444.950. Phase I reclamation bond requirements--rules, procedure to adopt--rights and duties of mine owners.
Phase I reclamation bond requirements--rules, procedure toadopt--rights and duties of mine owners.
444.950. 1. An applicant shall, consistent with the timing providedfor in subsection 1 of section 444.830, file a phase I reclamation bondpursuant to this section. The phase I reclamation bond shall be a minimumof two thousand five hundred dollars per permitted acre for every acrepermitted and bonded on August 28, 1993, unless the phase I reclamationbond has been released pursuant to section 444.875, except that it shall bea minimum of ten thousand dollars per acre for the coal preparation area.The phase I reclamation bond for areas other than coal preparation areasmay be adjusted annually by the commission based upon calculationsconducted by the director, but shall not be increased by more than twohundred fifty dollars per year per acre or a maximum of five thousanddollars per acre. The phase I bond for coal preparation areas may also beadjusted annually by the commission based upon calculations conducted bythe director, but shall not be increased by more than five hundred dollarsper year per acre or a maximum of fifteen thousand dollars per acre. Thechanges shall be proposed by the commission through the normal rulemakingprocess. The calculations of the minimum phase I reclamation bond amountrequired shall depend upon the reclamation requirements of the approvedpermits, and shall reflect the probable difficulty of reclamation, givingconsideration to such factors as site topography, geology, hydrology, andrevegetation potential. In no case shall the phase I reclamation bond beless than ten thousand dollars per permit, except that for those operatorswith less than one thousand bonded acres, the minimum bond shall be theequivalent of twenty acres of phase I reclamation bond for each acre ofopen pit, as determined by the approved mining plan. For the purposes ofthis section, the open pit shall be the area between the crest of thehighwall to the toe of the spoil.
2. No rule or portion of a rule promulgated under the authority ofthis chapter shall become effective unless it has been promulgated pursuantto the provisions of section 536.024, RSMo.
3. The phase I reclamation bond shall be executed by the operator anda corporate surety licensed to do business in the state, except that theoperator may elect to deposit cash, irrevocable letters of credit,negotiable bonds of the United States government or of the state ofMissouri, or negotiable certificates of deposit of any bank organized ortransacting business in the United States. The cash deposit or marketvalue of such securities shall be equal to or greater than the amount ofthe bond required for the bonded area.
4. The commission may accept the phase I reclamation bond of theapplicant himself without the separate surety provided for in subsection3* of this section when the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction ofthe commission the existence of a suitable agent to receive service ofprocess and a history of financial solvency and continuous operationsufficient for authorization to self-insure or bond such amount or,in lieu of the establishment of a bonding program, as set forth inthis section, the commission may adopt an alternative system that willachieve the objectives and purposes of the bonding program pursuant tothis section, and which is consistent with or pursuant to the purposesof P.L. 95-87, the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act.
5. Liability under the phase I reclamation bond will continue untilthe commission determines that phase I reclamation has been completed,whereupon the commission may release no less than eighty percent of thephase I reclamation bond. The remaining phase I reclamation bond shallremain in effect until phase III liability is released. In the event offorfeiture, the total amount of the phase I reclamation bond filed shall beavailable for the completion of all phases of reclamation.
(L. 1982 S.B. 737, A.L. 1986 S.B. 778, A.L. 1987 H.B. 669, A.L. 1988 H.B. 1836, A.L. 1993 H.B. 312 & 257, A.L. 1995 S.B. 3)*"Subsection 9" appears in original rolls. Change made due to renumbering.