{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-350.105","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 350.105","heading":"Easement of necessity to conduct reclamation operations.","body":"(1) An easement of necessity for the completion of reclamation activities, created by\nthis subsection, requires satisfaction of these circumstances:\n(a) An entity has, by court order or approved plan of reorganization, become\nresponsible for performance of rec lamation under a surface coal mining and\nreclamation permit issued by the cabinet pursuant to KRS Chapter 350 prior to\nJuly 12, 2006;\n(b) The entity obtained those permit rights and obligations in connection with a\nbankruptcy proceeding;\n(c) The permit hol der's right to enter upon some portion or all of the property\ncovered by such permit is derived from a leasehold interest in the property;\nand\n(d) The lease authorizing the conducting of surface coal mining and reclamation\noperations was held by an entity other than the entity responsible for\nreclamation and has expired or was terminated prior to completion of\nreclamation operations for that leased property.\n(2) Upon satisfaction of paragraphs (a) to (d) of subsection (1) of this section and all\nother oblig ations provided for in this section, the entity responsible for the\nperformance of reclamation shall be deemed by operation of law to have an\n\"easement of necessity to conduct reclamation operations\" for such property as was\nunder the expired or terminated  lease. The easement of necessity to conduct\nreclamation operations shall exist for a period of time that is reasonably necessary\nfor the entity responsible for the reclamation to complete any reclamation\noperations required by the permit and by KRS Chapte r 350, but in no case shall the\neasement of necessity to conduct reclamation operations exist longer than eight (8)\nyears from the date the easement is created pursuant to this section.\n(3) In order to create the easement of necessity to conduct reclamatio n operations, the\nentity responsible for the performance of reclamation shall:\n(a) Provide to the permitting agency, with a certified copy to the current surface\nowner, documentation to establish the satisfaction of the conditions imposed\nby this section and receive from the permitting agency a written determination\nthat the permitted area for which the easement of necessity is requested falls\nwithin the conditions of this section; and\n(b) Compensate the current surface owner with the fair rental value of t he\nproperty for the reclamation period, including the extended liability period\nprior to the final bond release on the formerly leased property, as follows:\n1. The entity responsible for the reclamation shall provide a written\nopinion by a qualified apprai ser as to the fair rental value and the basis\nfor the determination;\n2. The surface owner and the entity responsible for the reclamation shall\nattempt to reach agreement as to the amount of the appropriate\ncompensation; and\n3. If no agreement is reached as to the amount of appropriate compensation\nwithin fifteen (15) days following receipt by the surface owner of the\nwritten offer of compensation from the entity responsible for\nreclamation and the appraisal report, the entity responsible for\nreclamation sha ll pay into an escrow account for the benefit of the\ncurrent surface owner in a bank authorized to do business in the\nCommonwealth an amount equal to the written offer by the entity\nresponsible for reclamation, which shall be not less than fifteen thousand\ndollars ($15,000) for the first three (3) years of the reclamation and\nliability period. The entity responsible for the reclamation shall provide\nthe current owner with the location of the escrow account.\n(4) After subsection (3)(b)3. of this section is satisfied, the entity responsible for\nreclamation shall have the immediate right of entry solely to perform reclamation as\nrequired by the permit and state law.\n(5) If the surface owner believes the amount place d in escrow is insufficient\ncompensation, the owner may bring an action in the Circuit Court in the county in\nwhich the property in question is located for a determination of the fair rental value\nof the property.\n(6) Following the first payment, five thou sand dollars ($5,000) or the appraised fair\nrental value, whichever is greater, shall be paid to the current surface owner for each\nyear of reclamation and extended liability period until the final bond release and\nshall be paid on the first day of each subsequent year beginning with the fourth year.\n(7) After July 15, 2008, no new easement of necessity to conduct reclamation\noperations created by this section shall be deemed to exist by operation of law,\nexcept for continuation of such easements that were created prior to July 15, 2008.","path":["KRS Chapter 350"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=32795","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:58:35Z","sha256":"4fba7c7d94407483bfd7b5730880ca702d581ddd94afb8c67017b271846254b3","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-350.100","next":"us-ky/krs-350.110"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}