KRS 350.518: Permittee to submit permit -specific bond under KRS 350.060(11) --

Tonnage fees -- Assignment of mine type classification -- Inclusion of future

permits of existing classification -- Inclusion of future permits of existing

voluntary bond pool fund members -- Permit-specific penal bond --

Administrative regulations -- Suspension of permit for arrearage in fees --

Rights and remedies.

(1) In addition to the provisions of KRS 350.500 to 350.521, each permittee shall

submit a permit -specific bond in accordance with KRS 350.060(11) and all

administrative regulations promulgated thereunder.

(2) Each permittee subject to KRS 350.515(1) shall pay to the fund a fee for each ton of

coal mined and sold by surface and underground coal mining operations from e ach

permit area. For the purposes of assessing tonnage fees, all permits subject to

eligibility for expenditures from the fund shall be assigned to one (1) of the

following classifications:

(a) Surface coal mining operations, including auger and highwall m ining, for

which an initial rate of seven and fifty -seven hundredths cents ($0.0757) per

ton of coal shall be paid to the fund;

(b) Underground coal mining operations, for which an initial rate of three and

fifty-seven hundredths cents ($0.0357) per ton of coal shall be paid to the

fund;

(c) Permits that consist of combined surface and underground mining operations

shall pay a fee in accordance with the predominant method of coal extraction;

(d) All permits previously subject to the voluntary bond pool fund at the time of

its repeal by 2013 Ky. Acts ch. 78, sec. 12, shall:

1. Be excluded from the start-up fee established in KRS 350.515;

2. Pay the tonnage fees set forth in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection

to the fund in lieu of tonnage fees otherwis e due under KRS 350.725(2);

and

3. Continue to receive subsidization of the reclamation bonding authorized

under KRS 350.500 to 350.521 and the administrative regulations

adopted pursuant thereto.

The fund shall continue to provide coverage for existing b onds previously

issued for them by the voluntary bond pool;

(e) Permits which are used exclusively for coal preparation and processing

operations, loading activities, disposal of refuse operations, coal haulage and

access roads, mine maintenance areas, and other support facilities, and other

permits not subject to the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this

subsection as determined by the commission, shall pay an annual fee of ten

dollars ($10) per acre to the fund in equal quarterly installments; and

(f) Any permits, or expired permits, not subject to the fees in paragraphs (a) to (e)

of this subsection shall pay an annual fee of six dollars ($6) per surface acre to

the fund in equal quarterly installments. The fee shall not apply to permits

that:

1. Have not been initially disturbed after permit issuance by the permittees;

2. Contain underground acreage only; or

3. Have received an initial bond release in accordance with KRS

350.093(4)(a).

(3) (a) The commission shall include in the fund under the ter ms set forth in

subsection (2)(d) of this section, future permits obtained by entities that are

members of the voluntary bond pool fund at the date of the establishment of

the fund, provided the entity and the entity's owners seeking permit coverage

have:

1. Never committed a violation for mining without having first obtained

the required permit under this chapter;

2. Never forfeited a bond or had a permit revoked under this chapter;

3. Never avoided forfeiture of a bond under this chapter because of a

surety-performed reclamation work to avoid forfeiture;

4. Never been determined to have demonstrated a pattern of violations

pursuant to KRS 350.028(4), 350.130(3), or 350.465(3)(f);

5. Not been issued more than four (4) orders for cessation and immediate

compliance pursuant to a failure to perform remediation within the time

or under the terms specified by the cabinet in a notice of noncompliance

and order for remedial measures in the most recent thirty -six (36)

months of operation and the order was abated as ordered by the cabinet

in a timely manner and was not for a violation of contemporaneous

reclamation requirements as prescribed in administrative regulations

promulgated by the cabinet and have reached final dispositions;

6. Not committed more than three ( 3) violations for contemporaneous

reclamation requirements as prescribed in administrative regulations

promulgated by the cabinet in the most recent thirty -six (36) months of

operation and the order was abated as ordered by the cabinet in a timely

manner and have reached final disposition, except the commission may

for good cause shown and by unanimous vote exclude violations that

have been terminated by the cabinet with no civil penalty;

7. Not committed more than eight (8) violations of surface mining

permanent program requirements set forth in this chapter or any

performance standards for mining established in administrative

regulations promulgated by the cabinet pursuant to this chapter and

which have reached final disposition on any one (1) permit in any twelve

(12) month period of the most recent thirty-six (36) months of operation,

except the commission may for good cause shown and by unanimous

vote exclude the twelve (12) month period on one (1) permit during

which the largest number of violations occ urred and may for good cause

shown and by unanimous vote exclude violations that were timely

abated and terminated by the cabinet with no civil penalty; or

8. Not had civil penalties under this chapter or imposed pursuant to

administrative hearing of the c abinet remaining unpaid more than thirty

(30) days after they were due and payable, within the most recent thirty -

six (36) months of operation.

(b) The existing members of the voluntary bond pool are deemed to qualify as

members thereof under the provisions of this subsection, and the provisions of

this subsection shall only apply to the existing members of the voluntary bond

pool prospectively from March 22, 2013.

(4) The increase in the total amount of bonds issued to any one (1) member of the

voluntary bond pool under subsection (3) of this section shall not exceed twenty -

five percent (25%) of the greater of:

(a) The member's aggregate amount of bonds in force and issued by the voluntary

bond pool as of March 22, 2013; or

(b) The total of that member's ag gregate amount of bonds in force and issued by

the voluntary bond pool as of March 22, 2013, plus fifty-five percent (55%) of

that total.

(5) The commission may consider for inclusion in the fund under the terms set forth in

subsection (2)(d) of this secti on permits obtained by an entity which is not a

participant of the fund as of March 22, 2013, provided the entity and the entity's

owners can meet eligibility standards established in administrative regulations

promulgated by the commission.

(6) Any permits accepted into the fund under the terms set forth in subsection (3) of

this section shall require payment of a permit-specific penal bond computed at a rate

of two thousand dollars ($2,000) for each acre or fraction of an acre included in the

proposed per mit area, and shall pay the actuarially determined tonnage rates set

forth in subsection (2)(a) to (c) of this section.

(7) Changes to the rates set forth in this section and others, including those set out in

subsection (2)(d) of this section, shall be ma de by the commission through

administrative regulation and shall be in an amount sufficient to maintain actuarial

soundness of the fund in accordance with the annual actuarial study.

(8) Reporting and payment of fees shall be made in accordance with admini strative

regulations promulgated by the commission. The commission may request and

review documents and reports from the Kentucky Department for Natural Resources

and the United States Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement to

verify production records submitted by permittees.

(9) Upon the receipt of notification from the commission that a permittee is in arrearage

in the payment of any fees assessed to a permit, the cabinet shall forthwith suspend

the permit. A suspension of a permit under th is subsection may be appealed

pursuant to the hearing provisions of KRS 350.0301.

(10) A permit suspended by the cabinet under subsection (9) of this section shall have

that suspension immediately lifted upon notification by the commission that the

arrearage has been paid in full by the permittee.

(11) Any person who considers himself or herself to be aggrieved by any determination

made by the commission under KRS 350.500 to 350.521 shall have all of the rights

and remedies provided in KRS 350.0301.