HOUSE BILL NO. 3375 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE COSTLOW.
7316H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT To repeal sections 523.001, 523.010, 523.020, 523.030, 523.039, 523.040, 523.250, 523.253, 523.256, and 523.265, RSMo, and section 523.061 as enacted by house bill no. 1606, one hundred first general assembly, second regular session, and section 523.061 as enacted by house bill no. 1944, ninety-third general assembly, second regular session, and to enact in lieu thereof eleven new sections relating to condemnation proceedings, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 523.001, 523.010, 523.020, 523.030, 523.039, 523.040, 523.250, 2 523.253, 523.256, and 523.265, RSMo, and section 523.061 as enacted by house bill no. 3 1606, one hundred first general assembly, second regular session, and section 523.061 as 4 enacted by house bill no. 1944, ninety-third general assembly, second regular session, are 5 repealed and eleven new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 523.001, 6 523.010, 523.015, 523.030, 523.039, 523.040, 523.061, 523.250, 523.253, 523.256, and 7 523.265, to read as follows: 523.001. For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall mean: 2 (1) "Beginning farmer or rancher", an individual or entity who: 3 (a) Has not operated a farm or ranch, or who has operated a farm or ranch for 4 not more than ten consecutive years. The requirement of this paragraph applies to all 5 members of an entity; 6 (b) Participates in the operation of the farm or ranch; and 7 (c) Is a resident of this state;
EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. HB 3375 2
8 (2) "Beginning farmer taking", any taking of any agricultural or horticultural 9 property owned by a property owner qualified as a beginning farmer or rancher; 10 (3) "Fair market value", the value of the property taken after considering comparable 11 sales in the area, capitalization of income, and replacement cost less depreciation, singularly 12 or in combination, as appropriate, and additionally considering the value of the property 13 based upon its highest and best use, using generally accepted appraisal practices. If less than 14 the entire property is taken, fair market value shall mean the difference between the fair 15 market value of the entire property immediately prior to the taking and the fair market value 16 of the remaining or burdened property immediately after the taking, including consideration 17 of the damage the condemning authority's proposed use of the condemned property 18 shall cause to the remaining or burdened property if such proposed use of the 19 condemned property reduces the value of the remaining or burdened property. The 20 term "fair market value" shall not include any increase in the value of the remaining or 21 burdened property caused by the condemning authority's proposed use of the 22 condemned property; 23 [(2)] (4) "Heritage value", the value assigned to any real property, including but not 24 limited to real property owned by a business enterprise with fewer than one hundred 25 employees, that has been owned within the same family for fifty or more years, such value to 26 be [fifty] twenty percent of fair market value; 27 [(3)] (5) "Homestead taking", any taking of a dwelling owned by the property owner 28 and functioning as the owner's primary place of residence or any taking of the owner's 29 property within three hundred feet of the owner's primary place of residence [that prevents the 30 owner from utilizing the property in substantially the same manner as it is currently being 31 utilized]. 523.010. 1. In case land, or other property, is sought to be appropriated by any road, 2 railroad, street railway, telephone, telegraph or any electrical corporation organized for the 3 manufacture or transmission of electric current for light, heat or power, including the 4 construction, when that is the case, of necessary dams and appurtenant canals, flumes, tunnels 5 and tailraces and including the erection, when that is the case, of necessary electric steam 6 powerhouses, hydroelectric powerhouses and electric substations or any oil, pipeline or gas 7 corporation engaged in the business of transporting or carrying oil, liquid fertilizer solutions, 8 or gas by means of pipes or pipelines laid underneath the surface of the ground, or other 9 corporation created under the laws of this state for public use, and such corporation and the 10 owners cannot agree upon the proper compensation to be paid, or in the case the owner is 11 incapable of contracting, be unknown, or be a nonresident of the state, such corporation may 12 apply to the circuit court of the county of this state where such land or any part thereof lies by 13 petition setting forth the general directions in which it is desired to construct its road, railroad, HB 3375 3
14 street railway, telephone, or telegraph line or electric line, including, when that is the case, the 15 construction and maintenance of necessary dams and appurtenant canals, tunnels, flumes and 16 tailraces and, when that is the case, the appropriation of land submerged by the construction 17 of such dam, and including the erection and maintenance, when that is the case, of necessary 18 electric steam powerhouses, hydroelectric powerhouses and electric substations, or oil, 19 pipeline, liquid fertilizer solution pipeline, or gas line over or underneath the surface of such 20 lands, a description of the real estate, or other property, which the company seeks to acquire; 21 the names of the owners thereof, if known; or if unknown, a pertinent description of the 22 property whose owners are unknown and praying the appointment of three disinterested 23 residents of the county, as commissioners, or a jury, to assess the damages which such owners 24 may severally sustain in consequence of the establishment, erection and maintenance of such 25 road, railroad, street railway, telephone, telegraph line, or electrical line including damages 26 from the construction and maintenance of necessary dams and the condemnation of land 27 submerged thereby, and the construction and maintenance of appurtenant canals, flumes, 28 tunnels and tailraces and the erection and maintenance of necessary electric steam 29 powerhouses, hydroelectric powerhouses and electric substations, or oil, pipeline, or gas 30 line over or underneath the surface of such lands; to which petition the owners of any or all as 31 the plaintiff may elect of such parcels as lie within the county or circuit may be made parties 32 defendant by names if the names are known, and by the description of the unknown owners of 33 the land therein described if their names are unknown. 