Iowa § 460.304 - 460.304 Agricultural drainage well water quality assistance program.

§ 460.304. 460.304 Agricultural drainage well water quality assistance program.

1. The division shall establish an agricultural drainage well water quality assistance program as provided by rules which shall be adopted by the division pursuant to chapter 17A. The program shall be supported from moneys deposited in the agricultural drainage well water quality assistance fund created pursuant to section 460.303. 2. To the extent that moneys are available to support the program, the division shall expend moneys from the fund to do the following: a. (1) Provide cost-share moneys to persons closing agricultural drainage wells in accordance with the priority system established pursuant to section 460.302. In conjunction with closing agricultural drainage wells, the division shall award cost-share moneys to carry out the following projects: (a) Construct alternative drainage systems. (b) Establish water quality practices other than constructing alternative drainage systems, including but not limited to converting land to wetlands. (2) The amount of moneys allocated in cost-share payments to a person qualifying under the program shall not exceed seventy-five percent of the estimated cost of carrying out the project or seventy-five percent of the actual cost of carrying out the project, whichever is less. b. Contract with persons to obtain technical assessments in agricultural drainage well areas, including but not limited to areas having a predominance of shallow bedrock or karst terrain as the division determines is necessary to carry out a project. 3. a. A person who owns an interest in land within a designated agricultural drainage well area shall not be eligible to participate in the program, if the person is any of the following: (1) A party to a pending legal or administrative action, including a contested case proceeding under chapter 17A, relating to an alleged violation involving an animal feeding operation as regulated by the department of natural resources, regardless of whether the pending action is brought by the department or the attorney general. (2) Is classified as a habitual violator for a violation of state law involving an animal feeding operation as regulated by the department of natural resources. b. Noncrop acres located within a designated agricultural drainage well area shall not be eligible to benefit from the program. c. The department of natural resources shall cooperate with the division by providing information necessary to administer this subsection. 4. A person is not eligible to participate in the program for a project described in this section that involves an agricultural drainage well that has not been registered with the department of natural resources pursuant to section 460.302 by January 1, 2019. 97 Acts, ch 193, §3 CS97, §159.29B 2002 Acts, ch 1137, §68, 71; 2002 Acts, 2nd Ex, ch 1003, §260, 262 C2003, §460.304 2006 Acts, ch 1057, §2; 2007 Acts, ch 22, §83; 2011 Acts, ch 25, §117, 143; 2015 Acts, ch 103, §48; 2019 Acts, ch 131, §38 Referred to in §460.303 Fri Dec 12 20:50:09 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Section 460.304 (25, 0)