That Bill Stinks! 

           

The Legislature began winding down in April and that always means a flurry of last-minute business that must be completed before the session ends.  A bill that offends Iowa Chapter of Sierra Club's olfactory senses lay dormant for weeks, but reared its head during the last two weeks of the session and wound up on the governor's desk.

HF 2688 began its journey as a study bill (HSB 679) providing for a research effort to mitigate odor emitted from livestock operations. 

The Legislative Council created the Livestock Odor Study Committee in 2007, with the charge to consider issues relating to odors associated with livestock production. One of the recommendations to the General Assembly included the acceptance of a five-year plan totaling $22.8 million to study livestock odor technologies. The plan was submitted by Iowa State University (ISU), the Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (DALS), and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The study would include Tier 1 projects that have been previously tested, Tier 2 projects that have not been tested as frequently, and emerging technologies that have limited results.*

HSB 679 was assigned to the House Agriculture committee on February 19, 2008, with a subcommittee of Representatives Reichert, De Boef, Gayman, Wenthe and Worthan.  On March 5, the Agriculture Committee voted HSB 679 out of committee as HF 2652.

On March 25, House leadership referred HF 2652 to the House Appropriations Committee to keep the bill active after funnel dates.  HF 2652 was then reassigned to the Ways & Means Committee on April 7, with a subcommittee of Representatives Thomas, Quirk, and Struyk.

Debra Kozel, an analyst with the Fiscal Services Division of the Legislative Services Agency, submitted a Fiscal Note on April 15 to accompany the bill.  In the document, Kozel writes that the fiscal impact on Iowa taxpayers would estimate roughly $22.8 million for the next five fiscal years.  All of that money would be directed to ISU for the study.  Read Kozel's Fiscal Note here...

On April 17, the House voted on the bill, now known as HF 2688, with an amendment that essentially delays implementation until such time as ISU is appropriated funds to proceed with the study.  Rep. Kuhn offered an amendment that would require the University of Iowa to research the health effects of exposure to odor from livestock operations, but it failed 38-53.  With a vote of 66 ayes and 34 nays, the HF 2688 passed with the representatives voting as follows:

Alons, Anderson, Arnold, Bailey, Baudler, Bell, Boal, Chambers, Clute, Cohoon, Dandekar, Davitt, De Boef, Deyoe, Dolecheck, Drake, Forristall, Gayman, Gipp, Granzow, Grassley, Greiner, Heaton, Hoffman, Horbach, Huseman, Jacobs, Kaufmann, Kelley, Lukan, Lykam, McCarthy, Mertz, L. Miller, Spkr. Murphy, S. Olson,  Palmer, Paulsen, Pettengill, Quirk, Rants, Rasmussen, Rayhons, Reasoner, Reichert, Roberts, Sands, Schickel, Schueller, Shomshor, Soderberg, Struyk, Swaim, Thomas, Tomenga, Tymeson, Upmeyer, Van Engelenhoven, Van Fossen, Watts, Wenthe, Wiencek, Windschitl, Worthan, Zirkelbach, and Wise presiding.

No:

Abdul-Samad, Berry, Bukta, Foege, Ford, Frevert, Gaskill, Heddens, Hunter, Huser, Jacoby, Jochum, Kressig, Kuhn, Lensing, Mascher, May, H. Miller, Oldson, D. Olson, R. Olson, T. Olson, Petersen, Raecker, Smith, Staed, D. Taylor, T. Taylor, Tjepkes, Wendt, Wessel-Kroeschell, Whitaker, Whitead, and Winckler

Absent or not voting, none.

 

Party	For	Against	% in line with Sierra Club position (against)
Democrat	22	31	58%
Republican	44	3	6%

 

The Senate received the bill from the House on April 17, and referred the bill to its Agriculture Committee.  A subcommittee of Senators Courtney, Johnson and Kibbie recommended passage in its April 23 report to the full committee.  Amendments were filed and adopted.  S 5397 requires a cost-sharing program; S 5433 requires participant confidentiality but S 5415, offered by Sen. Quirmbach, amends the amendment to allow the public access to examine results as long as the participant information is kept confidential.  Sen. Bolkcom also offered the amendment Rep. Kuhn introduced in the House requiring a study of the health effects on exposure to livestock operations' odor.  It failed in the Senate on a voice vote.  Late on the night of April 23, the full Senate approved the bill as amended.  Senators' votes follow:

Yes:

Angelo, Gronstal, Kibbie, Seng, Appel, Hahn, Kreiman, Stewart, Behn, Hancock, Lundby, Wieck, Black, Hartsuch, McKinley, Wood, Boettger, Heckroth, Mulder, Zieman, Courtney, Horn, Olive, Dearden, Johnson, Rielly, Fraise, Kettering, and Schoenjahn.

No:

Beall, Dvorsky, Quirmbach, Warnstadt, Bolkcom, Hatch, Ragan, Zaun, Connolly, Hogg, Schmitz, Danielson, McCoy, Seymour, Dotzler, Noble and Ward.

