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H0172...............................................by AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS
BEEF CATTLE ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS - Amends existing law relating to
beef cattle animal feeding operations to authorize the director of the
Department of Agriculture to regulate certain recipients of manure or
process wastewater; to require recipients to submit nutrient management
plans to the director for approval; to provide for inspections of land
owned or operated by recipients; to authorize the Department of Agriculture
to access and copy certain records belonging to recipients; to provide for
the director of the Department of Agriculture's identification of items of
noncompliance; to authorize assessment of certain civil penalties; and to
provide that recipients that are in compliance with specified laws shall
not be subject to certain state enforcement actions.
02/11 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/14 Rpt prt - to Agric Aff
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-eighth Legislature First Regular Session - 2005
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 172
BY AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO BEEF CATTLE ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS; AMENDING SECTION 22-4902,
3 IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE PROVISIONS RELATING TO LEGISLATIVE INTENT; AMENDING
4 SECTION 22-4903, IDAHO CODE, TO AUTHORIZE THE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT
5 OF AGRICULTURE TO REGULATE CERTAIN RECIPIENTS OF MANURE OR PROCESS WASTE-
6 WATER; AMENDING SECTION 22-4906, IDAHO CODE, TO REQUIRE CERTAIN RECIPIENTS
7 OF MANURE OR PROCESS WASTEWATER TO SUBMIT NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT PLANS TO THE
8 DIRECTOR FOR APPROVAL AND TO PROVIDE FOR APPROVED NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
9 PLANS; AMENDING SECTION 22-4907, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE FOR INSPECTIONS OF
10 LAND OWNED OR OPERATED BY CERTAIN RECIPIENTS OF MANURE OR PROCESS WASTEWA-
11 TER, TO AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT TO ACCESS AND COPY CERTAIN RECORDS
12 BELONGING TO THE RECIPIENT AND TO REVISE CRITERIA RELATING TO REASONABLE
13 ACCESS OF THE DIRECTOR; AMENDING SECTION 22-4909, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE
14 FOR THE DIRECTOR'S IDENTIFICATION OF ITEMS OF NONCOMPLIANCE UPON LAND
15 WHERE MANURE OR PROCESS WASTEWATER HAS BEEN PLACED BY CERTAIN RECIPIENTS,
16 TO AUTHORIZE THE ASSESSMENT OF CERTAIN CIVIL PENALTIES AND TO PROVIDE COR-
17 RECT TERMINOLOGY; AND AMENDING SECTION 22-4910, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE
18 THAT CERTAIN RECIPIENTS OF MANURE OR PROCESS WASTEWATER THAT ARE IN COM-
19 PLIANCE WITH SPECIFIED LAWS SHALL NOT BE SUBJECT TO CERTAIN STATE ENFORCE-
20 MENT ACTIONS AND TO PROVIDE CORRECT TERMINOLOGY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFEC-
21 TIVE DATE.
22 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
23 SECTION 1. That Section 22-4902, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
24 amended to read as follows:
25 22-4902. DECLARATION OF POLICY AND STATEMENT OF LEGISLATIVE INTENT. (1)
26 The legislature recognizes the importance of protecting state natural
27 resources including, surface water and ground water. It is the intent of the
28 legislature to protect the quality of these natural resources while maintain-
29 ing an ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially responsible beef
30 cattle industry in the state. The beef cattle industry produces manure and
31 process wastewater which, when properly used, supplies valuable nutrients and
32 organic matter to soils and is protective of the environment, but may, when
33 improperly stored and managed, create adverse impacts on natural resources,
34 including waters of the state. This chapter is intended to ensure that manure
35 and process wastewater associated with beef cattle operations are handled in a
36 manner which protects the natural resources of the state.
37 (2) Further, the legislature recognizes that the beef cattle industry is
38 potentially subject to various state and federal laws designed to protect
39 state natural resources and that the Idaho department of agriculture is in the
40 best position to administer and implement these various laws. It is therefore
41 the intent of the legislature that the administration of this law by the
42 department of agriculture fully meets the goals and requirements of the fed-
43 eral clean water act and state laws designed to further protect state waters
2
1 and that administration of this chapter by the department of agriculture shall
2 not be more stringent than or broader in scope than the requirements of the
3 clean water act and applicable state and federal laws. The department shall
4 have authority to administer all laws to protect the quality of water within
5 the confines of a beef cattle animal feeding operation. In carrying out this
6 chapter the department shall prioritize its resources on operations which have
7 the greatest potential to significantly impact the environment and ensure that
8 any requirements imposed under this chapter upon operators of beef cattle ani-
9 mal feeding operations, or upon recipients of manure or process wastewater
10 from beef cattle animal feeding operations, are cost-effective and economi-
11 cally, environmentally and technologically feasible.
