It is my first year as Senate Commerce Chairman and, this week, we took action to protect private property rights in Iowa. The bill as amended protects ALL private property owners for more than just CO2 pipelines but also all types of future pipelines, transmission lines, and generation.
This bill is more expansive than anything passed by the Iowa House. It is solely focused on giving private property owners rights and power. This bill passed unanimously through a subcommittee and through the Senate Commerce Committee. The amendment does the following:
- Retains:
- New meeting attendance requirements for IUC members for hearings and informational meetings
- Important insurance and indemnification protections by companies and for landowners
- Adds:
- Avoiding all eminent domain by allowing voluntary easements outside the noticed corridor
- Lifetime repair and replacement costs for drainage tile
- Crop loss and soil restoration protections are expanded and landowners get a simplified process for getting paid
- Landowners can now request a new land representative at anytime
- IUC must make their decision within 1 year of filing, giving the process certainty and allowing for landowners to take action sooner
This amendment builds on the work in HF639, it retains some ideas of the bill, adds a lot, and most importantly protects landowners for more than just a single type of pipeline project but protects for all project types. This bill provides more private property rights for landowners than ever before.
Senator Bousselot your amendment does just the opposite of what the landowners have been asking for the last 4 years. Your amendment sounds like a Summit Easement. All in their favor. Stand up for landowners, our constitution, our Republican platform and pass HF 943,No Eminent Domain for C02 pipelines.
(Perhaps you should eat some sugar to think more clearly!)
This was a good bill when House sent it to the Senate, but the bill really needed is HF943, which actually DOES deal with eminent domain– and Senate leadership is completely ignoring it. By the time 639 was amended, it became the Summit “bill of rights” much like the legislation in South Dakota that became RL21 and was soundly defeated. Remember that the SD legislature has had a turnover, because the ousted ones IGNORED LANDOWNERS RIGHTS. Don’t think it can’t happen in Iowa.
Sen. Bousselot, you’re a liar and your article is gaslighting! Your amendments took the heart of protection for Iowa’s landowners right OUT of the bill!
Your previous employer Summit Carbon Solutions has clearly bought and paid for your seat in the Senate and Iowans deserve better!
What really frosts me is how they’re manipulating words to walk right up to the point of lying and give the impression that they’re protecting their electorate from the Summit mafia. He thinks he’s a big player in all of this but he’s just a pathetic pawn screwing over Iowans for a couple of bucks.
Summit Carbon are not the only people in Iowa, and are not the only people you are to be representing and protecting. If all that other stuff needs done, let it take 4 years like doing the right thing might.
Senator Bousselot, we have been working for over 3-1/2 years for a fair bill that protects our property rights and we had one in the House this year, again. HF 943 would guarantee that if we chose not to participate in this project, we would not have to and our land would be protected. Your bill does not provide any protection for our land and our rights. I am beyond disappointed in the Commerce Committee and the “surprise” amendment (basically a total re-write of HF 639). The IUC’s decision to grant eminent domain to Summit, a private company, has set a dangerous precedent in this state and it would seem that the Iowa Legislature would want to close that door as soon as possible. The majority of the Representatives have understood us from the very beginning. It’s mind-boggling that the Senate does not seem to understand the farmers/landowners. Maybe it’s more the Senate does not want to understand us or the Senate does not care. It’s time that the Senate hears our voices and truly listens.
Eminent Domain is a necessary evil. Nobody wants to have their property forcefully confiscated by anybody. But our population has generally agreed……..There are times eminent domain is proper. Where would our country be without interstate highways, electricity infrastructure, transition lines, natural gas pipelines, etc. These things ALL have allowed our general public to prosper. Why would you remove these items from the eminent domain process? One reason and on only……your poisen pill to continue in your objective to promote the CO2 project, deliver billions of $’s to your supporters and screw the Iowa public. All for a process that benefits only a very few and harms the vast majority of Iowans. You b.s. written above is the kind of trash we used to take to the outhouse decades ago and use it to………when the peach wrappings, sears catalogue and corn cobs ran out. You and your fellow Senate leadership are despicable. It is hard to imagine you being able to sleep at nite, but we are becoming used to it.
You and the rest of the folks pushing the CO2 narrative are the ilk that destroy the reputation of the good conservative people of Iowa. We will continue fighting you on this, and other things infecting the Republican Party of Iowa. You all should be so ashamed, but I’m guessing you know that already.