AB649: Bill Text

AB649,49,2 5. Surface transportation system operation improvements, including intelligent transportation systems or other operational improvements to reduce long-term greenhouse gas emissions through reduced congestion and improved system management.

AB649,49,3 6. Intercity passenger rail improvements.

AB649,49,4 7. Intercity bus improvements.

AB649,49,5 8. Freight rail improvements.

AB649,49,7 9. Use of materials or equipment associated with the construction or maintenance of transportation projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

AB649,49,9 10. Public facilities for supplying electricity to electric or plug-in hybrid-electric vehicles.

AB649,49,15 (b) Develop methods and procedures for preparing multimodal transportation plans and transportation improvement programs that incorporate the strategies under par. (a). Where applicable and to the extent practicable, this planning and program preparation shall be based on maximizing the accessibility to destinations provided by the affected transportation systems using all relevant travel modes, including walking and bicycling.

AB649,49,19 (4) Use of strategies and planning methods and procedures. Beginning on the first day of the 24th month beginning after the effective date of this subsection .... [LRB inserts date], the department, to the extent practicable, shall do all of the following:

AB649,49,22 (a) Use the methods and procedures developed under sub. (3) (b) in preparing its long-range statewide transportation plans and statewide transportation improvement programs.

AB649,49,25 (b) Incorporate the strategies developed under sub. (3) (a) into its long-range statewide transportation plans and statewide transportation improvement programs.

AB649,50,5 (5) Reports and assessments. By July 1, 2013, and at least every 4 years thereafter, the department shall assess its progress in achieving its goals under sub. (2), as well as the progress of metropolitan planning organizations in achieving their goals under s. 66.0309 (17) (b), and shall report its findings to the department of natural resources.

AB649,50,14 (6) Financial assistance to metropolitan planning organizations. After the department has identified strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from surface transportation as provided in sub. (3) (a) and developed methods and procedures for preparing multimodal transportation plans and transportation improvement programs as provided in sub. (3) (b), the department may not, from any appropriation to the department under s. 20.395 or 20.866 (2), provide financial assistance to a metropolitan planning organization unless the metropolitan planning organization has made a good faith effort to satisfy the requirements under s. 66.0309 (17) (c).

AB649,50,18 (7) Conformance with federal law. If a federal law enacted after the effective date of this subsection .... [LRB inserts date], conflicts with the requirements of this section or s. 66.0309 (17), the department shall, by rule, modify the conflicting requirements of this section or s. 66.0309 (17) to comply with the federal law.

AB649, s. 39 Section 39. 93.47 of the statutes is created to read:

AB649,50,20 93.47 Energy crop reserve program. (1) Definitions. In this section:

AB649,50,22 (a) "Agronomic practices" means agricultural practices generally associated with row cropping, including row crop production, soil management, and cultivation.

AB649,50,25 (b) "Native sod" means land on which the plant cover is composed principally of native grasses, grass-like plants, forbs, or shrubs suitable for grazing and browsing, and that has never been tilled for the production of an annual crop.

AB649,51,2 (c) "Short rotation woody crop" means a woody crop, including willows and poplars, grown using agronomic practices.

AB649,51,5 (2) Program. The department shall administer a program in which it pays persons to establish and produce any eligible perennial herbaceous crop or short rotation woody crop for the production of energy or fuel.

AB649,51,8 (3) Contract. (a) The department may enter into a contract, for a period not to exceed 10 years, with a person who applies to participate in the program under this section if all of the following are satisfied:

AB649,51,9 1. The person is eligible under sub. (5).

AB649,51,10 2. The person's land is eligible for enrollment under sub. (6).

AB649,51,12 3. The person is producing or will produce an energy crop eligible under sub. (7).

AB649,51,13 (b) The department may renew a contract entered into under this section.

AB649,51,17 (c) A person who has entered into a contract with the department and enrolled eligible land in the program under this section may enter into additional contracts with the department to enroll additional eligible land in the program under this section.

AB649,51,19 (d) If applicable, a person who enters into a contract under this section shall comply with each of the following on all lands under the person's control:

AB649,51,21 1. Sustainable planting and harvesting requirements established by the department by rule for perennial herbaceous crops or for short rotation woody crops.

AB649,51,23 2. Notwithstanding s. 281.16 (3) (e), the performance standards, prohibitions, conservation practices, and technical standards under s. 281.16 (3) (a) to (c).