34 2. If the proceedings seek to affect the lands of persons under conservatorship, the 35 conservators must be made parties defendant. If the present owner of any land to be affected 36 has less estate than a fee, the person having the next vested estate in remainder may at the 37 option of the petitioners be made party defendant; but if such remaindermen are not made 38 parties, their interest shall not be bound by the proceedings. 39 3. It shall not be necessary to make any persons party defendants in respect to their 40 ownership unless they are either in actual possession of the premises to be affected claiming 41 title or having a title of the premises appearing of record upon the proper records of the 42 county. 43 4. Except as provided in subsection 5 of this section, nothing in this chapter shall be 44 construed to give a public utility, as defined in section 386.020, or a rural electric cooperative, 45 as provided in chapter 394, the power to condemn property which is currently used by another 46 provider of public utility service, including a municipality or a special purpose district, when 47 such property is used or useful in providing utility services, if the public utility or cooperative 48 seeking to condemn such property, directly or indirectly, will use or proposes to use the 49 property for the same purpose, or a purpose substantially similar to the purpose for which the 50 property is being used by the provider of the public utility service. HB 3375 4
51 5. A public utility or a rural electric cooperative may only condemn the property of 52 another provider of public utility service, even if the property is used or useful in providing 53 utility services by such provider, if the condemnation is necessary for the public purpose of 54 acquiring a nonexclusive easement or right-of-way across the property of such provider and 55 only if the acquisition will not materially impair or interfere with the current use of such 56 property by the utility or cooperative and will not prevent or materially impair such provider 57 of public utility service from any future expansion of its facilities on such property. 58 6. If a public utility or rural electric cooperative seeks to condemn the property of 59 another provider of public utility service, and the conditions in subsection 4 of this section do 60 not apply, this section does not limit the condemnation powers otherwise possessed by such 61 public utility or rural electric cooperative. 62 7. Suits in inverse condemnation or involving dangerous conditions of public 63 property against a municipal corporation established under Article VI, Section 30(a) of the 64 Missouri Constitution shall be brought only in the county where such land or any part thereof 65 lies. 66 8. For purposes of this chapter, the authority for an electrical corporation as defined in 67 section 386.020, except for an electrical corporation operating under a cooperative business 68 plan as described in section 393.110, to condemn property for purposes of constructing an 69 electric plant subject to a certificate of public convenience and necessity under subsection 1 70 of section 393.170 shall not extend to the construction of a merchant transmission line with 71 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission negotiated rate authority unless such line has a 72 substation or converter station located in Missouri which is capable of delivering an amount 73 of its electrical capacity to electrical customers in this state that is greater than or equal to the 74 proportionate number of miles of the line that passes through the state. The provisions of this 75 subsection shall not apply to applications filed pursuant to section 393.170 prior to August 28, 76 2022. 77 9. For the purposes of this chapter, the authority of any corporation set forth in 78 subsection 1 of this section to condemn property shall not extend to: 79 (1) The construction or erection of any plant, tower, panel, or facility that 80 utilizes, captures, or converts wind or air currents to generate or manufacture 81 electricity; or 82 (2) The construction or erection of any plant, tower, panel, or facility that 83 utilizes, captures, or converts the light or heat generated by the sun to generate or 84 manufacture electricity. 523.015. 1. Any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with 2 the authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of 3 law shall give the owner of any property at least fifteen days written notice that HB 3375 5
