1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the environment; modifying requirements 
  1.3             relating to individual sewage treatment systems; 
  1.4             giving the commissioner of the pollution control 
  1.5             agency certain interim authority; amending Minnesota 
  1.6             Statutes 1996, section 115.55, subdivisions 2, 3, 5, 
  1.7             and 6. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 115.55, 
  1.10  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  1.11     Subd. 2.  [LOCAL ORDINANCES.] (a) All counties that did not 
  1.12  adopt ordinances by May 7, 1994, must adopt ordinances that 
  1.13  comply with individual sewage treatment system rules by January 
  1.14  1, 1999.  The ordinances must apply to all areas of the county 
  1.15  other than home rule charter or statutory cities.  Any ordinance 
  1.16  adopted by a local unit of government, before May 7, 1994, to 
  1.17  regulate individual sewage treatment systems must be in 
  1.18  compliance with the individual sewage treatment system rules by 
  1.19  January 1, 1998. 
  1.20     (b) A copy of each ordinance adopted under this subdivision 
  1.21  must be submitted to the commissioner upon adoption. 
  1.22     (c) A local unit of government must make available to the 
  1.23  public upon request a written explanation of any differences 
  1.24  between its ordinances and rules adopted under this section. 
  1.25     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 115.55, 
  1.26  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.1      Subd. 3.  [RULES.] (a) The agency shall adopt rules 
  2.2   containing minimum standards and criteria for the design, 
  2.3   location, installation, use, and maintenance of individual 
  2.4   sewage treatment systems.  The rules must include: 
  2.5      (1) how the agency will ensure compliance under subdivision 
  2.6   2; 
  2.7      (2) how local units of government shall enforce ordinances 
  2.8   under subdivision 2, including requirements for permits and 
  2.9   inspection programs; 
  2.10     (3) how the advisory committee will participate in review 
  2.11  and implementation of the rules; 
  2.12     (4) provisions for alternative systems; 
  2.13     (5) provisions for handling and disposal of effluent; 
  2.14     (6) provisions for system abandonment; 
  2.15     (7) provisions allowing local units of government to adopt 
  2.16  alternative standards and criteria that are based on soil 
  2.17  classification, system use, localized well placement and 
  2.18  construction, localized density of systems and wells, zoning 
  2.19  classification, approximate number of systems to be covered by 
  2.20  the standards, and groundwater flow patterns, provided that: 
  2.21     (i) the alternative standards and criteria may not apply to 
  2.22  new construction or replacement of systems, as defined by the 
  2.23  agency; and 
  2.24     (ii) the alternative standards and criteria are submitted 
  2.25  to the commissioner must certify prior to adoption to 
  2.26  demonstrate that the alternative standards and criteria they 
  2.27  adequately protect public health and the environment; and 
  2.28     (iii) the alternative standards and criteria are considered 
  2.29  approved unless the commissioner, within 60 days after 
  2.30  submission, disapproves the standards and criteria; and 
  2.31     (8) procedures for inspectors to use in determining whether 
  2.32  a system sufficiently protects groundwater, using vertical soil 
  2.33  separation and other criteria, such as soil, groundwater flow, 
  2.34  vegetation, and landscape; 
  2.35     (9) procedures for the commissioner to approve new 
  2.36  individual sewage treatment system technologies for use as 
  3.1   warrantied systems if the manufacturer of the technology 
  3.2   provides to the commissioner: 
  3.3      (i) documentation on where and how the technology is to be 
  3.4   used; 
  3.5      (ii) documentation, not necessarily including in-field 
  3.6   testing, that the technology will perform as expected; and 
  3.7      (iii) adequate financial assurance to cover potential 
  3.8   upgrades necessitated by system failure or determination by the 
  3.9   commissioner that the system must be modified if needed to meet 
  3.10  new standards adopted under this subdivision; and 
  3.11     (10) procedures for variances, including the consideration 
  3.12  of variances based on cost and variances that take into account 
  3.13  proximity of a system to other systems. 
  3.14     (b) The agency shall consult with the advisory committee 
  3.15  before adopting rules under this subdivision. 
  3.16     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 115.55, 
  3.17  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  3.18     Subd. 5.  [INSPECTION.] (a) Except as provided in paragraph 
  3.19  (e), a local unit of government may not issue a building permit 
  3.20  or variance for the addition of a bedroom on property served by 
  3.21  a system unless the system is in compliance with the applicable 
  3.22  requirements, as evidenced by a certificate of compliance issued 
  3.23  by a licensed an inspector or site evaluator or designer.  A 
  3.24  local unit of government may temporarily waive the certificate 
  3.25  of compliance requirement for a building permit or variance for 
  3.26  which application is made during the period from November 1 to 
  3.27  April 30, provided that an inspection of the system is performed 
  3.28  by the following June 1 and the applicant submits a certificate 
  3.29  of compliance by the following September 30. 
