Regular Session 2017-2018 Senate Bill 0624 P.N. 1000

HOUSE AMENDED

PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 697

PRINTER'S NO. 1000

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

No.

624

Session of

2017

INTRODUCED BY SCARNATI AND YAW, APRIL 13, 2017

AS AMENDED ON SECOND CONSIDERATION, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

JUNE 21, 2017

AN ACT

Amending the act of April 27, 1966 (1st Sp.Sess., P.L.31, No.1),

entitled "An act to protect the public health, welfare and

safety by regulating the mining of bituminous coal; declaring

the existence of a public interest in the support of surface

structures; providing a remedy for the restoration or

replacement of water supplies affected by underground mining;

providing a remedy for the restoration or replacement or

compensation for surface structures damaged by underground

mining; providing standards for the prevention of hazards to

human safety and material damage to certain structures;

requiring permits, and in certain circumstances bonds, for

the mining of bituminous coal; providing for the filing of

maps or plans with recorders of deeds; providing for the

giving of notice of mining operations to political

subdivisions and surface landowners of record; requiring mine

inspectors to accompany municipal officers and their agents

on inspection trips; granting powers to public officers and

affected property owners to enforce the act; requiring

grantors to certify as to whether any structures on the lands

conveyed are entitled to support from the underlying coal and

grantees to sign an admission of a warning of the possible

lack of any such right of support; requiring grantors to

provide notice of the existence of voluntary agreements for

the restoration or replacement of water supplies or for the

repair or compensation for structural damage; imposing duties

on the Department of Environmental Resources for the

compilation and analysis of data; and imposing liability for

violation of the act," providing for planned subsidence and

for retroactivity.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 5 of the act of April 27, 1966 (1st

Sp.Sess., P.L.31, No.1), known as The Bituminous Mine Subsidence

and Land Conservation Act, is amended by adding subsections to

read:

Section 5. Permit; application; map or plan; bond or other

security; filing; general rulemaking authority; prevention of

damage; mine stability; maintenance of use and value of lands.--

* * *

(i) Planned IN A PERMIT APPLICATION TO CONDUCT BITUMINOUS

COAL MINING OPERATIONS SUBJECT TO THIS ACT, PLANNED subsidence

in a predictable and controlled manner, which is not predicted

to result in the permanent disruption of PREMINING existing or

designated uses of water SURFACE WATERS of the Commonwealth

shall not be considered presumptive evidence that a THE PROPOSED

bituminous coal mine subject to this act has MINING OPERATIONS

HAVE the potential to cause pollution as defined in section 1 of

the act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known as "The Clean

Streams Law."

(j) The provisions of subsection (i) shall only apply if a

bituminous coal mine subject to this act PERSON :

(1) submits a plan AN APPLICATION TO CONDUCT BITUMINOUS

MINING OPERATIONS SUBJECT TO THIS ACT to the department that

provides for the mitigation of predicted subsidence-induced

impacts RESTORATION OF THE PREMINING RANGE OF FLOWS AND

RESTORATION OF PREMINING BIOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES IN ANY WATERS OF

THIS COMMONWEALTH PREDICTED TO BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED BY

SUBSIDENCE. THE RESTORATION SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH THE

PREMINING EXISTING AND DESIGNATED USES OF THE WATERS OF THIS

COMMONWEALTH ; and

(2) the plan APPLICATION is approved by the department.

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Section 2. Section 9.1(d) of the act is amended to read:

Section 9.1. Prevention of hazards to human safety and

material damage to certain buildings.--* * *

(d) Nothing in this act shall be construed to amend, modify

or otherwise supersede:

(1) standards related to prevailing hydrologic balance

contained in the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of

1977 (Public Law 95-87, 30 U.S.C. § 1201 et seq.) and

regulations promulgated by the Environmental Quality Board for

the purpose of obtaining or maintaining primary jurisdiction

over the enforcement and administration of that act [nor]; and

(2) except as provided for under section 5(i), any standard

contained in the act of June 22, 1937 (P.L.1987, No.394), known

as "The Clean Streams Law," or any regulation promulgated

thereunder by the Environmental Quality Board.

Section 3. The addition of section 5(i) and (j) and the

amendment of section 9.1(d) of the act shall apply retroactively

to all permits issued under the act that were the subject of an

appeal heard by the Environmental Hearing Board after June 30,

2016 OCTOBER 8, 2005.

Section 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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