 208.7, Code 2025, is amended to read as 5 follows: 6 208.7 Mining license fees and expiration. 7 An operator shall not engage in mining as defined by section 8 208.2 without first obtaining a license from the division. 9 A license shall be issued and renewed upon approval by the 10 division following the submission of a completed application 11 by the operator. An application shall be submitted on a 12 form provided by the division and shall be accompanied by a 13 license fee of fifty seventy-five dollars. Each applicant 14 shall be required to furnish on the form information necessary 15 to identify the applicant. The initial license shall expire 16 on December 31 of the year of issue. An initial license 17 shall be renewed by the division as required by the division. 18 The renewed license shall expire the last day of the second 19 December following the date of issue. The division shall renew 20 a license upon approving an application submitted within thirty 21 days prior to the expiration date. The application for a 22 renewed license must be accompanied by a fee of twenty dollars. 23 A political subdivision shall not be required to pay a license 24 fee. 25 Sec. 3. Section 208.8, subsection 1, Code 2025, is amended 26 to read as follows: 27 1. The division may , for repeated or willful for a violation 28 of any of the provisions of this chapter , including the 29 violation of a rule adopted or an order issued pursuant to this 30 chapter , initiate an action to suspend, revoke, or refuse to 31 issue a mining license. 32 Sec. 4. Section 208.9, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 33 following new subsection: 34 NEW SUBSECTION . 2A. An operator of an active underground 35 -1- LSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns 1/ 5
H.F. 1029 mine site shall immediately notify the division of the 1 formation of a sinkhole located at or above the underground 2 mine site. 3 Sec. 5. Section 208.10A, subsection 1, unnumbered paragraph 4 1, Code 2025, is amended to read as follows: 5 Any A person who violates an order issued pursuant to section 6 208.10 or 208.17A shall be subject to an administrative penalty 7 determined by the division not to exceed five thousand dollars 8 per violation. 9 Sec. 6. NEW SECTION . 208.17A Active underground mines. 10 1. The division may adopt rules providing for the 11 reclamation of lands disturbed due to the formation of a 12 sinkhole at or above an active underground mine site required 13 to be registered pursuant to section 208.9 . The administrator 14 may issue an emergency remediation order to the operator of 15 the mine requiring immediate restoration. The division shall 16 deliver a copy of the emergency reclamation order to the 17 operator by personal service. 18 2. The division may require the operator to submit to the 19 division for approval a remediation plan or statement affirming 20 that the remediation has been completed in compliance with 21 division requirements. 22 Sec. 7. Section 208.19, Code 2025, is amended by adding the 23 following new subsection: 24 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. This section does not apply to the 25 reclamation of an active underground mine site as provided in 26 section 208.17A. 27 Sec. 8. Section 208.20, Code 2025, is amended to read as 28 follows: 29 208.20 Extension of time. 30 The time for completion of reclamation work may be extended 31 upon presentation by the operator of evidence satisfactory 32 to the division that the reclamation of affected land cannot 33 be completed within the time specified by section 208.17A or 34 208.19. 35 -2- LSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns 2/ 5
H.F. 1029 Sec. 9. NEW SECTION . 208.24A Use of single or multiple 1 bonds. 2 Regardless of whether an operator posts a number of multiple 3 bonds each for a single mine site or a single bond for multiple 4 mine sites, the total amount of the multiple bonds combined 5 or the single bond shall be applied to cover the costs of 6 completing the reclamation of lands at any one mine site 7 required to be registered pursuant to section 208.9 . 8 Sec. 10. Section 456.11, subsection 9, Code 2025, is amended 9 to read as follows: 10 9. Abandoned mine Mines . 11 a. When any an underground mine is worked out or is about to 12 be abandoned or indefinitely closed, the operator of the same 13 shall make or cause to be made a completed and extended map 14 of the mine and the result of the same shall be duly extended 15 on all maps of the mine and copies thereof so as to show all 16 excavations and the most advanced workings of the mine, and 17 their exact relation to the boundary or section lines on the 18 surface, and deliver to the state geologist a copy of the 19 completed map. 20 b. When an underground mining site is active, its operator 21 shall provide a current map and current map extensions of 22 the active underground mining site to the state geologist as 23 required by the state geologist. The state geologist shall 24 deliver a copy of the current map and current map extensions 25 to the division of soil conservation and water quality of the 26 department of agriculture and land stewardship as provided in 27 section 208.6 . 28 Sec. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act, being deemed of 29 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment. 30 EXPLANATION 31 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 32 the explanations substance by the members of the general assembly. 33 BACKGROUND. This bill amends provisions in Code chapter 208 34 regulating the mining of minerals, including surface mining 35 -3- LSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns 3/ 5
H.F. 1029 and underground mining, other than for coal, and provides 1 requirements for the reclamation of lands at the mine site. 2 The provisions are administered and enforced by the division 3 of soil and water conservation (division), an administrative 4 unit of the department of agriculture and land stewardship 5 (Code chapter 159). The provisions regulate a person engaged 6 in and controlling the mining operation (operator). This 7 includes a requirement that the operator be issued a license 8 (Code sections 208.7 and 208.8) and register the mine being 9 operated (Code sections 208.9 and 209.15). The initial license 10 application fee is $50. The license renewal application fee is 11 $20. The registration must be accompanied by a bond or other 12 security. The bonding provisions include requirements for 13 the posting of one bond covering multiple mine sites, and the 14 cancellation or forfeiture of the bond (Code sections 208.23, 15 208.24, 208.25, 208.26, and 208.28). After the completion of 16 mining operations, the operator must engage in the reclamation 17 of the land disturbed by mining operations, which may include 18 grading, stabilizing, and revegetating the disturbed lands 19 (Code section 208.17). The division may issue an order 20 directing an operator to desist in an activity that constitutes 21 a violation of the Code chapter and a person who violates such 22 an order is subject to an administratively assessed civil 23 penalty of up to $5,000 per violation (Code section 208.10A). 24 Alternatively, the division may notify the attorney general 25 to institute a civil action in district court for injunctive 26 relief and for the assessment of a civil penalty not to exceed 27 $10,000 per violation. 28 BILLS PROVISIONS. The bill increases the initial license 29 application fee to $75. The bill provides requirements when 30 the operator is actively engaged in mining belowground where 31 land at or above the mine site, required to be registered, has 32 collapsed in the form of a sinkhole. The bill requires the 33 operator to immediately notify the division of the sinkhole. 34 The division may adopt rules providing for the reclamation 35 -4- LSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns 4/ 5
H.F. 1029 of lands disturbed due to the formation of a sinkhole at or 1 above an active underground mine site. The division may 2 issue an emergency remediation order to the operator of the 3 mine requiring immediate restoration. The division may also 4 require the operator to submit to the division for approval a 5 remediation plan or statement affirming that the remediation 6 has been completed in compliance with division requirements. 7 The total amount of the combined bonds posted by an operator 8 may be applied to cover the costs of reclaiming land disturbed 9 at any one mine site. 10 The bill takes effect upon enactment. 11 -5- LSB 1141HV (3) 91 da/ns 5/ 5