Session of 2025
HOUSE BILL No. 2108
By Committee on Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications
Requested by Claudia Hissong on behalf of Kansas Farm Bureau
1-28
AN ACT concerning energy; relating to the state corporation commission;
requiring the commission to establish and enforce a code of conduct
and agricultural mitigation protocols for the development, construction,
operation and decommissioning of certain large energy facilities in
rural areas of the state.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. As used in sections 1 through 4, and amendments thereto:
(a) "Battery energy storage system" means an electrochemical device
that is capable of absorbing and storing electrical energy and discharging
such energy at a later time.
(b) "Commercial battery energy storage system" means a battery
energy storage system that can store and then discharge one megawatt or
more of electrical energy over a one-hour duration.
(c) "Commercial solar energy conversion system" means a solar
energy conversion system that has a total system-rated generating capacity
of one megawatt or more and all appurtenant facilities of such system,
including, but not limited to, the solar collectors, battery storage units,
substations and operations and maintenance buildings.
(d) "Commission" means the state corporation commission.
(e) "Electric transmission lines" means the same as defined in K.S.A.
66-1,177, and amendments thereto.
(f) "Large energy facility" means any:
(1) Commercial battery energy storage system;
(2) commercial solar energy conversion system;
(3) electric transmission lines; or
(4) wind energy conversion system.
(g) "Large energy facility owner" means any person or entity that
owns or operates a large energy facility and any employees, agents,
contractors, subcontractors or assigns thereof, including any person or
entity that seeks the necessary rights, permits or approvals for the
construction and operation of a large energy facility regardless of whether
such person or entity will own or operate the large energy facility after
construction.
(h) "Rural area" means any area located one mile or more outside of:
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(1) The corporate limits of any city; or
(2) any unincorporated area having a housing density of three
dwelling units per acre or more.
(i) "Solar energy conversion system" means any device, component
or system required to convert solar energy into electric or thermal energy.
(j) "Wind energy conversion system" means the same as defined in
K.S.A. 66-1289, and amendments thereto.
Sec. 2. (a) The commission, after consultation with the Kansas
department of agriculture, shall establish a code of conduct and
agricultural impact mitigation protocols for the development, construction,
operation and decommissioning of large energy facilities in rural areas of
the state.
(b) The code of conduct shall, at a minimum, contain provisions that
require each large energy facility owner to:
(1) Be truthful and honest in all communications with landowners;
(2) be transparent about the large energy facility project;
(3) provide appropriate contact information for the large energy
facility owner and any employees, agents, contractors, subcontractors or
assigns thereof that are associated with the project;
(4) ensure that all communications with landowners do not contain
any threat or coercion;
(5) abide by the request of any landowner who requests that the large
energy facility owner, or any employees, agents, contractors,
subcontractors or assigns thereof, vacate the landowner's property or cease
communications with the landowner;
(6) not disclose communications from a landowner unless such
disclosure is otherwise agreed to in writing;
(7) establish procedures to provide early and meaningful landowner
involvement in the siting process for the large energy facility, including
both public and private meetings with affected landowners and
individuals;
(8) provide and make accessible project maps to landowners and the
public during the siting process;
(9) establish procedures to consider and accept any landowner-
requested micro-siting modifications to the project;
(10) ensure that property appraisals and offers to landowners are
consistent and based on the attributes and use of the land;
(11) offer each landowner an amount that is greater than the fair
market value of the property interest whenever the large facility owner
possesses the authority of eminent domain for the project;
(12) allow the landowner to elect to receive a one-time payment or
annual payments for the life of the project for any payment made to the
landowner that is associated with the acquisition of any property interest;
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(13) compensate landowners for any and all damages to land and
agricultural operations resulting from the development, construction,
operation or decommissioning of the project and establish procedures to
determine and calculate compensation for such damages;
(14) establish an optional appeal process when the large energy
facility owner's offer for the landowner's property interest is deemed
inadequate by the landowner;
(15) establish setbacks from residential and agricultural structures
that are based on scientifically proven health and safety information;
(16) remediate communication circuits that are diminished or
disrupted due to communication interference caused by the project;
(17) track the obligations that are owed to landowners based on the
terms negotiated by landowners and provide a map of such obligations
showing the energy company's obligations by each individual parcel of
land;
(18) establish a decommissioning plan that ensures infrastructure
removal and land restoration when the project is retired or abandoned;
(19) provide adequate financial assurance to ensure the full and
complete decommissioning of the project and the completion of any wind-
up activities; and
(20) indemnify and hold harmless any affected landowner or tenant,
and any heirs, successors, legal representatives or assigns thereof, from
any and all liability associated with the development, construction,
operation or decommissioning of the energy project, unless such liability
arises from the intentional or willful acts of the indemnitee.
