HOUSE BILL NO. 5965

A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled

"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"

(MCL 324.101 to 324.90106) by adding section 402.

the people of the state of michigan enact:

Sec. 402. (1) The department, in consultation with the department of agriculture and rural development, shall establish a grant program to assist farmers who have been impacted by PFAS.

(2) The program must provide grants to assist farmers whose agricultural land, agricultural products, or water located on or accessed from the agricultural land, is found to be contaminated by PFAS with any of the following:

(a) The costs of medical or mental health testing and care that are not otherwise covered by health insurance or a legal settlement related to PFAS contamination, if the applicant, or a member of the applicant's household, has health effects associated with exposure to PFAS.

(b) The costs of buying and selling agricultural land.

(c) Investing in removal, filtration, or destruction of PFAS; or commercial agriculture equipment, facilities, and infrastructure to help ensure that the agricultural land can remain profitable.

(d) Income replacement and mortgage payments based on the gross income for the year before the agricultural land, agricultural products, or water were determined to be contaminated with PFAS.

(e) Voluntary monitoring and testing, including the cost of testing agricultural products, livestock, and animal feed.

(f) Providing short-term assistance for any of the following:

(i) Enterprise budgets for alternative cropping systems.

(ii) Remediation strategies.

(iii) Technological adaptations.

(iv) Plans to transition to alternative revenue streams.

(3) A farmer shall apply for a grant on a form and in a manner prescribed by the department. An application for a grant must include all of the following:

(a) Name, address, telephone number, and email address of the applicant.

(b) Social Security number or federal employer ID number, as applicable.

(c) Information regarding the farm's business operations and sales before and after the discovery of PFAS.

(d) Personal and business federal income tax returns for the previous year.

(e) Profit and loss statements, by month, for the previous year.

(f) Documentation regarding any financial payments received from state, federal, or nonprofit entities specifically related to PFAS assistance.

(g) A plan outlining how the farmer will use the grant funds. A plan may include the following information:

(i) How the farmer will remove, mitigate, remediate, or destroy PFAS to help ensure future profitability.

(ii) How the farmer will transition to alternative revenue streams.

(iii) If the farmer will cease operations or move agricultural production to another location.

(iv) How the farmer will compensate for losses incurred due to PFAS contamination.

(h) Any other information required by the department.

(4) The department shall issue grants under this section in an amount that does not exceed 1 or more of the following based on the plan described under subsection (3)(g) minus any financial payments received by the farmer as listed in subsection (3)(f) and income generated by the farm through the sale of products not impacted by PFAS:

(a) Indemnification for individual or entire herd, flock, or aquaculture lot depopulations of livestock based on 100% of the fair market value of the type of animal on the date of the appraisal and marketable for the purpose for which the livestock was intended, not to exceed $10,000.00 for each livestock or an average of $5,000.00 per animal in the flock, herd, or aquaculture lot.

(b) Indemnification for 100% of the fair market value of agricultural products based on crop loss indemnities calculated by the United States Department of Agriculture, Risk Management Agency, or if the agricultural products are not insured or do not have an insurance product available, the fair market value based on the United States Department of Agriculture county average crop price and yield or market price determined by the county farm service agency committee, for a period of time not to exceed the farmer's plan to transition to alternate revenue streams.

(c) Indemnification for 100% of the fair market value of the agricultural land on the date of appraisal for the purpose for which the land was intended, if the land can no longer be used for agriculture.

(d) Indemnification for 100% of the rental rate for agricultural land based on the 3-year average of National Agriculture Statistics Service rental rates for the county in which the agricultural land is located, not to exceed the period of time covering the farmer's plan to transition to alternate revenue streams.

(5) The PFAS impact fund is created within the state treasury. The state treasurer may receive money from the increase in state civil infractions authorized under section 401 or money or other assets from any other source for deposit into the fund and credit to the fund interest and earnings from fund investments. Money in the fund at the end of the fiscal year remains in the fund and does not lapse to the general fund. The department is the administrator of the fund for auditing purposes. Upon appropriation, the department shall expend money from the fund to issue grants as described under this section.

(6) The department shall promulgate rules under the administrative procedures act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328, to implement this section.

(7) As used in this section:

(a) "Agricultural land" means land devoted to agriculture including, but not limited to, arable land, land under permanent or annual crops, and land under permanent meadows, forage, or pastures.

(b) "Contamination" means 1 or more of the following with regard to agricultural land, agricultural products, or water:

(i) A determination or order by this state or a federal agency seizing livestock or agricultural products.

(ii) A determination or order by this state or a federal agency that affected land cannot be used to produce and sell the farmer's current agricultural products.

(iii) A determination or order by this state or a federal agency that a farmer's existing surface or groundwater supply cannot be used to irrigate, water, or clean agricultural products.

(iv) A refusal by a cooperative, a food establishment, a contractor, or another agricultural product buyer to accept the farmer's agricultural products.

(c) "Department" means the department of environment, Great Lakes, and energy.

(d) "Farm" means that term as defined in section 2 of the Michigan right to farm act, 1981 PA 93, MCL 286.472.

(e) "Fund" means the PFAS impact fund created under subsection (5).

(f) "Member of the applicant's household" means an individual residing full-time within the applicant's home.

(g) "PFAS" means that term as defined in 40 CFR 705.3.

Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect unless all of the following bills of the 102nd Legislature are enacted into law:

(a) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No.____ (request no. 00712'23).

(b) Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No. 5966 (request no. 04233'23 a).