HF 4989

as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 03/21/2024 03:50pm

A bill for an act
relating to agriculture; establishing clean water, climate-smart, and soil-healthy
farming goals; creating a pilot program to provide financial incentives for certain
farming practices in southeastern Minnesota; extending a fertilizer fee; requiring
data collection; classifying data; requiring a report; appropriating money; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 13.643, by adding a subdivision; Minnesota
Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 18C.425, subdivision 6; proposing coding for
new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 103C.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 13.643, is amended by adding a subdivision
to read:

new text begin Subd. 9. new text end

new text begin Clean water, climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming data. new text end

new text begin (a) Farmer
names, locations, and contact information collected and maintained by the Board of Water
and Soil Resources or soil and water conservation districts that are associated with soil
health data or water quality collected under section 103C.705 are classified as private or
nonpublic data. Farmer names, locations, and contact information collected and maintained
by the Board of Water and Soil Resources or soil and water conservation districts that are
associated with financial assistance applications or payments under section 103C.703 are
public data.
new text end

new text begin (b) The Board of Water and Soil Resources and soil and water conservation districts
may disclose data under paragraph (a):
new text end

new text begin (1) with the written consent of the subject of the data; or
new text end

new text begin (2) if the Board of Water and Soil Resources or a soil and water conservation district
determines that there is a substantive threat to human health and safety or to the environment
to aid in the law enforcement process.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2023 Supplement, section 18C.425, subdivision 6, is amended
to read:

Subd. 6.

Payment of inspection fee.

(a) The person who registers and distributes in the
state a specialty fertilizer, soil amendment, or plant amendment under section 18C.411 shall
pay the inspection fee to the commissioner.

(b) The person licensed under section 18C.415 who distributes a fertilizer to a person
not required to be so licensed shall pay the inspection fee to the commissioner, except as
exempted under section 18C.421, subdivision 1, paragraph (b).

(c) The person responsible for payment of the inspection fees for fertilizers, soil
amendments, or plant amendments sold and used in this state must pay the inspection fee
set under paragraph (e), and deleted text begin until June 30, 2024, deleted text end an additional 40 cents per ton, of fertilizer,
soil amendment, and plant amendment sold or distributed in this state, with a minimum of
$10 on all tonnage reports. Notwithstanding section 18C.131, new text begin until June 30, 2024, new text end the
commissioner must deposit all revenue from the additional 40 cents per ton fee in the
agricultural fertilizer research and education account in section 18C.80 new text begin ; after June 30, 2024,
the commissioner must deposit all revenue from the additional 40 cents per ton fee in the
clean water, climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming account established in section 103C.703 new text end .
Products sold or distributed to manufacturers or exchanged between them are exempt from
the inspection fee imposed by this subdivision if the products are used exclusively for
manufacturing purposes.

(d) A registrant or licensee must retain invoices showing proof of fertilizer, plant
amendment, or soil amendment distribution amounts and inspection fees paid for a period
of three years.

(e) By commissioner's order, the commissioner must set the inspection fee at no less
than 39 cents per ton and no more than 70 cents per ton. The commissioner must hold a
public meeting before increasing the fee by more than five cents per ton.

Sec. 3.

new text begin [103C.701] CLEAN WATER, CLIMATE-SMART, AND SOIL-HEALTHY
FARMING GOALS.
new text end

new text begin To increase farm income, improve soil health, prevent or minimize erosion and runoff,
retain and clean water, increase vegetation on the landscape, sequester carbon, and foster
healthier rural residents, pollinators, and other wildlife, the state of Minnesota's clean water,
climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming goals are that:
new text end

new text begin (1) by 2030, at least 50 percent of the state's tillable acres use or are enrolled in a public
or private program that requires cover cropping and no-till or strip-till;
new text end

new text begin (2) by 2030, at least 40 percent of the state's tillable acres use or are enrolled in a public
or private program that requires precision nutrient management; and
new text end

new text begin (3) by 2040, 100 percent of the state's tillable acres use or are enrolled in a public or
private program that requires cover cropping, no-till or strip-till, and precision nutrient
management.
new text end

Sec. 4.

new text begin [103C.703] KARST REGION CLEAN WATER, CLIMATE-SMART, AND
SOIL-HEALTHY FARMING PILOT PROGRAM.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin (a) For the purposes of this section and section 103C.705,
the following terms have the meanings given.
new text end

new text begin (b) "Clean water, climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming" means:
new text end

new text begin (1) farming that protects groundwater and surface water, prevents or minimizes
greenhouse gas emissions, and improves soil health by using all of the following practices:
new text end

new text begin (i) cover cropping;
new text end

new text begin (ii) no-till or strip-till; and
new text end

new text begin (iii) precision nutrient management; and
new text end

new text begin (2) farming that further protects groundwater and surface water, prevents or minimizes
greenhouse gas emissions, and improves soil health by using one or more of the following
additional practices:
new text end

new text begin (i) perennial cropping;
new text end

new text begin (ii) interseeding;
new text end

new text begin (iii) organic production;
new text end

new text begin (iv) roll crimping; and
new text end

new text begin (v) managed rotational grazing.
new text end

new text begin (c) "Cover crop mix" means a planted seed mix of at least three species of cover crop.
new text end

new text begin (d) "Cover cropping" means producing annual or perennial grasses, nonlegume
broadleaves, or legumes on agricultural land in conjunction with or after cash crops.
new text end

new text begin (e) "Eligible farmer" means an individual, a household, or an entity eligible to own or
operate farmland under section 500.24.
new text end