AB649,52,2 (4) Payments; limitations. (a) Subject to the limitations under par. (b), from the appropriation under s. 20.115 (4) (d), the department may make any of the following payments to a person with whom the department has entered into a contract under sub. (3) if the person is eligible for the payment:

AB649,52,5 1. Cost-sharing payments equal to a percentage, specified by the department under sub. (8) (a) 3., of the cost to establish an energy crop on the land enrolled under the contract.

AB649,52,16 2. Income replacement payments of a percentage, specified by the department under sub. (8) (a) 4., of the average annual net income the person earned from the land enrolled under the contract in the 5 consecutive years before the land was enrolled in the program under this section. The person may receive an annual payment under this subsection until the person is eligible to receive or has received a production payment under subd. 3. for energy crops harvested on land enrolled under the contract, or for the number of years specified by the department under sub. (8) (a) 4. a., whichever is less. A payment under this subdivision may replace a portion of the payment, as specified by the department under sub. (8) (a) 4. b., the person had received under the conservation reserve program under 16 USC 3831 to 3836.

AB649,52,19 3. Production payments, of an amount determined by the department under sub. (8) (a) 5., for each ton of energy crop harvested and used to produce energy or fuel or sold to a person that will use the crop to produce energy or fuel.

AB649,52,23 (b) 1. If the total amount of payments to be made under par. (a) in a fiscal year would exceed the amount available from the appropriation under s. 20.115 (4) (d), the department shall prorate the payments among all persons eligible to receive a payment under par. (a) in that fiscal year.

AB649,52,25 2. No person eligible to receive a payment under par. (a) may receive payments in excess of the amount established by the department under sub. (8) (a) 7.

AB649,53,2 (5) Eligibility. A person is eligible to participate in the program under this section if any of the following applies:

AB649,53,3 (a) The person owns land eligible to be enrolled in the program.

AB649,53,5 (b) The person controls land eligible to be enrolled in the program under a lease that covers the contract period established under sub. (3).

AB649,53,8 (6) Enrollment. (a) Except as provided in par. (b), a person eligible under sub. (5) may apply to enroll in the program under this section any land in this state that is used or suitable for growing the crops identified under sub. (7).

AB649,53,9 (b) The following land may not be enrolled in the program under this section:

AB649,53,12 1. Federally owned land, other than land in this state held in trust by the federal government for an American Indian or a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band.

AB649,53,14 2. Land owned by a municipality. In this subdivision, "municipality" has the meaning given in s. 66.0301 (1) (a).

AB649,53,16 3. Land that is in native sod on the effective date of this subdivision .... [LRB inserts date].

AB649,53,17 4. Land enrolled in the program under subch. I or subch. VI of ch. 77.

AB649,53,18 5. Land enrolled in any of the following:

AB649,53,19 a. The conservation reserve program under 16 USC 3831 to 3836.

AB649,53,20 b. The wetlands reserve program under 16 USC 3837 to 3837f.

AB649,53,21 c. The grassland reserve program under 16 USC 3838n to 3838q.

AB649,53,22 d. The biomass crop assistance program under 7 USC 8111.

AB649,53,25 (7) Eligible energy crops. (a) Except as provided in par. (b), a person may receive payments under this section for the production of any perennial herbaceous crop or short rotation woody crop to be harvested and used to produce energy or fuel.

AB649,54,2 (b) No payments may be received under this section for the growth of any of the following:

AB649,54,5 1. A crop that is produced and harvested for a purpose other than the production of energy or fuel, even if the residue of the crop may be used to produce energy or fuel.

AB649,54,7 2. Any plant identified by the department of natural resources under s. 23.22 as invasive or having the potential to become invasive.

AB649,54,8 3. Any other crop specified by the department by rule.

AB649,54,9 (8) Rule making. (a) The department shall promulgate the following by rule:

AB649,54,11 1. Rules to implement and administer the program under this section, including all of the following:

AB649,54,12 a. The application form and procedures for applying.

AB649,54,14 b. Procedures and criteria for the review and approval or rejection of an application.

AB649,54,16 c. Procedures and criteria for disbursing payments under the program, including prorating of payments under sub. (4) (b) 1.

