Bill Text: IA SF2014 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to harvesting grass growing in a public road right-of-way.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-01-27 - Subcommittee, Quirmbach, Brase, and Kapucian. S.J. 124. [SF2014 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-SF2014-Introduced.html

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Senate File 2014 - Introduced




                                 SENATE FILE       
                                 BY  SCHOENJAHN

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to harvesting grass growing in a public road
  2    right=of=way.
  3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
    TLSB 5045XS (7) 86
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 317.11, subsection 2, Code 2016, is
  1  2 amended to read as follows:
  1  3    2.  a.  Nothing By January 1 of each year, a landowner shall
  1  4 notify the state department of transportation if the landowner
  1  5 intends to harvest the grass growing in the right=of=way of
  1  6 a public road adjacent to the landowner's land during that
  1  7 calendar year. The notification shall be submitted in a
  1  8 manner specified by the department. If the landowner notifies
  1  9 the department in this way, nothing under this chapter shall
  1 10 prevent the landowner from harvesting, in proper season on or
  1 11 after July 15, the grass grown on growing in the right=of=way
  1 12 of the road along adjacent to the landowner's land except
  1 13 for vegetation maintained for highway purposes as part of
  1 14 an integrated roadside vegetation management plan which is
  1 15 consistent with the objectives in section 314.22.  If the
  1 16 landowner fails to notify the department by January 1, the
  1 17 landowner may apply to the department for a permit to harvest
  1 18 the grass growing in the right=of=way of a road adjacent to the
  1 19 landowner's land pursuant to paragraph "b".
  1 20    b.  Any person, including the landowner, may apply to the
  1 21 department on or after January 15 to obtain a permit to harvest
  1 22 the grass growing in a particular area of the right=of=way of
  1 23 a road adjacent to the landowner's land during that calendar
  1 24 year. The application shall be submitted in a manner specified
  1 25 by the department. If the landowner failed to notify the
  1 26 department by January 1 as required under paragraph "a", the
  1 27 department shall issue a permit to the person who submitted
  1 28 the earliest valid application to harvest the grass growing in
  1 29 the particular area of the right=of=way. If the person issued
  1 30 the permit is not the landowner, the grass subject to the
  1 31 permit may be harvested by the person without the landowner's
  1 32 permission. If the department issues a permit to a person
  1 33 other than the adjacent landowner, the department shall notify
  1 34 the landowner by certified mail and the landowner shall not
  1 35 harvest the grass growing in that area of the right=of=way
  2  1 during that calendar year.
  2  2    c.  A permit issued pursuant to paragraph "b" shall meet all
  2  3 of the following requirements:
  2  4    (1)  The permit shall allow the person to harvest grass
  2  5 during a period of time on or after July 15, as specified by the
  2  6 department.
  2  7    (2)  The permit shall not allow the person to harvest
  2  8 vegetation maintained for highway purposes as part of an
  2  9 integrated roadside vegetation management plan which is
  2 10 consistent with the objectives in section 314.22.
  2 11    (3)  The permit shall not allow the person to harvest grass
  2 12 in more than six hundred forty total acres of right=of=way,
  2 13 including any acres covered by other permits issued to the
  2 14 person under this subsection.
  2 15    (4)  The area of right=of=way covered by the permit shall be
  2 16 no more than ten miles from the person's residence.
  2 17    (5)  Any grass harvested pursuant to the permit shall be for
  2 18 personal use only.
  2 19    (6)  The permit shall not violate any existing agreement,
  2 20 contract, easement, or right regarding the right=of=way.
  2 21    d.  The department may adopt rules to administer this
  2 22 subsection.
  2 23                           EXPLANATION
  2 24 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  2 25 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  2 26    This bill relates to harvesting grass growing in a public
  2 27 road right=of=way.
  2 28    Currently, Code section 314.17 prohibits mowing roadside
  2 29 vegetation prior to July 15 of each year, with certain
  2 30 exceptions. After July 15 of each year, Code section 317.11
  2 31 allows a landowner to harvest the grass growing in the
  2 32 right=of=way of a road adjacent to the landowner's land. The
  2 33 department of transportation (DOT) form 810050 allows a person
  2 34 other than the landowner to apply to mow and harvest hay in the
  2 35 public road right=of=way with the permission of the adjacent
  3  1 landowner.
  3  2    The bill requires a landowner to notify the DOT by January
  3  3 1 of each year if the landowner intends to harvest the
  3  4 grass growing in the right=of=way of a road adjacent to the
  3  5 landowner's land. If the landowner fails to do so, any person,
  3  6 including the landowner, may apply to the DOT on or after
  3  7 January 15 to obtain a permit to harvest the grass growing in
  3  8 the right=of=way of a road adjacent to the landowner's land.
  3  9    The bill requires the DOT to issue a permit to harvest the
  3 10 grass growing in a particular area of the right=of=way based
  3 11 on the earliest valid application. If the person issued the
  3 12 permit is not the landowner, the grass may be harvested without
  3 13 the landowner's permission. If the DOT issues a permit to a
  3 14 person other than the adjacent landowner, the DOT must notify
  3 15 the landowner by certified mail and the landowner is prohibited
  3 16 from harvesting the grass growing in the right=of=way.
  3 17    The bill requires a permit to meet certain requirements: the
  3 18 permit shall not allow the person to harvest grass before July
  3 19 15, the permit shall not allow the person to harvest vegetation
  3 20 maintained as part of an integrated roadside vegetation
  3 21 management plan, the permit shall not allow the person to
  3 22 harvest grass in more than 640 acres of right=of=way including
  3 23 any acres covered by the person's other permits, the area of
  3 24 the right=of=way covered by the permit shall be no more than 10
  3 25 miles from the person's residence, any grass harvested under
  3 26 the permit shall be for personal use only, and the permit shall
  3 27 not violate any existing agreement, contract, easement, or
  3 28 right regarding the right=of=way.
       LSB 5045XS (7) 86
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