  3.30     (b) A compliance inspection under this subdivision is 
  3.31  required for all new construction or replacement of a system, as 
  3.32  defined by agency rule. 
  3.33     (c) If a system inspected under this subdivision is not in 
  3.34  compliance with the applicable requirements, the inspector or 
  3.35  site evaluator or designer must issue a notice of noncompliance 
  3.36  to the property owner and must provide a copy of the notice to 
  4.1   the local unit of government to which application for the 
  4.2   building permit or variance was made that has the applicable 
  4.3   requirements.  The notice of noncompliance must specify why the 
  4.4   system is failing and the specific upgrade time period required 
  4.5   by law, rule, or local ordinance. 
  4.6      (d) If the inspector or site evaluator or designer finds 
  4.7   that the system presents an imminent threat to public health or 
  4.8   safety, or finds that the system contains a cesspool as defined 
  4.9   by rule, the inspector or site evaluator or designer must 
  4.10  include a statement to this effect in the notice and the 
  4.11  property owner must upgrade, replace, or discontinue use of the 
  4.12  system within ten months of receipt of the notice.  The 
  4.13  authority to find a threat to public health under section 
  4.14  145A.04, subdivision 8, is in addition to the authority to make 
  4.15  a finding under this paragraph. 
  4.16     (e) Except as provided in paragraph (d), if a system 
  4.17  installed between May 27, 1989, and January 23, 1996, does not 
  4.18  comply with applicable requirements, the property owner has five 
  4.19  years from the date of the bedroom building permit to bring the 
  4.20  system into compliance. 
  4.21     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 115.55, 
  4.22  subdivision 6, is amended to read: 
  4.23     Subd. 6.  [DISCLOSURE OF INDIVIDUAL SEWAGE TREATMENT SYSTEM 
  4.24  TO BUYER.] After August 31, 1994, (a) Before signing an 
  4.25  agreement to sell or transfer real property, the seller or 
  4.26  transferor must disclose in writing to the buyer or transferee 
  4.27  information about the status and location of individual on how 
  4.28  sewage treatment systems on the property or serving the property 
  4.29  generated at the property is managed.  The disclosure must be 
  4.30  made by delivering a statement to the buyer or transferee that 
  4.31  includes a map showing the location of any abandoned individual 
  4.32  sewage treatment systems and that either: 
  4.33     (1) a statement by the seller that there is no individual 
  4.34  sewage treatment system on or serving the property or a 
  4.35  disclosure statement describing the system and indicating the 
  4.36  sewage goes to a permitted facility; or 
  5.1      (2) the sewage does not go to a permitted facility, is 
  5.2   therefore subject to applicable requirements, and describes the 
  5.3   system in use, including the legal description of the property, 
  5.4   the county in which the property is located, and a map drawn 
  5.5   from available information showing the location of the system on 
  5.6   the property to the extent practicable.  In the disclosure 
  5.7   statement the seller must indicate whether the individual sewage 
  5.8   treatment system is in use and, to the seller's knowledge, in 
  5.9   compliance with applicable sewage treatment laws and rules.  
  5.10  Unless the buyer and seller agree to the contrary in writing 
  5.11  before the closing of the sale, a seller who fails to disclose 
  5.12  the existence or known status of an individual sewage treatment 
  5.13  system at the time of sale, and who knew or had reason to know 
  5.14  of the existence or known status of the system, 
  5.15     (b) If paragraph (a), clause (2), applies, the seller or 
  5.16  transferor must ensure that an inspection of the system has been 
  5.17  conducted.  The inspection must have been conducted by an 
  5.18  inspector and must have been performed no more than one year 
  5.19  before signing the agreement to sell or transfer the property, 
  5.20  except that if the agreement is signed in the period from 
  5.21  November 1 to April 30, the inspection may also be performed no 
  5.22  later than the following June 1. 
  5.23     (c) A seller or transferor who fails to meet the 
  5.24  requirements of this section is liable to the buyer for costs 
  5.25  relating to bringing the system into compliance with the 
  5.26  individual sewage treatment system rules and for reasonable 
  5.27  attorney fees for collection of costs from the seller.  An 
  5.28  action under this subdivision must be commenced within two years 
  5.29  after the date on which the buyer closed the purchase or 
  5.30  transfer of the real property where the system is located. 
  5.31     Sec. 5.  [INTERIM AUTHORITY.] 
  5.32     The commissioner has the authority to allow compliance 
  5.33  with, and shall act in accordance with, the amendments in 
  5.34  section 2 to Minnesota Statutes, section 115.55, subdivision 3, 
  5.35  until the effective date of new rules adopted under Minnesota 
  5.36  Statutes, section 115.55, but no later than December 31, 2000. 
  6.1      Sec. 6.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  6.2      Section 5 is effective on the day following final enactment.