House File 54 HOUSE FILE BY ALONS, KLEMME, MANTERNACH, LALK, HUSEMAN, BOGGESS, MERTZ, DE BOEF, EICHHORN, and CHAMBERS Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays Approved A BILL FOR 1 An Act relating to certification fees charged to commercial 2 manure applicators, and providing an effective date. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1305YH 80 5 da/sh/8 PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. Section 459.102, subsection 11, Code 2003, is 1 2 amended by striking the subsection. 1 3 Sec. 2. Section 459.315, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 1 4 2003, is amended to read as follows: 1 5 a. "Commercial manure applicator" meansthe same as 1 6 defined in section 459.102a person who engages in the 1 7 business of and charges a fee for applying manure on the land 1 8 of another person. 1 9 Sec. 3. Section 459.315, subsection 6, unnumbered 1 10 paragraph 1, Code 2003, is amended to read as follows: 1 11 The department may charge a fee for certifying a person 1 12 under this section. The fee for certification shall be based 1 13 on the costs of administering and enforcing this section and 1 14 paying the expenses of the department relating to 1 15 certification. However, a commercial manure applicator shall 1 16 not be charged a certification fee of more than one hundred 1 17 dollars. A person who is certified as a confinement site 1 18 manure applicator as provided in this section is exempt from 1 19 paying the certification fee, if all of the following apply: 1 20 Sec. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act, being deemed of 1 21 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment. 1 22 EXPLANATION 1 23 BACKGROUND. In 1998, the general assembly enacted House 1 24 File 2494 (1998 Iowa Acts, chapter 1209) regulating animal 1 25 feeding operations by the department of natural resources. 1 26 Part of the legislation required certification for commercial 1 27 manure applicators (persons engaged in the business of 1 28 applying manure on the land of other persons). The provisions 1 29 were codified as Code section 455B.203A, which was recently 1 30 transferred to new Code section 459.315 as part of Senate File 1 31 2293, enacted in the 2002 session (2002 Iowa Acts, chapter 1 32 1137; see also 2002 Iowa Acts, Second Extraordinary Session, 1 33 chapter 1003). 1 34 PROVISIONS OF THE BILL. Currently, Code section 459.315 1 35 provides that a person is certified as a commercial manure 2 1 applicator after completing an educational program that 2 2 consists of an examination or continuing instructional 2 3 courses. The Code section authorizes the department to charge 2 4 a certification fee based on the costs of administering and 2 5 enforcing the program. This bill provides that a commercial 2 6 manure applicator shall not be charged a certification fee of 2 7 more than $100. The bill also moves the definition of 2 8 "commercial manure applicator" from the beginning of Code 2 9 chapter 459 to Code section 459.315, the only Code section in 2 10 which the term is used. 2 11 The bill takes effect upon enactment. 2 12 LSB 1305YH 80 2 13 da/sh/8