AB649,54,18 d. Reporting required of persons who have entered into a contract with the department under sub. (3).

AB649,54,19 e. Conditions under which a person may reenroll land under this section.

AB649,54,20 2. Crops ineligible for payments, as described under sub. (7) (b).

AB649,54,24 3. The amount of, limits on, and procedures for calculating cost-sharing payments available to persons under sub. (4) (a) 1., including the manner in which the amounts of or limits on cost-sharing payments will vary with the energy crops being established and the costs required to establish that energy crop.

AB649,55,2 4. The amount of, limits on, and procedures for calculating income replacement payments under sub. (4) (a) 2., including all of the following:

AB649,55,5 a. The maximum number of years a person may receive payments under sub. (4) (a) 2., which number shall depend upon the time required to establish the energy crop being established by the person.

AB649,55,13 b. Limits on the amount or percent of income from payments received under the federal conservation reserve program, 7 USC 3831 to 3836, that may be included in the calculation of income replacement under sub. (4) (a) 2. The rules promulgated under this subd. 4. b. shall be designed to provide an incentive for persons who remove their land from the federal conservation reserve program to enroll the land in the program under this section, but small enough that those persons will not choose to withdraw their land from the federal conservation reserve program solely for the purpose of receiving payments under sub. (4) (a) 2.

AB649,55,18 5. The amount of and limits on production payments made under sub. (4) (a) 3., including the manner in which the amount of the payment available to a person under sub. (4) (a) 3. will vary depending upon the energy or fuel derived from the particular energy crop produced, the costs to produce the energy crop, and other factors consistent with the objectives of the program under this section.

AB649,55,21 6. Procedures and criteria for allocating funds available from the appropriation under s. 20.115 (4) (d) between cost-sharing payments, income replacement payments, and production payments.

AB649,55,24 7. Limits on the amount of payments that a person with whom the department has entered into a contract under sub. (3) may receive in any payment category under sub. (4) (a), in any contract year, and over the duration of the contract.

AB649,56,4 8. Requirements for sustainable planting and harvesting practices, including practices to minimize consumptive water use and maximize water conservation, applicable to persons with whom the person has entered into a contract under sub. (3).

AB649,56,9 (b) To advance any of the following objectives, the department may promulgate rules to establish priorities for entering into contracts with persons and enrolling land in the program under this section, and for making payments to a person who has entered into a contract under sub. (3), based upon the attributes of the land, the agricultural practices of the person, or any other pertinent factors:

AB649,56,10 1. Maximizing carbon sequestration, as defined in s. 299.03 (1) (bm).

AB649,56,13 2. Minimizing life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of the production, harvesting, processing, and distribution of the energy crop by minimizing any of the following:

AB649,56,15 a. The distance the energy crop must be transported between the point of production and the point of end use.

AB649,56,16 b. The use of fossil fuels to plant, cultivate, and harvest the energy crop.

AB649,56,18 c. The application of fertilizer and pesticide in connection with the production of the energy crop.

AB649,56,19 d. Other energy-consuming practices.

AB649,56,21 3. The preservation of farmland through a farmland preservation agreement or farmland preservation zoning.

AB649,56,22 4. Providing soil and water conservation or wildlife preservation benefits.

AB649,56,25 (c) The department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection shall consult with the department of natural resources in the preparation of any rules that affect the natural resources of this state.

AB649,57,4 (9) Program outcomes and reports. The department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection shall, no later than July 1 of each odd year, submit to the departments of administration and natural resources a report containing all of the following information about the program under this section:

AB649,57,5 (a) The number of acres of land enrolled in the program.

AB649,57,7 (b) The number of tons and the energy content of each energy crop harvested under the program.

AB649,57,8 (c) Costs of the program.

AB649,57,10 (d) The extent to which the program under this section complements and is coordinated with the biomass crop assistance program under 7 USC 8111.

AB649,57,12 (e) Any recommendations for legislation to improve the program under this section.

AB649, s. 40 Section 40. 93.475 of the statutes is created to read:

AB649,57,15 93.475 Bioenergy feedstock production incentive study. (1) In this section:

AB649,57,17 (a) "Bioenergy feedstock" means biomass used to produce energy, including heat or electricity, or to produce a fuel, including transportation fuel.

AB649,57,18 (b) "Biomass" has the meaning given in s. 196.374 (1) (am).