(c) The agricultural impact mitigation protocols shall, at a minimum,
contain provisions that require each large energy facility owner to:
(1) Provide advance notice to and coordinate with any landowner or
tenant whenever the large energy facility owner needs to access private
property;
(2) designate one or more contacts for the large energy facility owner
who have experience in agriculture and who may be contacted by any
landowner when any agricultural impact mitigation work is inferior;
(3) establish standards for facilities and support structures to
minimize the impact to agricultural land and operations;
(4) establish procedures to mitigate and address any impacts to
important agricultural improvements caused by the project, including, but
not limited to, impacts to drainage tiles, terraces and irrigation systems and
lightning and stray voltage mitigation measures;
(5) establish soil protection measures, including, but not limited to,
decompaction, fertilization, stabilization, repair damaged soil conservation
and erosion prevention projects and removal of construction debris;
(6) establish soil restoration measures that shall apply following
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construction activities, operational activities and decommissioning
activities, including, but not limited to, segregation and replacement of
topsoil and reestablishment of the vegetative growth that existed prior to
disturbance;
(7) adhere to scientific standards for all agricultural impact mitigation
work such as the standards established by the natural resources
conservation service, the United States department of agriculture farm
service agency, agricultural extension offices or land grant universities;
(8) establish procedures for installation and maintenance of any
necessary gates to the facility or facility structures;
(9) for any project involving the electric transmission lines, construct
the electric transmission lines with an adequate transmission line height to
ensure that any existing agricultural operations may continue under and
around the transmission line in a safe manner;
(10) establish procedures for tree and brush removal, including, but
not limited to, compensation for removal of trees with commercial value;
(11) establish procedures for controlling noxious weeds and other
growth within any lease or easement; and
(12) provide compensation to any landowner or tenant for lost
revenue when the landowner or tenant is forced to withdraw from any
agricultural or conservation program due to the construction and operation
of the large energy facility.
Sec. 3. (a) On and after January 1, 2026, no large energy facility
owner may begin site preparation for or construction of a large energy
facility, or exercise the right of eminent domain to acquire any interest in
land for the construction of such facility, in any rural area of the state until
the large energy facility owner has obtained from the commission a code
of conduct permit to construct the large energy facility. Whenever any
large energy facility owner seeks to obtain such a permit, the large energy
facility owner shall file an application with the commission that specifies:
(1) The proposed location of the large energy facility;
(2) that the large energy facility owner, and any employees, agents,
contractors, subcontractors or assigns thereof, agrees to abide by and
adhere to the code of conduct and agricultural impact mitigation protocols
established by the commission pursuant to section 2, and amendments
thereto, throughout the life and decommissioning of the project.
(b) The commission may further condition such permit as the
commission may deem just and reasonable to best protect the rights of all
interested parties and the general public.
(c) (1) In addition to any penalty established pursuant to the terms
and conditions of any code of conduct permit issued by the commission
pursuant to this section, upon complaint by a landowner or upon the
commission's own motion, the commission may impose a civil penalty not
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to exceed $10,000 upon finding that a large energy facility owner has
violated the provisions of this act, the provisions of a code of conduct
permit or any rule and regulation or order of the commission. Such penalty
shall constitute an actual and substantial economic deterrent to the
violation for which the penalty is assessed. In the case of a continuing
violation, the commission may deem every day such violation continues as
a separate violation.
(2) No penalty shall be imposed pursuant to this subsection except
upon the written order of the commission to the large energy facility owner
who committed the violation. The order shall state the violation, the
penalty imposed and the right to appeal such order to the commission. Any
such facility owner, within 30 days after service of such order, may make
written request to the commission for a hearing. The commission shall
conduct a hearing in accordance with the provisions of the Kansas
administrative procedure act within 30 days after receipt of such request.
(3) Any large energy facility owner aggrieved by any order issued
pursuant to this subsection may appeal such order in accordance with the
provisions of the Kansas judicial review act.
(4) The commission may order a large energy facility owner to pay
any costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred by the commission in
imposing and collecting any penalty pursuant to this subsection and may
collect interest on any portion of such penalty, costs and attorney fees that
remains unpaid more than 30 days after imposition, at the rate provided by
K.S.A. 16-204, and amendments thereto, for interest on judgments.
(5) All moneys received from penalties imposed and costs and
attorney fees assessed pursuant to this section shall be remitted to the state
treasurer in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 75-4215, and
amendments thereto. Upon receipt of each such remittance, the state
treasurer shall deposit the entire amount in the state treasury to the credit
of the state general fund.
Sec. 4. The commission may adopt rules and regulations to
administer sections 1 through 3, and amendments thereto.
Sec. 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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