{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-350.518","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 350.518","heading":"Permittee to submit permit -specific bond under KRS 350.060(11) --","body":"Tonnage fees -- Assignment of mine type classification -- Inclusion of future\npermits of existing classification -- Inclusion of future permits of existing\nvoluntary bond pool fund  members -- Permit-specific penal bond --\nAdministrative regulations -- Suspension of permit for arrearage in fees --\nRights and remedies.\n(1) In addition to the provisions of KRS 350.500 to 350.521, each permittee shall\nsubmit a permit -specific bond in accordance with KRS 350.060(11) and all\nadministrative regulations promulgated thereunder.\n(2) Each permittee subject to KRS 350.515(1) shall pay to the fund a fee for each ton of\ncoal mined and sold by surface and underground coal mining operations from e ach\npermit area. For the purposes of assessing tonnage fees, all permits subject to\neligibility for expenditures from the fund shall be assigned to one (1) of the\nfollowing classifications:\n(a) Surface coal mining operations, including auger and highwall m ining, for\nwhich an initial rate of seven and fifty -seven hundredths cents ($0.0757) per\nton of coal shall be paid to the fund;\n(b) Underground coal mining operations, for which an initial rate of three and\nfifty-seven hundredths cents ($0.0357) per ton of  coal shall be paid to the\nfund;\n(c) Permits that consist of combined surface and underground mining operations\nshall pay a fee in accordance with the predominant method of coal extraction;\n(d) All permits previously subject to the voluntary bond pool fund  at the time of\nits repeal by 2013 Ky. Acts ch. 78, sec. 12, shall:\n1. Be excluded from the start-up fee established in KRS 350.515;\n2. Pay the tonnage fees set forth in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection\nto the fund in lieu of tonnage fees otherwis e due under KRS 350.725(2);\nand\n3. Continue to receive subsidization of the reclamation bonding authorized\nunder KRS 350.500 to 350.521 and the administrative regulations\nadopted pursuant thereto.\nThe fund shall continue to provide coverage for existing b onds previously\nissued for them by the voluntary bond pool;\n(e) Permits which are used exclusively for coal preparation and processing\noperations, loading activities, disposal of refuse operations, coal haulage and\naccess roads, mine maintenance areas, and  other support facilities, and other\npermits not subject to the provisions of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this\nsubsection as determined by the commission, shall pay an annual fee of ten\ndollars ($10) per acre to the fund in equal quarterly installments; and\n(f) Any permits, or expired permits, not subject to the fees in paragraphs (a) to (e)\nof this subsection shall pay an annual fee of six dollars ($6) per surface acre to\nthe fund in equal quarterly installments. The fee shall not apply to permits\nthat:\n1. Have not been initially disturbed after permit issuance by the permittees;\n2. Contain underground acreage only; or\n3. Have received an initial bond release in accordance with KRS\n350.093(4)(a).\n(3) (a) The commission shall include in the fund under the ter ms set forth in\nsubsection (2)(d) of this section, future permits obtained by entities that are\nmembers of the voluntary bond pool fund at the date of the establishment of\nthe fund, provided the entity and the entity's owners seeking permit coverage\nhave:\n1. Never committed a violation for mining without having first obtained\nthe required permit under this chapter;\n2. Never forfeited a bond or had a permit revoked under this chapter;\n3. Never avoided forfeiture of a bond under this chapter because of a\nsurety-performed reclamation work to avoid forfeiture;\n4. Never been determined to have demonstrated a pattern of violations\npursuant to KRS 350.028(4), 350.130(3), or 350.465(3)(f);\n5. Not been issued more than four (4) orders for cessation and immediate\ncompliance pursuant to a failure to perform remediation within the time\nor under the terms specified by the cabinet in a notice of noncompliance\nand order for remedial measures in the most recent thirty -six (36)\nmonths of operation and the order was abated as ordered by the cabinet\nin a timely manner and was not for a violation of contemporaneous\nreclamation requirements as prescribed in administrative regulations\npromulgated by the cabinet and have reached final dispositions;\n6. Not committed more than three ( 3) violations for contemporaneous\nreclamation requirements as prescribed in administrative