SS SCS SB 1236 -- DAM AND RESERVOIR SAFETY

SPONSOR:  Engler (Tilley)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Special Committee on
Energy and the Environment by a vote of 8 to 0.

This substitute changes the laws regarding dam and reservoir
safety.  In its main provisions, the substitute:

(1)  Revises the definition of "dam" to include appurtenant works
and dams that are 25 feet or more in height with a storage volume
of at least 50 acre-feet of water;

(2)  Defines "high hazard," "significant hazard," and "operating
permit";

(3)  Exempts any dam or reservoir that will be used for fireclay
quarry reclamation from the provisions of the substitute;

(4)  Adds one member to the Dam and Reservoir Safety Council who
is an owner of a high hazard or significant hazard dam or
reservoir and requires the council to establish fees to be
reviewed every three years for permits required for renewal,
design review, and inspection of high hazard and significant
hazard dams;

(5)  Limits the fees established for design review of high hazard
and significant hazard dams to no more than 1% of the total
estimated cost of the dam or reservoir;

(6)  Establishes an interim joint committee whose responsibility
will be to examine the fee structure imposed under the substitute
and evaluate the costs of the dam safety program.  The committee
is required to submit a report to the Governor and General
Assembly no later than January 1, 2008;

(7)  Specifies that all high hazard and significant hazard dams
be inspected periodically to determine if they constitute a
threat to public safety.  The Chief Engineer of the Department of
Transportation and the head of the Dam and Reservoir Safety
Program at the Department of Natural Resources must make
recommendations concerning construction permits for high hazard
and significant hazard dams and operating permits for these
structures;

(8)  Requires all owners of high hazard or significant hazard
dams to first apply for a construction permit prior to beginning
work on any structure.  The application must include the
signature of an experienced engineer registered in Missouri;

(9)  Removes the language exempting dams constructed for soil and
water conservation, irrigation, or wildlife conservation;

(10)  Maintains the exemption for agricultural dams and
reservoirs from regulation by the council;

(11)  Allows any landowner who owns an agricultural dam or
reservoir to be regulated by the council if he or she requests to
be regulated in a certified letter to the council.  After a
request has been made and granted, any subsequent request to have
an agricultural dam or reservoir removed from regulation can only
be made by the department director.  Nothing in the substitute
will be construed to require any landowner who owns an
agricultural dam or reservoir to choose regulation by the council
as a condition of doing business;

(12)  Allows the department to initiate an engineering study on
any agricultural dam it believes satisfies the high hazard
standard.  Upon completion of the study, the department will
submit their findings to the appropriate soil and water district
board for its agreement.  If the board agrees with the
department's findings, the dam in question will be regulated
under the provisions of the substitute.  If the board does not
agree, the substitute prohibits any new studies from being
initiated within one year of the board's decision and the dam in
question maintains the exemption.  If the board does not render a
decision within 60 days of the department's submission, the
findings will be considered agreed to and the dam in question
will be regulated;

(13)  Requires all owners of high hazard or significant hazard
dams to notify the council upon completion of any construction
related to high hazard or significant hazard dams to apply for an
operating permit;

(14)  Requires that every dam constructed after the effective
date of the substitute that is not registered must do so within
six months of the effective date, and those owners of high hazard
and significant hazard dams will apply for an operating permit no
later than one year after the effective date of the substitute.
Those owners licensed under the federal Power Act will apply for
an operating permit no later than three months after the
effective date of the substitute;

(15)  Requires the owner to notify the council within three
months of any change in downstream conditions which changes the
hazard classification of any dam or reservoir;

(16)  Requires the permit to be suspended if a high hazard or
significant hazard dam is found to present a threat to public
safety until the owner has completed all necessary alterations to
ensure the protection of public safety;

(17)  Allows the transfer of any operating permit to a successive
owner of a dam or reservoir along with the notification of the
current hazard classification of the dam.  Failure to notify the
council of the transfer will result in the prior owner retaining
responsibility for the dam and being subject to the provisions of
the substitute; and

(18)  Specifies that violations of the provisions of the
substitute are punishable as a misdemeanor and subject to fines
of up to $10,000 or jail time of no more than one year.

FISCAL NOTE:  No impact on General Revenue Fund in FY 2007, FY
2008, and FY 2009.  Estimated Cost on Other State Funds of
Unknown in FY 2007, FY 2008, and FY 2009.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the bill is necessary as a
response to the Taum Sauk disaster and will allow for additional
safety inspections of dams.  Regulation and inspection will be
based on the threat to public safety rather than the size of the
dam.

Testifying for the bill were Senator Engler; Department of
Natural Resources; and Bob Sfreddo, Missouri Flood Plain and
Storm Water Managers Association.

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

Jason Glahn, Legislative Analyst

Missouri House of Representatives
93rd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated November 29, 2006 at 9:47 am