Tennessee § 59-8-414 - Release of bond. [See contingent amendment to subsection (b) and the Compiler’s Notes.]

§ 59-8-414. Release of bond. [See contingent amendment to subsection (b) and the Compiler’s Notes.]

The commissioner may release all or part of the bond or deposit when the commissioner is satisfied that the reclamation covered by the bond or deposit or portion thereof has been accomplished as required by this part. Releases and partial releases shall be accomplished as follows: When the operator completes the backfilling, regrading, topsoiling, drainage control, site preparation, soil treatments, mulching, and initial planting of the vegetative cover in accordance with the approved plan as noted on a completion report, the commissioner shall issue to the operator and the operator's surety a partial release of seventy percent (70%) of the bond. The remaining bond shall be held for one (1) year, at a minimum, to assure that all reclamation requirements have been successfully met; The permittee shall not be denied access to the mining site for the purposes of completing or maintaining reclamation work because of the expiration of the permittee's lease, until all of the permittee's performance bond has been released. [Current version. See second version for contingent amendment and Compiler's Notes.] If the commissioner disapproves the application for release of the bond or portion thereof, the commissioner shall notify the permittee and the permittee's surety, stating the reasons for disapproval and recommending specific corrective actions necessary to secure the release, and allowing the permittee an opportunity for a hearing before the Tennessee board of water quality, oil, and gas [See the Compiler's Notes]. This notice and recommendation shall be handed to the operator in person, or served by certified mail addressed to the permanent address shown on the application for a permit. The notice shall specify in what respects the operator has failed to comply with this part, or the regulations of the commissioner. [Contingent amendment. See the Compiler's Notes.] If the commissioner disapproves the application for release of the bond or portion thereof, the commissioner shall notify the permittee and the permittee's surety, stating the reasons for disapproval and recommending specific corrective actions necessary to secure the release, and allowing the permittee an opportunity for a hearing before the board. This notice and recommendation shall be handed to the operator in person, or served by certified mail addressed to the permanent address shown on the application for a permit. The notice shall specify in what respects the operator has failed to comply with this part, or the regulations of the commissioner. Acts 1987, ch. 251, § 18; 2018, ch. 839, § 10. Compiler's Notes. The duties of the former board of reclamation review, formerly referred to in this section, were transferred to the former water quality control board, created by § 69-3-104 , by Acts 1991, ch. 117, § 4. The former water quality control board, created by § 69-3-104 , was terminated by Acts 2012, ch. 986, § 26, and its responsibilities were transferred to the Tennessee board of water quality, oil, and gas, created in § 69-3-104. Acts 2018, ch. 839, § 44 provided that the governor shall take all action necessary to prepare and submit for approval all necessary requests for federal grant funding and applications for authorization to the appropriate federal authority to obtain exclusive jurisdiction over surface coal mining and reclamation operations and the maximum federal money available for those purposes in an expeditious manner. Acts 2018, ch. 839, § 45 provided that the commissioner of environment and conservation shall notify the secretary of state and the executive secretary of the Tennessee code commission of the date this state has been approved to exercise primacy over the regulation of surface coal mining and reclamation operations within its territorial boundaries. Acts 2018, ch. 839, § 47 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall take effect, including for purposes of rulemaking, upon the deposit of federal funds in the Coal Mining Protection Fund. Amendments. The 2018 amendment substituted “board” for “the Tennessee board of water quality, oil, and gas” in the first sentence of (b). See the Compiler’s Notes. Effective Dates. Acts 2018, ch. 839, § 47. [See Compiler's Notes.] Cross-References. Bond requirements, § 59-8-408 .