12 (3) Successful implementation of this chapter is dependent upon the
13 department receiving adequate funding from the legislature and is dependent
14 upon the department executing a memorandum of agreement with the United States
15 environmental protection agency, the department of environmental quality and
16 the Idaho cattle association which sets forth a working arrangement between
17 the agencies to ensure compliance with this chapter and applicable state and
18 federal laws, including the federal clean water act. Moreover, the legislature
19 recognizes that it is important for the state to obtain a delegated national
20 pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit program from the EPA
21 under the clean water act.
22 SECTION 2. That Section 22-4903, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
23 amended to read as follows:
24 22-4903. AUTHORITY AND DUTIES OF DIRECTOR CONCERNING BEEF CATTLE ANIMAL
25 FEEDING OPERATIONS. (1) The director of the department of agriculture through
26 the division of animal industries is authorized to regulate beef cattle animal
27 feeding operations, and recipients of manure or process wastewater from beef
28 cattle animal feeding operations, to protect state natural resources, includ-
29 ing surface water and ground water.
30 (2) In order to carry out its duties under this chapter, the department
31 shall be the responsible state department to prevent any ground water contami-
32 nation from beef cattle animal feeding operations as provided under section
33 39-120, Idaho Code.
34 (3) The director shall have the authority to exercise any other authori-
35 ties delegated by the director of the department of environmental quality
36 regarding the protection of ground water, surface water and other natural
37 resources associated with confined animal feeding operations, and this shall
38 be the authority for the director of the department of environmental quality
39 to so delegate.
40 (4) The director of the department of environmental quality shall consult
41 with the director of the department of agriculture before certifying dis-
42 charges from beef cattle animal feeding operations as provided under 33 U.S.C.
43 section 1341.
44 SECTION 3. That Section 22-4906, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
45 amended to read as follows:
46 22-4906. NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT PLAN. (1) Each beef cattle animal feeding
47 operation shall submit a nutrient management plan to the director for
48 approval. Beef cattle animal feeding operations that are operating on or
49 before July 1, 2000, shall submit a nutrient management plan to the director
50 for approval no later than January 1, 2005. Any new operation commencing oper-
51 ations after July 1, 2000, shall not operate prior to the director's approval
3
1 of a nutrient management plan. An approved nutrient management plan shall be
2 implemented and considered a best management practice. Following department
3 review and approval, the plan, and all copies of the plan, shall be returned
4 to the operation and maintained on site. Such plans shall be available to the
5 administrator on request.
6 (2) All recipients of manure or process wastewater from a beef cattle
7 animal feeding operation that receive such manure or process wastewater on or
8 after July 1, 2006, shall submit a nutrient management plan to the director
9 for approval. An approved nutrient management plan shall be implemented and
10 considered a best management practice.
11 SECTION 4. That Section 22-4907, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
12 amended to read as follows:
13 22-4907. INSPECTIONS. (1) The director or his designee in the division of
14 animal industries is authorized to enter and inspect any beef cattle animal
15 feeding operation, or land owned or operated by any recipient of manure or
16 process wastewater from a beef cattle animal feeding operation, and have
17 access to or copy records of any facility records or manure or process waste-
18 water recipient deemed necessary to ensure compliance with this chapter and
19 the federal clean water act. The director shall comply with the biosecurity
20 protocol of the operation so long as the protocol does not inhibit reasonable
21 access to:
22 (a) Enter and inspect at reasonable times the premises or land applica-
23 tion site(s) of a beef cattle animal feeding operation, or land owned or
24 operated by any recipient of manure or process wastewater from a beef cat-
25 tle animal feeding operation;
26 (b) Review and/or copy, at reasonable times, any records that must be
27 kept under conditions of this chapter;
28 (c) Sample or monitor at reasonable times, substances or parameters
29 directly related to compliance with an NPDES permit or this chapter.
30 (2) All inspections and investigations conducted under the authority of
31 this chapter shall be performed in conformity with section 17, article I of
32 the constitution of the state of Idaho. The state shall not, under the author-
33 ity granted by this chapter, conduct warrantless searches of private property
34 in the absence of either consent from the property owner or other authorized
35 person.
36 SECTION 5. That Section 22-4909, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
37 amended to read as follows:
38 22-4909. ENFORCEMENT. (1) Informal administrative resolution of noncom-
39 pliance. When the director identifies items of noncompliance at a beef cattle
40 animal feeding operation, or upon land where a recipient has placed manure or
41 process wastewater from a beef cattle animal feeding operation, the deficien-
42 cies will be noted and appropriate corrective actions will be identified and
43 scheduled informally. When corrective actions cannot be commenced within
44 thirty (30) days and completed within a reasonable time, the director may
45 negotiate a compliance order as specified in subsection (2)(b) of this sec-
46 tion.