4 surveyors employed by the condemning corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, 5 or person will enter the property proposed to be condemned for any surveying. 6 2. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 7 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 8 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, such 9 corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person shall give at least five days 10 written notice that such corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person, or its 11 agents or employees, will enter upon the easement before entering such easement unless 12 such corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person has to enter onto such 13 property in an emergency to make repairs to avoid or remedy disruptions of utility 14 service, or to prevent any threat to the life or property of any person. 15 3. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 16 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 17 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 18 subsequently cuts or destroys any trees or vegetation upon or within the easement, such 19 corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person shall, at its own expense, 20 entirely remove all such trees or vegetation from the easement unless otherwise agreed 21 in writing with the owner of the fee over which the easement exists. 22 4. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 23 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 24 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 25 subsequently cuts or destroys any trees or vegetation upon or within the easement, such 26 corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person shall, at its own expense, 27 remove or grind all stumps in the easement to at least three inches in depth below the 28 ground surface unless otherwise agreed in writing with the owner of the fee over which 29 the easement exists. 30 5. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 31 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 32 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 33 subsequently disturbs, causes damage by equipment or machinery, or removes any tree, 34 vegetation, grass, earthwork, or terrace within the easement, or creates or causes any 35 ruts, such corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person shall, at its own 36 expense, repair and reseed any barren area utilizing best practices for erosion control as 37 set forth by the Missouri soil and water commission unless otherwise agreed in writing 38 with the owner of the fee over which the easement exists. 39 6. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 40 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law HB 3375 6
41 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 42 subsequently abandons or ceases to utilize or maintain any plant, pipe, line, tower, or 43 any other facility built upon such easement, such corporation, political subdivision, 44 cooperative, or person shall, at its own expense, remove from the property all above 45 ground components of such plant, pipe, line, tower, or any other facility, and shall repair 46 and reseed any barren area utilizing best practices for erosion control as set forth by the 47 Missouri soil and water commission unless otherwise agreed in writing with the owner 48 of the fee over which the easement exists. 49 7. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 50 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 51 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 52 subsequently abandons or ceases to utilize or maintain any plant, pipe, line, tower, or 53 any other facility built upon such easement, such corporation, political subdivision, 54 cooperative, or person shall, at its own expense, remove from the property all 55 components of such plant, pipe, line, tower, or any other facility located at three feet of 56 depth or less below ground, and shall repair and reseed any barren area utilizing best 57 practices for erosion control as set forth by the Missouri soil and water commission 58 unless otherwise agreed in writing with the owner of the fee over which the easement 59 exists. 60 8. If any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 61 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 62 acquires any easement in this state by voluntary means or by condemnation, and 63 subsequently disturbs, causes damage to, or removes any fence, or portion thereof, 64 owned by the property owner to access the easement area, such corporation, political 65 subdivision, cooperative, or person shall, at its own expense, repair the fence to a lawful 66 state to comply with chapter 272 unless otherwise agreed in writing with the owner of 67 the fee over which the easement exists. 68 9. Any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or person with the 69 authority to condemn property pursuant to this chapter or any other provision of law 70 that violates in any material respect the provisions of this section shall be liable to the 71 owner of the property over which such corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, 72 or person holds an easement for a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars for each 73 violation for each day such violation persists, except that the maximum penalty for 74 violation of the provisions of this section shall not exceed one hundred thousand dollars 75 for any related series of violations. An action to recover such civil penalty may be 76 brought by any aggrieved owner of the property over which an easement exists, or by 77 the attorney general or by a prosecuting attorney or circuit attorney on behalf of any HB 3375 7
78 aggrieved owner of the property over which an easement exists, in the circuit court of 79 the county where such property is located. 80 10. Any aggrieved owner of the property over which an easement exists, or the 81 attorney general or a prosecuting attorney or circuit attorney, may bring an action in 82 the circuit court of the county where such property is located for equitable relief to 83 redress or restrain a violation by any corporation, political subdivision, cooperative, or 84 person of any provision of this section. The court may grant such relief as is necessary 85 or appropriate, including mandatory or prohibitive injunctive relief, temporary or 86 permanent. 87 11. As used in this section, the term "political subdivision" means: 88 (1) Any agency or unit of this state; 89 (2) Any county of this state; 90 (3) Any municipality of this state; 91 (4) Any agency or unit authorized to levy taxes or empowered to cause taxes to 92