Absent, 4:

Gaskill, Houser, McKibben and Putney.

 

Party:	For	Against	% in line with Sierra Club position (against)
Democrat	17	13	43%
Republican	12	4	25%

 

One day after adoption by the Senate, the House voted 69-28 with 3 absent or not voting (Forristall, Roberts and Upmeyer) to adopt the Senate's version of the bill.  All representatives voted the same way as they did during the original vote, except Oldson, Heddens, H. Miller, Staed, Wendt and Whitead who all voted in support of the final bill.

 

Party:	For	Against	% in line with sierra Club position (against)
Democrat	28	25	47%
Republican	41	3	7%

 

Governor Chet Culver had 30 days after the end of the session to either sign the bill into law or veto it.  He signed the bill on May 15.

The final, enrolled bill is now available on the web.  You can see the bill as adopted here...

Find the bill history here...

Sierra Club registered opposed to this bill.  So did lobbyists for Iowa Farmers Union, Iowa State Association of Counties, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, the League of Women Voters of Iowa and the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.  Lobbyists registered in support of the bill read like a Who's Who of Industry.  They included lobbyists for the Iowa Pork Producers Association, Iowa Cattlemen's Association, Iowa Poultry Association, Iowa Soybean Association, Iowa Turkey Federation, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation and Iowa Select Farms, LLP.  Of course, Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship supported the bill because it was their plan.

So, now, Iowans are faced with yet another bill that will stall any improvement in mitigating foul odors emanating from large hog lots for at least another five years.  Sierra Club believes that's just too long to wait.  Polluters should pay for their industrial waste and that includes the livestock industry -- not the taxpayers.

In March, Iowa Chapter of Sierra Club Lobbyist Lyle Krewson wrote this explanation of what was then HF 2652: 

"EXPLANATION: This bill provides for the establishment and administration of efforts to mitigate odor emitted from livestock operations involving swine, beef or dairy cattle, chickens, or turkeys. The bill is divided into a research effort to reduce the impact of odor and an evaluation effort to assist in siting new livestock operations.  The efforts are to be conducted by Iowa State University in consultation with the department of agriculture and land stewardship and the department of natural resources. 

"RESEARCH EFFORT.  One purpose of the bill is to accelerate the adoption of affordable and effective odor mitigation technologies and strategies by livestock producers. 

"The bill includes three specific project classifications: (1) on-site applied research to address whether technologies and strategies can be successfully implemented across many livestock operations, locations, and situations; (2) basic or applied research to evaluate technologies or strategies that have not been subject to comprehensive scientific scrutiny but which demonstrate promise; and (3) basic research to investigate emerging technologies and strategies. 

"The bill provides that information obtained in connection with the research projects conducted on the site of a livestock operation is confidential, unless confidentiality is waived by the livestock producer. 

"The bill requires that Iowa State University submit annual interim reports which describe the university's progress in carrying out the research projects and make recommendations for improving, continuing, or expanding research and for disseminating the results of the research to livestock producers.  The university must submit a final report to the general assembly six months after it completes its research effort. 

"LIVESTOCK ODOR MITIGATION EVALUATION EFFORT.  A second purpose of the bill is to develop a livestock odor mitigation evaluation effort which determines the potential odor exposure to persons who would neighbor a new livestock operation as proposed to be constructed.  The bill provides that the effort is contingent upon moneys being appropriated to the university to conduct the effort. 

"The livestock odor mitigation evaluation effort provides for three levels of possible participation by a person who requests the evaluation, corresponding to the complexity of the proposed site of construction, and provides for an increasing degree of involvement by the person and the university.  At the completion of an evaluation, the university provides the person with a report including findings and recommendations.  A participating person who has completed the level of evaluation as recommended by the university may request that the university issue the participating person a livestock odor mitigation evaluation certificate. 

"The bill provides that the department of natural resources cannot issue a permit for the construction of a confinement feeding operation structure which is associated with a new confinement feeding operation until the applicant has been issued a livestock odor mitigation evaluation certificate. However, the applicant is not required to obtain the certificate if an exception applies including:  (1) the confinement feeding operation is twice the minimum separation distance required from the nearest object or location from which a separation distance is required, (2) the owner of each object or location which is less than twice the minimum separation distance required from the confinement feeding operation executes a document consenting to the construction, (3) the applicant submits a document swearing that Iowa state university failed to furnish a certificate to the applicant within 30 days after the applicant requested the university to conduct a livestock odor mitigation evaluation, (4) the application is for a permit to expand a confinement feeding operation which was established prior to the effective date of the bill's provision, or (5) the university does not provide for a livestock odor mitigation evaluation effort.  In addition, an applicant is not required to submit a certificate if an application was submitted prior to the effective date of the bill's provision. 

"The bill's provisions providing for the development of a livestock odor mitigation evaluation effort take effect only if the university receives moneys to further the odor mitigation research effort. Otherwise the provision requiring a certificate to accompany an application for a construction permit takes effect on January 1, 2009."

 

*Debra Kozel, Fiscal Note, April 15, 2008