47 (2) (a) Administrative enforcement. Any beef cattle animal feeding opera-
48 tion, or recipient of manure or process wastewater from a beef cattle ani-
49 mal feeding operation, not complying with the provisions of this act chap-
50 ter may be assessed a civil penalty by the director or his duly authorized
51 agent in an administrative enforcement action by the issuance of a notice
4
1 of noncompliance. The notice of noncompliance shall identify the alleged
2 violation with specificity, shall specify each provision of the act chap-
3 ter or permit which has been violated, and shall state the amount of any
4 civil penalty claimed for each violation and identify appropriate correc-
5 tive action.
6 (b) The notice of noncompliance shall inform the person to whom it is
7 directed of an opportunity to confer with the director or the director's
8 designee in a compliance conference concerning the alleged violation. A
9 compliance schedule must be requested within fifteen (15) days of receipt
10 of the notice of noncompliance. The compliance conference shall provide an
11 opportunity for the recipient of a notice of noncompliance to explain the
12 circumstances of the alleged violation and, where appropriate, to present
13 a proposal for remedying damage caused by the alleged violation and assur-
14 ing future compliance. If the recipient and the director agree on a plan
15 to remedy damage caused by the alleged noncompliance and to assure future
16 compliance, they may enter into a compliance order formalizing their
17 agreement. The compliance order may include a schedule to correct defi-
18 ciencies and a provision providing for payment of any agreed civil pen-
19 alty.
20 (c) A compliance order shall be effective immediately upon signing by
21 both parties and shall preclude any civil enforcement action for the same
22 alleged noncompliance. If a party does not comply with the terms of the
23 compliance order, the director may seek and obtain, in any appropriate
24 district court, specific performance of the compliance order and such
25 other relief as authorized in this act chapter.
26 (d) If the parties cannot reach agreement on a compliance order within
27 sixty (60) days after the receipt of the notice of noncompliance, or if
28 the recipient does not timely request a compliance conference under this
29 section, the director may commence and prosecute a civil enforcement
30 action in district court, in accordance with subsection (3) of this sec-
31 tion.
32 (3) Civil enforcement. The director may initiate a civil enforcement
33 action through the attorney general. Civil enforcement actions shall be com-
34 menced and prosecuted in the district court in and for the county in which the
35 alleged violation occurred, and may be brought against any person who is
36 alleged to have violated any provision of this act chapter or any permit or
37 order which has become effective pursuant to this act chapter. Such action may
38 be brought to compel compliance with any provision of this act chapter or with
39 any permit or order promulgated hereunder and for any relief or remedies
40 authorized in this act chapter. No civil or administrative proceeding may be
41 brought to recover for a violation of any provision of this act chapter or a
42 violation of any permit or order issued pursuant to this act chapter, more
43 than two (2) years after the director had knowledge or ought reasonably to
44 have had knowledge of the violation.
45 (4) Civil penalty. Any person determined in a civil enforcement action to
46 have violated any provision of this act chapter or any permit or order promul-
47 gated pursuant to this act chapter shall be liable for a civil penalty not to
48 exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation or one thousand dollars
49 ($1,000) for each day of a continuing violation. The method of recovery of
50 said penalty shall be by a civil enforcement action in the district court in
51 and for the county where the violation occurred. Moneys collected for viola-
52 tions of this section or rules promulgated thereunder shall be deposited in
53 the state treasury and credited to the state school building fund. The imposi-
54 tion or computation of monetary penalties shall take into account the serious-
55 ness of the violation, good faith efforts to comply with the law, the economic
5
1 impact of the penalty on the violator, the economic benefit, if any, of the
2 violation and such other matters as justice requires.
3 SECTION 6. That Section 22-4910, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
4 amended to read as follows:
5 22-4910. SAFE HARBOR. All beef cattle animal feeding operations, and
6 recipients of manure or process wastewater from a beef cattle animal feeding
7 operation, operating in compliance with this act chapter and approved best
8 management practices shall not be subject to state enforcement action due to
9 violations of state water quality standards or state ground water quality
10 standards except in the event of imminent and substantial danger as provided
11 in chapter 1, title 39, Idaho Code. However, the department shall evaluate and
12 modify such best management practices as necessary.
13 SECTION 7. This act shall be in full force and effect on and after July
14 1, 2006.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 14846
Effective July 1, 2006, farms that receive livestock waste or
process wastewater from beef cattle feeding operations will be
required to file nutrient management plans with the Department of
Agriculture.
FISCAL NOTE
No fiscal impact to the General Fund.
Contact
Name: Representative Doug Jones
Phone: 332-1000
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE H 172