1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; providing a waiver from 
  1.3             liability for certain landowners; allowing certain 
  1.4             alternative disposal methods; modifying feedlot 
  1.5             provisions; providing for a level 1 feedlot inventory; 
  1.6             amending Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 116.07, by 
  1.7             adding a subdivision; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.8             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 116. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 116.07, is 
  1.11  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.12     Subd. 7d.  [EXEMPTION.] Notwithstanding subdivision 7 or 
  1.13  Minnesota Rules, chapter 7020, to the contrary, and 
  1.14  notwithstanding the proximity to public or private waters, an 
  1.15  owner or resident of agricultural land on which livestock have 
  1.16  been allowed to pasture at any time during the ten-year period 
  1.17  beginning January 1, 1990, is permanently exempt from 
  1.18  requirements related to feedlot or manure management on that 
  1.19  land for so long as the property remains in pasture. 
  1.20     Sec. 2.  [116.0712] [FEEDLOT PERMIT CONDITIONS.] 
  1.21     (a) The agency may not require feedlot permittees to 
  1.22  maintain records as to rainfall or snowfall as a condition of a 
  1.23  general feedlot permit if the owner directs the commissioner or 
  1.24  agent of the commissioner to data maintained by a government 
  1.25  agency or educational institution. 
  1.26     (b) A feedlot permittee must give notice to the agency when 
  1.27  the permittee proposes to transfer ownership or control of the 
  2.1   feedlot to a new party.  The commissioner may not unreasonably 
  2.2   withhold or unreasonably delay approval of any such request.  
  2.3   This request must be handled in accordance with sections 15.992 
  2.4   and 116.07. 
  2.5      (c) The environmental quality board must review and 
  2.6   recommend modifications to environmental review rules related to 
  2.7   phased actions and animal agriculture facilities.  The board 
  2.8   must report the recommendations to the chairs of the committees 
  2.9   with jurisdiction over agriculture and the environment by 
  2.10  January 1, 2002. 
  2.11     (d) If the owner of an animal feedlot requests an extension 
  2.12  for an application for a National Pollutant Discharge 
  2.13  Elimination permit or state disposal system permit by June 1, 
  2.14  2001, then the agency shall grant an extension for the 
  2.15  application to September 1, 2001. 
  2.16     (e) Until a new definition of "phased actions" is adopted 
  2.17  by legislation or through rulemaking, a responsible governmental 
  2.18  unit shall apply interpretations or further definitions not set 
  2.19  forth in Minnesota Rules, part 4410.0200, subpart 60, to a 
  2.20  proposed feedlot project on a case-by-case basis and only after 
  2.21  determination by staff that because of the nature or location of 
  2.22  the proposed project, the proposed project has the potential for 
  2.23  significant environmental effects. 
  2.24     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective the day 
  2.25  following final enactment. 
  2.26     Sec. 3.  [MODIFIED LEVEL 1 FEEDLOT INVENTORY.] 
  2.27     (a) A delegated county that has completed a modified level 
  2.28  1 inventory that includes facility location, approximate number 
  2.29  of animal units, and whether the facility is an open lot or 
  2.30  confinement operation, may report that information to the agency 
  2.31  in aggregate.  A feedlot that is included in an inventory 
  2.32  meeting these criteria has satisfied registration requirements. 
  2.33     (b) Complete registration information for a feedlot having 
  2.34  1,000 animal units or greater or a feedlot meeting the 
  2.35  definition of a concentrated animal feeding operation as defined 
  2.36  in Code of Federal Regulations, title 40, section 122.23, must 
  3.1   be submitted to the agency. 
  3.2      Sec. 4.  [REQUIRED RULE CHANGE; WASTEWATER FROM MILKHOUSES 
  3.3   ON SMALL DAIRIES.] 
  3.4      Not later than August 1, 2001, the commissioner of the 
  3.5   pollution control agency shall allow alternative methods for 
  3.6   disposal of milkhouse process wastewaters by a dairy operation 
  3.7   having 300 animal units or fewer.  The intent of this section is 
  3.8   to provide reasonable alternative means for small dairy 
  3.9   producers to dispose of milkhouse process wastewaters.  
  3.10  Allowable alternatives must include, among others, surface 
  3.11  discharge of process wastewaters onto agricultural land as 
  3.12  defined in Minnesota Statutes, section 103G.005, subdivision 2a, 
  3.13  except discharge into type 4, 5, 6, or 7 wetlands as defined in 
  3.14  Minnesota Statutes, section 103G.005, subdivision 17b. 
  3.15     Sec. 5.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.16     Section 3 is effective the day following final enactment.