House File 2081 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 2081 BY FISHER A BILL FOR An Act establishing standards for obstruction lights on wind 1 energy conversion facilities and providing penalties. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 5797HH (2) 91 sb/js

H.F. 2081 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 476.50 Wind energy conversion 1 facilities —— obstruction light standards. 2 1. For purposes of this section: 3 a. “Aircraft detection lighting system” means a sensor-based 4 system designed to detect aircraft as they approach an 5 obstruction or group of obstructions. An aircraft detection 6 lighting system turns an obstruction light on when an aircraft 7 is detected or if there is a system failure, and keeps the 8 obstruction light on until the aircraft exits the coverage 9 area. 10 b. “Obstruction light” means a high-intensity beacon, 11 typically red or white, installed on a tall structure to warn 12 aircraft pilots of the structure’s presence. 13 c. “Wind energy conversion facility” means a wind energy 14 conversion facility, as defined in section 476C.1, or a wind 15 turbine that is part of a wind energy conversion system, that 16 has a nameplate generating capacity greater than one hundred 17 kilowatts. 18 2. Unless otherwise provided in this section, all 19 obstruction lights on wind energy conversion facilities 20 constructed on or after July 1, 2026, shall be controlled by an 21 aircraft detection lighting system. All wind energy conversion 22 facilities constructed prior to July 1, 2026, that utilize 23 an obstruction light not controlled by an aircraft detection 24 lighting system shall be altered to utilize an obstruction 25 light controlled by an aircraft detection lighting system by 26 January 1, 2028. 27 3. An aircraft detection lighting system required 28 under this section must be approved by the federal aviation 29 administration. 30 4. A wind energy conversion facility at a location where an 31 obstruction light controlled by an aircraft detection lighting 32 system in not appropriate due to terrain limitations, proximity 33 to airports, visual flight rules, or military training routes 34 is not required to utilize an aircraft detection lighting 35 -1- LSB 5797HH (2) 91 sb/js 1/ 4

H.F. 2081 system. 1 5. The owner of a wind energy conversion facility with an 2 obstruction light controlled by an aircraft detection lighting 3 system shall be responsible for ensuring the aircraft detection 4 lighting system remains continuously operational. 5 6. a. An owner of a wind energy conversion facility in 6 violation of this section is subject to a civil penalty, which 7 may be levied by the commission, of not less than one hundred 8 dollars nor more than two thousand five hundred dollars per 9 violation. 10 b. Each day a violation continues is a separate and 11 distinct offense. Any civil penalty may be compromised by the 12 commission. In determining the amount of the penalty, or the 13 amount agreed upon in a compromise, the commission may consider 14 the appropriateness of the penalty in relation to the total 15 number of wind energy conversion facilities the owner operates 16 in violation of this section, the number of days a violation 17 has occurred, and the good faith of the owner in attempting to 18 achieve compliance following notification of a violation, and 19 any other relevant factors. 20 c. Civil penalties collected pursuant to this section shall 21 be forwarded by the chief operating officer of the commission 22 to the treasurer of state to be credited to the general fund of 23 the state. 24 EXPLANATION 25 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 26 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 27 This bill establishes standards for obstruction lights on 28 wind energy conversion facilities. 29 The bill defines “aircraft detection lighting system” (ADLS) 30 as a sensor-based system designed to detect aircraft as they 31 approach an obstruction or group of obstructions. The bill 32 explains that an ADLS turns an obstruction light on when an 33 aircraft is detected or if there is a system failure, and keeps 34 an obstruction light on until the aircraft exits the coverage 35 -2- LSB 5797HH (2) 91 sb/js 2/ 4

H.F. 2081 area. The bill defines “obstruction light” as a high-intensity 1 beacon, typically red or white, installed on tall structures 2 to warn aircraft pilots of the structure’s presence. The bill 3 defines “wind energy conversion facility” as a wind energy 4 conversion system that collects and converts wind into energy 5 to generate electricity, or a wind turbine that is part of 6 a wind energy conversion system, with a nameplate generating 7 capacity greater than 100 kilowatts. 8 The bill requires all obstruction lights on wind energy 9 conversion facilities constructed on or after July 1, 2026, 10 to be controlled by an ADLS. The bill further requires wind 11 energy conversion facilities constructed prior to July 1, 2026, 12 that utilize obstruction lights not controlled by an ADLS to 13 be altered to utilize obstruction lights controlled by an ADLS 14 by January 1, 2028. 15 The bill requires any ADLS required under the bill to be 16 approved by the federal aviation administration. 17 The bill provides that a wind energy conversion system 18 located at a site where an obstruction light controlled by an 19 ADLS is not appropriate due to terrain limitations, proximity 20 to airports, visual flight rules, or military training routes 21 is not required to utilize an ADLS. 22 The bill provides that an owner of a wind energy conversion 23 system with an obstruction light controlled by an ADLS is 24 responsible for ensuring the ADLS remains continuously 25 operational. 26 The bill provides that an owner of a wind energy conversion 27 facility in violation of the bill is subject to a civil penalty 28 by the commission of not less than $100 nor more than $2,500 29 per violation. The bill provides that each day a violation 30 continues is a separate and distinct offense, but allows the 31 commission to compromise any civil penalty based on certain 32 factors. 33 The bill directs any civil penalties collected to be 34 forwarded by the chief operating officer of the commission to 35 -3- LSB 5797HH (2) 91 sb/js 3/ 4

H.F. 2081 the treasurer of state to be credited to the general fund of 1 the state. 2 -4- LSB 5797HH (2) 91 sb/js 4/ 4