Purpose

• Establishes that counties may designate certain agricultural lands as unsuitable for electric power facilities by creating an Agricultural Priority Land List and linking that list to the state permitting process for large electric power generating plants.

Key terms and entities

• Agricultural Priority Land List: a county-created list of parcels considered high priority for protection from power facilities.
• CPI rating (crop productivity index): a measure used to evaluate land productivity from the Web Soil Survey (USDA NRCS).
• Large electric power generating plant: a facility as defined in state law for big power generation.
• Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (the Commission): the state body that issues site permits for power plants.
• Prime farmland: top-quality agricultural land as classified by the NRCS when irrigated or drained.
• Web Soil Survey: the source for CPI ratings.
• Irrigation and drainage: farming practices that can raise land to prime farmland status.
• Site permit: an approval from the Commission to build a large power plant.
• Opt-out: private landowners’ right to remove their parcel from the list.
• Certified mail: formal notice method used to inform landowners.
• County board of commissioners: local government body that can approve a permit if it consents.

Creation and criteria for the Agricultural Priority Land List

• A county may designate parcels within its borders as agricultural priority land and place them on the list.
• A parcel qualifies if any of the following apply:
  • More than 50% of the land area has a CPI rating greater than 75.
  • The parcel has been irrigated or drained and is classified by NRCS as prime farmland (irrigated or drained).
• The list must include each parcel’s legal description, CPI rating or estimated yield, and total acreage.

Opt-out process for landowners

• County must notify private owners of parcels to be listed at least 90 days before initial submission and before any revised submission, by certified mail.
• Notices must include a map of potentially included parcels, the owner’s right to opt out, instructions, and the opt-out deadline.
• A private owner who wants to opt out must contact the county at least 30 days before the list is submitted to the Commission.
• Owners may opt out without penalty, subject to following deadlines and procedures.

Submission, revisions, and updates

• Counties must submit the agricultural priority land list to the Commission; the Commission must acknowledge receipt in writing within 30 days.
• Counties may submit a revised list within one year of the initial submission.
• After the first submission, counties must submit revised lists every five years on the same calendar date as the initial acknowledgment, unless there are no revisions.

Effect on site permits for large electric power generating plants

• After a county submits its priority land list, the Commission must not issue a site permit for a plant located on a listed parcel, except as provided in the bill.
• The Commission may issue a site permit for a listed parcel if the county board of commissioners passes a resolution consenting to the permit.
• The provision interacts with existing permitting rules (notwithstanding sections 216I.03 and 216I.18), creating a stronger local-consent framework for listed parcels.

Summary of changes to existing law

• Adds a local-government tool allowing counties to designate agricultural priority land and block or condition site permits for large electric power generating plants on those lands.
• Requires proactive owner notification and opt-out rights, creating a formal process for landowners to remove parcels from consideration.
• Introduces a formal process for submitting and updating the list to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission and ties the list to permit decisions.

Relevant terms - Agricultural Priority Land List - CPI rating - crop productivity index - Web Soil Survey - USDA NRCS - prime farmland - irrigation - drainage - large electric power generating plant - site permit - Minnesota Public Utilities Commission - opt-out - certified mail - legal description - advisory - county board of commissioners - resolution consenting to permit