SENATE FILE 346

BY  SORENSON

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to agricultural land acquired by the department of natural resources, by providing for restrictions on the acquisition of new land, directing the sale of existing land, and authorizing the expenditure of sale proceeds for the benefit of state parks. 
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  455A.10A  State fish and game protection fund —— acquisition of land.
   The department shall not use moneys from the state fish and game protection fund to acquire any legal or equitable interest in land except as provided in section 455A.14.
   Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  455A.14  Restrictions upon the acquisition of land —— funding source.
   1.  The department shall not use moneys appropriated directly from the general fund of the state to acquire any legal or equitable interest in land.
   2.  Notwithstanding subsection 1, the department may use moneys appropriated from the general fund of the state for the express purpose of land acquisition to the extent expressly required by statute.
   3.  Notwithstanding subsection 1, the department may use moneys appropriated from a source other than the general fund of the state to acquire a legal or equitable interest in land, if authorized by statute, regardless of whether the appropriated moneys originated from the general fund of the state. However, this subsection applies only if all the following conditions have been satisfied:
   a.  The land does not have an average corn suitability rating ranging from forty to one hundred, based on the most current soil maps for the county available at Iowa state university.
   b.  The department issues a statement justifying all reasons for the land’s acquisition. The statement must be signed by the director of the department and published in the Iowa administrative bulletin at least sixty days prior to the acquisition. A copy of the statement must also be delivered to the fiscal services division of the legislative services agency prior to publication.
   Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  455A.14A  Sale of agricultural land used for row crop farming.
   1.  The department shall sell all land that it owns if on July 1, 2010, such land was leased for row crop farming and such land has an average corn suitability rating ranging from fifty to one hundred, based on the most current soil maps for the county available at Iowa state university. The sale of such land shall be completed no later than June 30, 2014.
   2.  Any moneys received by the department from the sale of land subject to subsection 1 shall be considered repayment receipts as defined in section 8.2, and retained exclusively by the department for purposes of maintaining, repairing, or renovating state parks, including but not limited to structures or infrastructure associated with state parks. The department may also use the proceeds to purchase, maintain, or repair equipment used at state parks, including but not limited to lawn mowers.
   3.  The department shall submit a report to the general assembly by January 1 of each year detailing its plans to sell land described in subsection 1, its progress in completing the sales, the proceeds received from the sales, and the expenditure of those proceeds.
   4.  This section is repealed on July 1, 2015.
   Sec. 4.  Section 455A.19, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2011, is amended by adding the following new unnumbered paragraph:
   NEW UNNUMBERED PARAGRAPH.  An appropriation made under this paragraph“a” shall not be used to acquire any legal or equitable interest in land except as provided in section 455A.14.
EXPLANATION
   This bill restricts the department of natural resources’ expenditure of moneys for the acquisition of land. The moneys cannot derive directly from the general fund of the state, unless expressly required by statute. In addition, conditions are placed on the expenditure of moneys for land acquisition deriving from another source. First, the land cannot have an average corn suitability rating ranging from 40 to 100. Second, the department must publish a statement justifying the acquisition in the Iowa administrative bulletin. The statement must be signed by the director and delivered to the fiscal services division of the legislative services agency prior to publication.
   The bill also requires the department to sell all land that it owns which was leased for row crop farming, if such land has an average corn suitability rating ranging from 50 to 100. The sale of the land must be completed no later than June 30, 2014. The sale proceeds are to be used by the department for purposes of maintaining, repairing, or renovating state parks. The department must submit a report to the general assembly by January 1 of each year detailing its progress in selling the land and use of the sale proceeds.
   A corn suitability rating (CSR) is an index used to score different types of soil for potential row-crop productivity, with the highest rating being 100.