House File 2410 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 2410 BY COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE (SUCCESSOR TO HF 2211) A BILL FOR An Act relating to water quality improvement, by providing 1 for water quality programs, projects, and practices, 2 approving designs for soil and water conservation practices, 3 prioritizing watersheds, and reducing property taxes on land 4 reserved for conservation practices. 5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 6 TLSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh

H.F. 2410 DIVISION I 1 WATER POLLUTION REDUCTION PROJECTS 2 IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 3 IOWA NUTRIENT RESEARCH CENTER 4 Section 1. Section 466B.47, Code 2016, is amended by adding 5 the following new subsection: 6 NEW SUBSECTION . 3A. The center may sponsor or support 7 projects to reduce water pollution, including projects that 8 reduce the transport of nutrients to surface water from 9 nonpoint sources within watersheds in accordance with the 10 latest revision of the document entitled “Iowa nutrient 11 reduction strategy” initially presented in November 2012 by the 12 department of agriculture and land stewardship, the department 13 of natural resources, and Iowa state university of science 14 and technology. The projects may also implement findings or 15 recommendations of the college of agriculture and life sciences 16 of Iowa state university of science and technology, including 17 those findings and recommendations submitted to the general 18 assembly pursuant to 2015 Iowa Acts, chapter 132, section 18. 19 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 466B.47A Innovation project —— grants. 20 The center may award grants to support innovative projects 21 for the development of new and improved practices or 22 technologies to reduce the transport of nutrients to surface 23 waters from nonpoint sources. The new or improved practices 24 or technologies must be able to be implemented within a 25 reasonable period of time and in a scientific, reasonable, and 26 cost-effective manner. Total awards made by the center to 27 support all innovated projects shall not exceed fifty thousand 28 dollars during any fiscal year. 29 DIVISION II 30 QUALIFYING SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION PRACTICES 31 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND LAND STEWARDSHIP, SOIL AND WATER 32 CONSERVATION DIVISION AND SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICTS 33 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 161A.55 Qualifying practices —— 34 eligibility for cost-share moneys. 35 -1- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 1/ 7

H.F. 2410 1. A landowner may submit a design to the district for a 1 voluntary qualifying permanent soil and water conservation 2 practice to be established on the landowner’s land for approval 3 by the district. 4 2. The division shall adopt rules as necessary to administer 5 this section, which shall include at least all of the 6 following: 7 a. Design standards and specifications. The division shall 8 adopt in whole or in part the standards and specifications of 9 the United States department of agriculture, natural resources 10 conservation service. 11 b. A process to approve designs for qualifying practices, 12 which may be established by a person having a practical 13 knowledge of land use and row crop farming, that are relatively 14 inexpensive to establish and maintain, and that remain highly 15 effective for a long period of time. 16 c. A schedule of amounts of cost-share moneys or other 17 financing available under this chapter that may be used to 18 finance specific qualifying practices. 19 3. The commissioners are not required to provide for the 20 submission of bids to establish a qualifying practice, unless 21 otherwise provided in rules adopted by the division. 22 4. A landowner shall not receive cost-share moneys for 23 preparing or submitting a design to a district. 24 Sec. 4. Section 542B.2, subsection 9, Code 2016, is amended 25 by adding the following new paragraph: 26 NEW PARAGRAPH . c. Notwithstanding paragraphs “a” and 27 “b” , a person shall not be construed to be engaged in the 28 practice of engineering if the person constructs or establishes 29 a qualifying permanent soil and water conservation practice 30 pursuant to section 161A.55. 31 DIVISION III 32 PRIORITIZING WATERSHED FUNDING 33 DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND 34 WATER RESOURCES COORDINATING COUNCIL 35 -2- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 2/ 7

H.F. 2410 Sec. 5. Section 456A.33A, Code 2016, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 456A.33A Watershed priority. 3 1. a. The commission shall each year establish and maintain 4 a priority list of watersheds which are of highest importance 5 based on soil loss to be used for the allocation of moneys set 6 aside in annual appropriations from the general fund to the 7 department of agriculture and land stewardship for permanent 8 soil conservation practices under chapter 161A on watersheds 9 above publicly owned lakes. 10 b. The commission may consider factors that contribute 11 to the watershed’s comparative value to the state and local 12 communities located in the watershed, including the populations 13 served by the watershed, the use of the watershed as a 14 source of drinking water, the existence of a rare or valuable 15 ecological system, and recreational opportunities associated 16 with the watershed. 17 2. Chapter 17A does not apply to this section . 18 Sec. 6. Section 466B.3, subsection 6, paragraph b, 19 subparagraph (8), Code 2016, is amended to read as follows: 20 (8) Develop a protocol which identifies high-priority 21 watersheds, including local and community-based subwatersheds, 22 and which appropriately directs resources to those watersheds. 23 The council may consider factors that contribute to the 24 watershed’s comparative value to the state and local 25 communities located in the watershed, including the population 26 served by the watershed, the use of the watershed as a 27 source of drinking water, the existence of a rare or valuable 28 ecological system, and recreational opportunities associated 29 with the watershed. 30 DIVISION IV 31 PROPERTY TAX REDUCTION TO SUPPORT WATER QUALITY PRACTICES 32 Sec. 7. Section 441.21, Code 2016, is amended by adding the 33 following new subsection: 34 NEW SUBSECTION . 4A. a. Notwithstanding other provisions 35 -3- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 3/ 7

