Environment (Waste Management)

HF 2367 prevents homeowners' associations in Iowa from banning unit owners from planting native vegetation (like Iowa's indigenous grasses, flowers, shrubs, and trees) on their personal lawns, provided the area is kept free of weeds, invasive species, and trash, and the plants don't extend onto public areas, neighboring properties, or interfere with traffic or utilities. Associations may still set reasonable rules for planned native vegetation landscapes, but cannot impose height restrictions that hinder proper maintenance. The bill applies only to individual unit owners' lawns, not common areas or properties where owners lack landscaping authority.

HF 2642 (Iowa) creates new rules for disposing liquid waste from native distilleries and changes water permit processes. It requires the Department of Natural Resources to establish standards for land application of distillery waste, considering waste volume, disposal method, and per-acre daily rates. The bill removes a categorical definition of "beneficial use" for water permits and instead mandates case-by-case department reviews for permit approvals, with strict 90-day (new) and 30-day (renewal) processing deadlines. This directly affects Iowa distilleries holding class "A" native distilled spirits licenses. The law aims to standardize waste disposal while shifting water permit decisions from category-based rules to individual assessments.

This bill modifies the duties of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) concerning air quality. It adjusts the timeframe for DNR's annual greenhouse gas emissions report to align with federal EPA inventories and allows the federal report to fulfill this requirement. The bill also updates administrative rule references for air emission and operating permit fees. Furthermore, it repeals state mandates for DNR to create a greenhouse gas inventory and a voluntary registry, and removes a provision requiring rules for solid waste incinerator operator certification.

This bill updates Iowa's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) air quality reporting requirements. It changes the annual greenhouse gas emissions report to cover emissions from two prior calendar years (aligning with EPA's schedule) and allows the EPA's annual inventory to fulfill this state requirement. The bill also removes outdated references to administrative rules and repeals provisions requiring the DNR to create a voluntary greenhouse gas registry and certify solid waste incinerator operators. These changes primarily affect the DNR's reporting duties and regulated facilities subject to emission fees.

HF 847 modifies the duties of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) related to air quality. It adjusts the state's annual greenhouse gas emissions reporting by aligning the timeframe with federal EPA inventories and allowing the federal report to satisfy state requirements. The bill also updates administrative code references for air emission and operating permit fees to reflect current regulations. Additionally, it repeals state mandates for the DNR to create a separate greenhouse gas inventory and a voluntary registry, and removes a provision for solid waste incinerator operator certification rules.