regulations\npromulgated by the cabinet in the most recent thirty -six (36) months of\noperation and the order was abated as ordered by the cabinet in a timely\nmanner and have reached final disposition, except the commission may\nfor good cause shown and by unanimous vote exclude violations that\nhave been terminated by the cabinet with no civil penalty;\n7. Not committed more than eight (8) violations of surface mining\npermanent program requirements set forth in this chapter or any\nperformance standards for mining established in administrative\nregulations promulgated by the cabinet pursuant to this chapter and\nwhich have reached final disposition on any one (1) permit in any twelve\n(12) month period of the most recent thirty-six (36) months of operation,\nexcept the commission may for good cause shown and by unanimous\nvote exclude the twelve (12) month period on one (1) permit during\nwhich the largest number of violations occ urred and may for good cause\nshown and by unanimous vote exclude violations that were timely\nabated and terminated by the cabinet with no civil penalty; or\n8. Not had civil penalties under this chapter or imposed pursuant to\nadministrative hearing of the c abinet remaining unpaid more than thirty\n(30) days after they were due and payable, within the most recent thirty -\nsix (36) months of operation.\n(b) The existing members of the voluntary bond pool are deemed to qualify as\nmembers thereof under the provisions of this subsection, and the provisions of\nthis subsection shall only apply to the existing members of the voluntary bond\npool prospectively from March 22, 2013.\n(4) The increase in the total amount of bonds issued to any one (1) member of the\nvoluntary bond pool under subsection (3) of this section shall not exceed twenty -\nfive percent (25%) of the greater of:\n(a) The member's aggregate amount of bonds in force and issued by the voluntary\nbond pool as of March 22, 2013; or\n(b) The total of that member's ag gregate amount of bonds in force and issued by\nthe voluntary bond pool as of March 22, 2013, plus fifty-five percent (55%) of\nthat total.\n(5) The commission may consider for inclusion in the fund under the terms set forth in\nsubsection (2)(d) of this secti on permits obtained by an entity which is not a\nparticipant of the fund as of March 22, 2013, provided the entity and the entity's\nowners can meet eligibility standards established in administrative regulations\npromulgated by the commission.\n(6) Any permits accepted into the fund under the terms set forth in subsection (3) of\nthis section shall require payment of a permit-specific penal bond computed at a rate\nof two thousand dollars ($2,000) for each acre or fraction of an acre included in the\nproposed per mit area, and shall pay the actuarially determined tonnage rates set\nforth in subsection (2)(a) to (c) of this section.\n(7) Changes to the rates set forth in this section and others, including those set out in\nsubsection (2)(d) of this section, shall be ma de by the commission through\nadministrative regulation and shall be in an amount sufficient to maintain actuarial\nsoundness of the fund in accordance with the annual actuarial study.\n(8) Reporting and payment of fees shall be made in accordance with admini strative\nregulations promulgated by the commission. The commission may request and\nreview documents and reports from the Kentucky Department for Natural Resources\nand the United States Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement to\nverify production records submitted by permittees.\n(9) Upon the receipt of notification from the commission that a permittee is in arrearage\nin the payment of any fees assessed to a permit, the cabinet shall forthwith suspend\nthe permit. A suspension of a permit under th is subsection may be appealed\npursuant to the hearing provisions of KRS 350.0301.\n(10) A permit suspended by the cabinet under subsection (9) of this section shall have\nthat suspension immediately lifted upon notification by the commission that the\narrearage has been paid in full by the permittee.\n(11) Any person who considers himself or herself to be aggrieved by any determination\nmade by the commission under KRS 350.500 to 350.521 shall have all of the rights\nand remedies provided in KRS 350.0301.","path":["KRS Chapter 350"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=47730","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:58:36Z","sha256":"42253eb22663618be8c7882c0289c7169112170d3308b5adcd7063ff9e1c2ad0","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-350.515","next":"us-ky/krs-350.521"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}