H.F. 2410 in this section to the contrary, for valuations established on 1 or after January 1, 2017, property classified as residential 2 property, agricultural property, commercial property, 3 industrial property, multiresidential property, property 4 valued by the department of revenue pursuant to chapter 5 434, and property valued by the department of revenue 6 pursuant to chapters 428, 433, 437, and 438 in each assessing 7 jurisdiction in the county, and which is used for soil and 8 water conservation purposes, shall be assessed at ten percent 9 of the actual value established for that property. 10 b. Property used for soil and water conservation purposes 11 under paragraph “a” is limited to parcels or segments of parcels 12 of the property that utilize a system or practice that reduces 13 the transport of sediment, nutrients, or contaminants to a 14 surface water. To be eligible for the reduction in assessed 15 value a parcel or segment of a parcel must include one or more 16 of the following: 17 (1) A bioreactor system, which is part of or connected to a 18 working subsurface field drainage tile line, that is utilized 19 to reduce sediment, nutrient, or contaminant loading in water 20 transported in the tile line. The parcel or segment of the 21 parcel qualifying for the reduction shall not be more than 22 three acres in size. 23 (2) A filter buffer strip that is an area of permanent 24 vegetation cover utilized to reduce sediment, nutrient, or 25 contaminant loading associated with runoff. The parcel or 26 segment of the parcel qualifying for the reduction may extend 27 any distance along the edge of a surface water but shall not 28 extend more than thirty feet from the edge of the surface water 29 to that portion of the agricultural property used for producing 30 crops. 31 (3) A prairie conservation strip integrating perennial 32 prairie grass strips into agricultural property used for 33 producing crops, and utilized to reduce erosion and the 34 transport of sediment, nutrients, or contaminants downslope. 35 -4- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 4/ 7

H.F. 2410 The parcel or segment of the parcel qualifying for the 1 reduction shall not exceed ten percent of the agricultural 2 property’s acreage. 3 (4) A restored wetland that is mostly underwater or 4 waterlogged during the growing season, and characterized by 5 vegetation of hydric soils. The parcel or segment of the 6 parcel qualifying for the reduction shall not exceed ten acres. 7 c. The county assessor shall require an owner of the 8 agricultural property to submit documentation regarding 9 the amount of agricultural property used for soil and water 10 conservation purposes. 11 EXPLANATION 12 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 13 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 14 GENERAL. This bill provides for the assessment and 15 reduction of nutrients in this state’s watersheds and for soil 16 and water conservation and water quality practices established 17 on real property, including agricultural land. 18 IOWA NUTRIENT RESEARCH CENTER —— WATER POLLUTION REDUCTION 19 PROJECTS. The bill authorizes the Iowa nutrient research 20 center established at Iowa state university of science and 21 technology to sponsor or support water quality projects that 22 reduce water pollution, including the transport of nutrients 23 to surface water from nonpoint sources. The bill also 24 authorizes the center to award grants to persons to support 25 the development of new or improved practices or technologies 26 that reduce the transport of nutrients to surface waters from 27 nonpoint sources. However, the center cannot award more than 28 $50,000 in grants to support all projects during any fiscal 29 year. 30 The purpose of the center is to carry out the state’s 31 water quality initiative by pursuing a science-based approach 32 to nutrient management research. Currently, the center is 33 supported by an annual appropriation (see 2015 Iowa Acts, ch. 34 132, sections 17 and 40). 35 -5- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 5/ 7

H.F. 2410 DESIGNS FOR QUALIFYING SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION 1 PRACTICES. The bill authorizes a landowner of a district to 2 submit a design for approval by a district for a qualifying 3 voluntary permanent soil conservation practice eligible for 4 cost-share or other forms of available state financing. The 5 design standards adopted by the division must meet United 6 States department of agriculture standards and specifications. 7 The qualifying practice used in approved designs must be able 8 to be established by a person having a practical knowledge of 9 land use and row crop farming, be relatively inexpensive to 10 establish and maintain, and be highly effective for a long 11 period of time. The commissioners are not required to provide 12 for the submission of bids unless the division otherwise 13 requires a submission. A landowner is not entitled to receive 14 cost-share or other state financing for preparing or submitting 15 a design. Persons who construct or establish a qualifying 16 permanent soil and water conservation practice as provided 17 in the bill are not to be construed as being engaged in the 18 practice of engineering. 19 DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER RESOURCES 20 COORDINATING COUNCIL —— PRIORITIZING WATERSHED FUNDING. The 21 bill provides that when making funding decisions to improve 22 water quality in watersheds, the department of natural 23 resources and the water resources coordinating council must, in 24 their respective priority evaluations, account for factors that 25 contribute to the watershed’s comparative value to the state 26 and local communities located in the watershed. 27 PROPERTY TAX REDUCTION. The bill provides that property 28 used for soil and water conservation purposes is assessed at 29 10 percent of the actual value established for the property. 30 Property eligible for the reduction in actual value for 31 assessment purposes is limited to a parcel or a segment of 32 a parcel of property that utilizes a system or practice that 33 reduces the transport of sediment, nutrients, or contaminants 34 to surface water. The county assessor must require the owner 35 -6- LSB 5601HV (3) 86 da/lh 6/ 7