new text begin (f) "Household" means an individual; the individual's spouse or unmarried partner;
dependents and children of the individual, spouse, or partner; and all others who live with
the individual.
new text end

new text begin (g) "Individual" means a person at least 18 years of age who cannot be claimed as a
dependent on another person's tax return and who is not a partner in a partnership.
new text end

new text begin (h) "Interseeding" means planting a cover crop on the same field as a cash crop in the
vegetative growth stage.
new text end

new text begin (i) "Managed rotational grazing" means dividing pastures, cover-cropped fields, or
perennial fields into smaller paddocks using lightweight, portable fencing where animals
are moved frequently and grazed vegetation is maintained at a minimum height of four
inches to allow adequate regrowth. Managed rotational grazing includes mob or flash grazing
for which animals are kept in smaller areas for short periods to supercharge soil biology
and control invasive species.
new text end

new text begin (j) "No-till" means planting seeds in soil that has not been plowed or otherwise disturbed
since the previous crop was harvested.
new text end

new text begin (k) "Organic production" has the meaning given in section 31.92.
new text end

new text begin (l) "Perennial cropping" means producing a crop that grows for at least three consecutive
years without being reseeded or replanted each year.
new text end

new text begin (m) "Precision nutrient management" means the timely, precise, and site-specific
application of fertilizer or other crop nutrient sources to meet plant needs while preventing
or minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient loss to the environment.
new text end

new text begin (n) "Roll crimping" means flattening a high-biomass cover crop to produce a thick,
uniform mat of mulch before no-tilling a cash crop into the mulch.
new text end

new text begin (o) "Soil health" has the meaning given in section 103C.101.
new text end

new text begin (p) "Strip-till" means planting seeds in narrow, tilled strips in soil that has not otherwise
been plowed or disturbed since the previous crop was harvested.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Pilot program. new text end

new text begin (a) To further the goals in section 103C.701, the Board of Water
and Soil Resources, in consultation with the commissioner of agriculture, must administer
a pilot program to provide technical assistance and award funding to soil and water
conservation districts that provide direct payments to eligible farmers to support the long-term
use and maintenance of clean water, climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming practices.
new text end

new text begin (b) The pilot program is available only to eligible farmers in Dodge, Fillmore, Goodhue,
Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Wabasha, and Winona Counties; one or more of the following
townships in Dakota County: Nininger, Empire, Vermillion, Marshan, Ravenna, Eureka,
Castle Rock, Hampton, Douglas, Greenvale, Waterford, Sciota, and Randolph; and one or
more of the following townships in Rice County: Bridgewater, Northfield, Cannon City,
Wheeling, Walcott, or Richland.
new text end

new text begin (c) Application forms for direct payments must be written in plain language and
accessible.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Direct payments. new text end

new text begin (a) Participating soil and water conservation districts must
award ongoing direct payments to participating farmers as provided in this subdivision.
Payments must be made for each acre farmed with clean water, climate-smart, and
soil-healthy farming practices. Eligible farmers must use at least the three clean water,
climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming practices identified in subdivision 1, paragraph (b),
clause (1). A farmer currently participating in a comparable private direct payment program,
as determined by the Board of Water and Soil Resources, is not eligible under this
subdivision.
new text end

new text begin (b) Payments must equal $15 per acre using the practices in subdivision 1, paragraph
(b), clause (1). Payments must equal $20 per acre using the practices in subdivision 1,
paragraph (b), clause (1), plus one or more of the additional practices in subdivision 1,
paragraph (b), clause (1). Of this amount, participating soil and water conservation districts
must award a portion each February, and the remainder the following January. Districts
may award the January remainder to an eligible farmer only after the farmer's acres are
verified to be in compliance with this subdivision in a manner approved by the commissioner
of agriculture.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Carbon credits. new text end

new text begin The commissioner of agriculture must explore and may
establish a Minnesota carbon credit market for farmers participating in the clean water,
climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming program. The commissioner may spend no more
than $....... under this subdivision.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Dedicated account; appropriation. new text end

new text begin A clean water, climate-smart, and
soil-healthy farming account is established in the special revenue fund. Money in the account,
including interest, is appropriated to the Board of Water and Soil Resources for direct
payments awarded and administrative costs incurred by the Board of Water and Soil
Resources and the commissioner of agriculture under this section and section 103C.705.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Additional enrollment; equity. new text end

new text begin The Board of Water and Soil Resources, in
consultation with the commissioner of agriculture, must develop a process to enroll additional
acres, select eligible farmers, and award program money if the demand exceeds available
funding. The state board's process must include an equity component.
new text end

Sec. 5.

new text begin [103C.705] DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Data collection. new text end

new text begin (a) The Board of Water and Soil Resources, in
consultation with the commissioner of agriculture, must measure how soil health indicators
change based on the practices implemented on fields for which a payment was received
under section 103C.703.
new text end

new text begin (b) The commissioner of agriculture must monitor groundwater and surface water quality
indicators at least annually to determine to what extent the implementation of clean water,
climate-smart, and soil-healthy farming practices under section 103C.703 affects groundwater
and surface water quality.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Reporting. new text end

new text begin No later than February 1 each year, the Board of Water and Soil
Resources, in consultation with the commissioner of agriculture, must report program
outcomes, including but not limited to the number of enrolled acres, the amount of carbon
sequestered and greenhouse gas emissions reduced, and the data collected under subdivision
1, to the legislative committees with jurisdiction over agriculture and the environment. In
the February 1, 2025, report, the commissioner of agriculture must report on the
commissioner's exploration or establishment of a new carbon credit market under section
103C.703, subdivision 4.
new text end