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[Dome]Interim Calendar and Briefing

September 20, 1995

Contents:
Calendar of Scheduled Meetings
Agenda Information Regarding Scheduled Meetings
BRIEFINGS - Information Regarding Recent Meetings

Calendar of Scheduled Meetings

Wednesday, September 27, 1995
Fiscal Committee of the Legislative Council
10:00 a.m., UNI Campus, Gilchrist Hall, Board Room
Wednesday, October 4, 1995
Housing Development Study Committee
10:00 a.m., Room 22
Tuesday, October 10, 1995
International Relations Committee of the Legislative Council
Time to be Announced, Room 118

Administrative Rules Review Committee
10:00 a.m., Room 22
Wednesday, October 11, 1995
Administrative Rules Review Committee
9:00 a.m., Room 22
Thursday, October 12, 1995
Joint Meeting - Business Taxation Study Committee & Nonbusiness Taxation Study Committee
9:00 a.m., Room 116
Friday, October 20, 1995
Intermediate Criminal Sanctions Task Force
10:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Lucas Bldg., Hearing Room 2

Agenda Information Regarding Scheduled Meetings

Fiscal Committee of the Legislative Council

Co-chairperson: Senator Larry Murphy

Co-chairperson: Representative David Millage

Housing Development Study Committee

Temporary Co-Chairperson: Senator Michael E. Gronstal

Temporary Co-Chairperson: Representative Libby Jacobs

International Relations Committee of the Legislative Council

Chairperson: Representative Steven Churchill

Administrative Rules Review Committee

Co-chairperson: Senator Berl E. Priebe

Co-chairperson: Representative Janet Metcalf

JOINT MEETING:
Business Taxation Study Committee
Nonbusiness Taxation Study Committee

Business Taxation Temporary Co-chairperson: Senator Tom Vilsack

Business Taxation Temporary Co-chairperson: Representative Roger Halvorson

Nonbusiness Taxation Temporary Co-chairperson: Senator William Palmer

Nonbusiness Taxation Temporary Co-chairperson: Representative Roger Halvorson

Intermediate Criminal Sanctions Task Force

BRIEFINGS - Information Regarding Recent Meetings

Animal Agriculture Consulting Organization

September 12, 1995

Background.
House File 519, enacted in the 1995 session, provides that the Department of Natural Resources is required to consult with the Iowa Pork Producers Association, the Iowa Cattleman's Association, the Iowa Poultry Association, the Iowa Dairy Products Association, and an organization representing agricultural producers generally, Iowa State University, the Soil Conservation Division of the Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture regarding the implementation of the provisions in the House File relating to animal agriculture regulation.
Recommendations.
The Committee discussed draft recommendations for administrative rules to implement House File 519 regulating animal feeding operations. The Committee adopted the draft recommendations with amendments. The amended recommendations will be forwarded to the Environmental Protection Commission together with a version of the rules developed by the Department of Natural Resources. The recommendations touch upon a number of issues, including the issuance of construction and operating permits; required separation distances between animal feeding operation structures, including manure disposal systems, and public use areas, certain bodies of water and groundwater access points; restrictions upon application practices, including irrigation; and implementation of manure management plans and recordkeeping by producers. Specific recommendations include all of the following:
Manure Management Plans.
House File 519 provides that persons required to obtain a construction permit must submit a manure management plan. The recommendations provide that new animal feeding operations which confine animals other than bovine with an animal weight capacity of more than 200,000 pounds and which use a formed manure storage structure, other than the storage of manure exclusively in a dry form, must provide the Department of Natural Resources with a manure management plan within sixty days prior to the first land application of manure.
Manure Application.
The rules provide a setback distance for irrigation manure application. The recommendations prohibit runoff onto adjoining property, and provide for separation distances from the operating equipment and adjoining property and structures, based in part on application practices, frequency, preexisting operations, and center pivot systems.
County Boards.
An applicant for a permit is not required to submit a manure management plan to a county board of supervisors. A provision requiring that manure management plans be considered confidential information was eliminated.
Drainage Tile.
The recommendations require drainage tile be removed around manure storage structures. The rules require trenching around recently constructed earthen storage structures to prevent pollution through drainage tiles.
Copies Available.
A copy of the draft recommendations and amendments are available upon request at the Legislative Service Bureau.

