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2017 SESSION
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 45.1-183, 45.1-185, 45.1-197.8, 45.1-197.10, 45.1-197.14, and 45.1-197.18 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted and that the Code of Virginia is amended by adding sections numbered 45.1-186.3 through 45.1-186.8 as follows:
§ 45.1-183. Bond of operator.
Each operator at the time of filing his application shall
furnish bond on a form to be prescribed by the Director payable to the
Department and conditioned that the operator shall faithfully perform all of
the requirements of this chapter and of the operations plan as approved and
directed by the Department. The amount of bond shall be no less than $200
nor more than $1,000 $3,000 per acre, based upon the number of acres
of land which the operator estimates will be affected by mining operations
during the next ensuing year. The minimum amount of bond furnished shall be
$1,000, except in areas of five acres or less the bond shall be no less than
$200 nor more than $1,000 per acre. Such bond shall be executed by the
operator and by a corporate surety licensed to do business in this
Commonwealth; provided, however, that in lieu of such bond the operator may
deposit cash or collateral security acceptable to the Director.
§ 45.1-185. Additional bond to be posted annually; release of previous bond; report of reclamation work.
Within ten 10 days following the anniversary
date of any permit, the operator shall post additional bond in the amount of
no less than $200 nor more than $1,000 $3,000 per acre for each acre
of land estimated by him to be disturbed during the next year following the
anniversary date of the permit. Bond or other security previously posted shall
be released for the areas disturbed in the last twelve 12 months
if reclamation work has been completed or transferred to additional acres to be
disturbed. The approval of the Director to release the bond shall be obtained
in accordance with the following:
The operator shall file with the Department a written report on a form to be prescribed by the Department stating under oath that reclamation has been completed on certain lands and submit the following:
(a) (i) Identification of the operation; (b)
(ii) the county or city in which it is located and its location with
reference to the nearest public highway; (c) (iii) a description
of the area of land affected by the operation within the period of time covered
by such report with sufficient certainty to enable it to be located and
distinguished from other lands; (d) and (iv) an accurate map or
plan prepared by a licensed land surveyor or licensed engineer or issued by a
standard mapping service or in such manner as to be acceptable to the Director
showing the boundary lines of the area of land affected by the operation, the
number of acres comprising such area, and the methods of access to the
area from the nearest public highway.
§ 45.1-186.3. Commonwealth to have lien for reclamation work.
The Commonwealth shall have a lien, if perfected as provided in subsection A of § 45.1-186.4, on land owned by the operator and reclaimed by the Director pursuant to this chapter for the amount of the increase in the appraised market value of the land resulting from the reclamation, except that no lien shall attach to or be filed against the property of any person if the Director waives the lien as provided in subsection B of § 45.1-186.4.
§ 45.1-186.4. Perfection of lien; waiver of lien.
A. Except as provided in subsection B, the Director shall perfect the lien given under the provisions of § 45.1-186.3 by filing, within six months after completion of the reclamation, in the clerk's office of the court of the county or city in which the land or any part thereof is located, a statement consisting of the names of all owners of record of the property sought to be charged; an itemized account of moneys expended for the reclamation work; notarized copies of appraisals, made by an independent appraiser, of the fair market value of the land both before and upon completion of the reclamation work; and a brief description of the property to which the lien attaches.
B. The Director shall waive a lien if he determines that (i) the direct and indirect costs of filing such lien exceed the increase in fair market value resulting from reclamation or (ii) if reclamation is necessitated by an unforeseen occurrence, the reclamation will not result in a significant increase in the fair market value of the land.
§ 45.1-186.5. Recordation and indexing of lien; notice.
It shall be the duty of the clerk in whose office the statement described in § 45.1-186.4 is filed to record the statement in the deed books of such office, and index the statement in the general index of deeds, in the name of the Commonwealth as well as the owner of the property, showing the type of such lien. From the time of such recording and indexing, all persons shall be deemed to have notice thereof.
§ 45.1-186.6. Priority of lien.
Liens acquired under this article shall have priority as a lien second only to the lien of real estate taxes imposed upon the land.
§ 45.1-186.7. Hearing to determine amount of lien.
Any party having an interest in the real property against which a lien has been filed may, within 60 days of such filing, petition the court of equity having jurisdiction wherein the property or some portion thereof is located to hold a hearing to determine the increase in the fair market value of the land as a result of reclamation. After reasonable notice to the Director, the court shall hold a hearing to determine such increase. If the court determines such increase to be erroneously excessive, it shall determine the proper amount and order that the lien and the record be amended to show this amount.
§ 45.1-186.8. Satisfaction of lien.
Liens acquired under this article shall be satisfied to the extent of the value of the consideration received at the time of transfer of ownership. Any unsatisfied portion shall remain as a lien on the property and shall be satisfied in accordance with this section. If an owner fails to satisfy a lien as provided herein, the Director may proceed to enforce the lien by a bill filed in a court of equity having jurisdiction wherein the property or some portion thereof is located.
§ 45.1-197.8. Creation of Fund.
There is hereby created in the State Treasurer's office state
treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Minerals
Reclamation Fund, hereinafter referred to in this section as "the
Fund,." which shall be under the supervision of the
Department. The Fund shall consist of all payments made into the Fund by
operators in accordance with the provisions of this article.The Fund
shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All payments made by
operators in accordance with the provisions of this article shall be paid into
the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the
Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in
the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not
revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund
shall be used solely for the reclamation of mining operations pursuant
to § 45.1-197.12. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by
the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request
signed by the Director.
§ 45.1-197.10. Release of bonds and other securities.
When the size of the Fund shall have reached $400,000, the All
bonds and other securities previously posted, pursuant to § 45.1-183, by
all members issued pursuant to § 45.1-183 or 45.1-185 shall be
released upon acceptance in the Fund and payment of required fees.
§ 45.1-197.14. Decreases in size of Fund.
Whenever the size of the Fund shall decrease decreases
to less than $250,000 $2 million, the Director shall suspend
the return of payments pursuant to § 45.1-197.11 and shall assess all members
an equal amount for each affected acre, for a total amount sufficient to raise
the Fund to $250,000 $2 million. In lieu of such an assessment,
all members shall at the request of the Director post bonds or other
securities, within six months after the Director so notifies the members.
Failure to post bond or other surety or to pay the required assessment shall
result in the revocation of the permit of the member and the forfeiture of the
member's payments in accordance with § 45.1-197.12.
§ 45.1-197.18. Reclamation funding.
An amount equal to the average interest rate earned for all
funds in the state treasury as applied to the Fund shall be paid annually to
the Department to be used only for the reclamation of orphaned lands pursuant
to Article 3 (§ 45.1-197.3 et seq.) of this chapter and is hereby allocated
for such purposes. Funds paid to the Department pursuant to this section
shall not revert to the general fund.