May 15, 2007, Introduced by Senators BARCIA, VAN WOERKOM, BIRKHOLZ, GILBERT, BROWN, KUIPERS, PATTERSON, CROPSEY and STAMAS and referred to the Committee on Agriculture.
A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
(MCL 324.101 to 324.90106) by adding part 86.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
PART 86 ANIMAL WASTE HANDLERS
Sec. 8601. As used in this part:
(a) "AFO" means an animal feeding operation as defined in
section 3101.
(b) "Commercial animal waste handler" means a person who, for
consideration, handles or disposes of or offers to handle or
dispose of manure, production area waste, or process wastewater
from an animal feeding operation owned or operated by another
person.
(c) "Department" means the department of agriculture.
(d) "Land application area" means land under the control of an
AFO owner or operator, whether it is owned, rented, leased, or
subject to an access agreement, to which production area waste or
process wastewater is or may be applied. Land application area
includes land not owned by the AFO owner or operator but on which
the AFO owner or operator has control of the land application of
production area waste or AFO process wastewater.
(e) "Manure" includes manure, bedding, compost, and raw
materials or other materials commingled with manure or set aside
for disposal.
(f) "Process wastewater" means any of the following:
(i) Spillage or overflow of water used for AFO animal or
poultry watering systems.
(ii) Water directly or indirectly used at an AFO for washing,
cleaning, or flushing pens, barns, manure pits, or other
facilities; for direct contact swimming, washing, or spray cooling
of animals; or for dust control.
(iii) Any water that comes into contact with, or is a
constituent of, any AFO raw materials, products, or byproducts,
including manure, litter, feed, milk, eggs, or bedding.
(g) "Production area" means that part of an AFO that includes
animal confinement areas, manure storage areas, raw materials
storage areas, waste containment areas, any egg washing or egg
processing facility, and any area used in the storage, handling,
treatment, or disposal of mortalities. As used in this subdivision:
(i) "Animal confinement area" includes open lots, housed lots,
feedlots, confinement houses, stall barns, free stall barns, milk
rooms, milking centers, cowyards, barnyards, medication pens,
walkers, animal walkways, and stables.
(ii) "Manure storage area" includes lagoons, runoff ponds,
storage sheds, stockpiles, underhouse or pit storages, liquid
impoundments, static piles, and composting piles.
(iii) "Raw materials storage area" includes feed silos, silage
bunkers, and bedding materials.
(iv) "Waste containment area" includes settling basins and
areas within berms and diversions that separate uncontaminated
storm water.
(h) "Production area waste" means manure or any waste from the
production area and any precipitation, including, but not limited
to, rain or snow, that comes into contact with, or is contaminated
by, manure or any of the components listed in the definition of
production area. Production area waste does not include water from
land application areas.
Sec. 8602. (1) Beginning 180 days after the effective date of
the rules promulgated under subsection (2), a commercial animal
waste handler shall not handle manure, production area waste, or
process wastewater at an AFO unless the person obtains a license or
certification under this section.
(2) Within 1 year after the effective date of the amendatory
act that added this section, the department shall promulgate rules
for the licensing or certification of commercial animal waste
handlers. The rules shall provide for all of the following:
(a) License or certification terms of not less than 3 years.
(b) Training and education standards for initial licensing or
certification for commercial animal waste handlers and continued
education or continued competency training for renewal licensing
and certification. The department may provide by rule for a waiver
of the education and training requirements for persons who, on the
effective date of the rules, are engaged in handling manure at an
AFO and can demonstrate a combination of training, education, and
experience substantially equivalent to the requirements imposed
under the rules.
(c) A process for phasing in the licensing and certification
requirements for persons operating as commercial animal waste
handlers on the effective date of the amendatory act that added
this section. The phase-in period shall conclude not earlier than 1
year after the effective date of rules promulgated under this
section.
(3) A person who is certified by the Michigan custom manure
applicators association shall be considered to have met the
certification requirements of this section.
(4) In establishing standards under subsection (2), the
department may incorporate by reference existing standards adopted
by the federal government or existing standards adopted by trade or
industry groups.
(5) As a condition of licensure or certification under this
section, a person shall maintain a bond in an amount not less than
$25,000.00. The bond shall be executed by the person as principal
and issued by a corporation qualified under the laws of this state
as surety, payable to the state of Michigan, and conditioned upon
compliance with state and federal laws, rules, and regulations
applicable to the licensee or certification.
(6) The fee for a commercial animal waste handler license or
certification is $100.00 per year. If an annual fee is paid for a
commercial animal waste handler license or certification, but the
application for the license or certification is denied, the
department shall promptly refund the fee. For each state fiscal
year, a person possessing a commercial animal waste handler license
or certification as of January 1 of that fiscal year shall be
assessed the $100.00 annual fee. The department shall notify those
persons of their fee assessments by February 1 of that fiscal year.
Payment shall be postmarked by March 15 of that fiscal year.
(7) The department shall assess interest on all commercial
animal waste handler license and certification fee payments
received after the due date. The amount of interest shall equal
0.75% of the payment due, for each month or portion of a month the
payment remains past due. The failure by a person to timely pay a
fee imposed by this section is a violation of this part.
(8) If a person fails to pay a fee required under this section
in full, plus any interest accrued, by October 1 of the year
following the date of notification of the fee assessment, the
department may issue an order that revokes the person's commercial
animal waste handler license or certification. Fees and interest
collected under this section shall be deposited into the
agriculture pollution prevention fund created in section 8206.
(9) The department may suspend or revoke an animal waste
handler license or certification if the department, after notice
and opportunity for an administrative hearing, determines that the
person violated this part or rules promulgated under this part.
Sec. 8603. The department and the department of agriculture
shall promote composting, wastewater treatment, and other
alternative technologies to encourage the beneficial use of manure,
process wastewater, and production area waste and shall assist AFO
owners and operators to employ these methods.
Sec. 8604. A person who violates this part is guilty of a
misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 90 days or
a fine of not more than $5,000.00, or both.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect
unless Senate Bill No. 504
of the 94th Legislature is enacted into law.