ADMINISTRATIVE RULES REVIEW COMMITTEE

September 13-14, 1995
Ethics and Campaign Finance Disclosure Commission - Campaign, Office, and Constituent Expenses.
The Committee reviewed an adopted filing which itemizes the allowable use of campaign funds into three distinct categories: campaign expenses, office expenses, and constituent expenses. Committee members noted the fine line between campaign and other types of expenses and observed that much of what an elected official or candidate does is campaign related, no matter what the activity. Concern was expressed that maintaining three categories of expense could result in bookkeeping problems, since an expense could be valid in one category but invalid in another. The commission representative noted that it is the candidate who determines when an expense is campaign related and the commission will accept that designation as conclusive.
Environmental Protection Commission (EPC) - Confined Feedlot Regulation.
Section 24(4) of House File 519, the animal feeding bill enacted in 1995, states: "A person shall not apply manure by spray irrigation equipment, except as provided by rules which shall be adopted by the department pursuant to chapter 17A." The Committee has now tentatively accepted an emergency rule by the EPC allowing those feedlots currently in operation to use manure spray guns. The acceptance is contingent on the adoption of an amendment by the EPC limiting the use of these guns to feedlots which currently use them. Any potential danger from these sprays is minimal, since their operations will be regulated by the restrictions set out in the Act. These provisions require that a confinement feeding operation retain all manure produced by the operation and prohibit any discharge of manure directly into water of the state or into a tile line that discharges directly into water of the state.
Confinement Facility Size.
In a related matter, the Committee members discussed construction of "4900 head" confinement facilities. Under current rules smaller facilities can be constructed without a permit or a manure management plan. Many complaints have been received over this perceived loophole in feedlot control. The EPC has agreed to modify its current exemption by requiring these facilities to file a manure management plan with the division. This compromise solution was acceptable to the Committee members.
Environmental Protection Commission (EPC) - Waste Tire Disposal.
Two years after the enactment of legislation, adopted rules are now in place regulating the disposal of waste tires. The regulatory scheme was acceptable, but several issues did appear with the statute itself. The most significant was the requirement for a performance bond in the amount of some 85 cents per tire. The owner of a disposal facility said that bonding companies not only required some $12,000 for such a bond, but also demanded he establish a special fund to finance any needed work. He contended this requirement was excessive. A second issue was the definition of waste tire itself. The facility owner stated this term should not embrace tires that have been shredded or otherwise processed. Such a change would lower both the bond requirements and the restrictions on the number of tires that could be stored. The Committee noted these changes would require legislative action and referred the issue to the General Assembly.
Department of Human Services - IQ Level for County-Financed Services.
A rulemaking issue relating to intelligence quotient (IQ) cutoff levels for county services to persons with mental retardation and going back an entire year has now been resolved. A 1993 rule raised the level from seventy to seventy-five, provoking an outcry from some county officials who strictly applied the lower level. The Legislature has now enacted H.F. 505 which allows counties to compile a list of any increased costs resulting from this rule change. If the total state-wide increase exceeds $2,000,000, a notice of the amount in excess of $2,000,000 will be forwarded to the General Assembly along with a recommendation that a supplementary appropriation be made to reimburse counties for their loss.
Natural Resources Commission - Harvest of Trees on State Lands.
Background. The Committee reviewed a new Natural Resources Division rule relating to a controversial proposal relating to the harvest of trees on state land. The rule adopts by reference the "Forest Ecosystem Management Guide". This document details the division's plans for maintaining and harvesting the trees on Iowa's publicly owned land. A chart details the primary, secondary, and incidental goals for ecosystem management. Under this chart the production of forest products is a primary goal only in forest areas and only a secondary goal in recreation areas. Trees may be harvested in the other three areas, but only as an incidental goal. In the main this means that trees will be harvested when they are within five years of beginning to die. At times cutting may include clear cutting, when necessary to encourage new growth.
Public Testimony. The Committee took testimony from a number of groups, each with somewhat different positions. Opponents of this plan noted that 93 percent of timberland in Iowa is privately owned and available for commercial exploitation with little or no ability on the part of the state to regulate its use for other purposes; they contend that since only 7 percent of Iowa timberland is publicly owned, the land should be managed for non-commercial purposes. The Committee in general supported the division, with some members noting that is better to cut some timber rather than letting the resources die and rot. The Committee did refer the issue to the General Assembly for informational purposes.
Department of Public Health - Testing children and infants for the presence of drugs.
Background. Senate File 150 directed the Department to establish reliability standards for tests measuring the presence of illegal drugs in infants, children, their parents, or guardians. The results of these tests can be used as evidence in child abuse proceedings. Under Iowa law child abuse occurs when an illegal drug is present in a child's body and the parent or caregiver is responsible for the presence of that drug. The problem is to ensure that the test itself is accurate and able to withstand the strict scrutiny demanded in the court proceedings.
Testing of Hair. The controversy surrounding these proposed standards is that they preclude the use of hair in performing the tests. The Department contends that hair samples can be too easily contaminated and may be racially or sexually biased. This exclusion was criticized by a number of individuals {including a juvenile judge} who noted that most tests can only measure drug presence no longer than 72 hours after exposure and that hair is the only sample that is readily obtainable from an infant.
Committee Action. The proposal was only at the notice stage of rule-making, thus the Committee took no action. However, members voiced their strong opinion that no tool to combat child abuse should be overlooked, and suggested that hair testing be allowed in the final rule.
Department of Revenue and Finance - Sales Tax on Bailing Twine.
House File 149 provides an exemption from the state sales tax for the lease or sale of auxiliary attachments for self-propelled and non-self-propelled farm machinery and equipment. Under the rules now proposed by the Department, this exemption would not be applied to the twine used in bailing equipment. Representatives of the Department stated that twine is not an integral part of a bailer and therefore is not covered by the exception. Moreover, the Department maintained that since twine used for resale is exempted from tax in another statute, that fact indicated a legislative intent not to include it as part of H.F. 149 exemption. Committee members vigorously opposed this proposal, stating that the legislative intent of the General Assembly was to exempt not only attachments but any item needed for its' operation. The Committee postponed any further action until the proposal is adopted in final form. At that time it may be subject to a session delay, for further legislative review, or an objection.

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