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Session of 2025
SENATE BILL No. 173
By Committee on Federal and State Affairs
2-3
AN ACT concerning energy; relating to the development of certain wind
and solar electric generation resources; establishing requirements for
the conveyance of leases and easements relating thereto; requiring a
county to approve the development of a commercial wind or solar
energy facility before the conveyance of any such lease or easement;
amending K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 58-2272 and repealing the existing
section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 58-2272 is hereby amended to read as
follows: 58-2272. (a) Every instrument that conveys any estate or interest
created by any lease or easement involving wind or solar resources and
technologies to produce and generate electricity shall include:
(1) A description of the real property subject to the easement and a
description of the real property benefitting from the wind or solar lease or
easement;
(2) a description of the vertical and horizontal angles, expressed in
degrees, and distances from the site of the wind or solar power system in
which an obstruction to the wind or solar system is prohibited or limited;
(3) all terms or conditions under which the lease or easement is
granted or may be terminated, except that if the instrument is recorded
under K.S.A. 58-2221, and amendments thereto, any compensation
received by the owner of the real property may be excluded; and
(4) any other provisions necessary or desirable to execute the
instrument.
(b) No person other than the surface owner of a tract of land shall
have the right to use such land for the production of wind or solar
generated energy unless granted such right by the lawful owner of the
surface estate by lease or easement for a definite period.
(c) The provisions of subsection (b) shall not apply to any lease or
easement filed of record prior to July 1, 2011, with the register of deeds of
the county in which the tract is located.
(d) Any instrument executed between parties on or after July 1, 2025,
that conveys any estate or interest created by any lease or easement
involving the development, construction and operation of a commercial
solar energy facility or commercial wind energy facility shall not be in
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force or effect or binding upon either party until the date that the board of
county commissioners of the affected county enters into an agreement
relating to the construction of the commercial solar energy facility or
commercial wind energy facility as follows:
(1) For any county that has adopted zoning regulations pursuant to
K.S.A. 12-741 et seq. or 19-256 et seq., and amendments thereto, the date
of such agreement shall be the date that such county issues a:
(A) Building, zoning or development permit that authorizes the
construction of the facility pursuant to such zoning regulations; or
(B) conditional or special use permit that authorizes the construction
of the facility notwithstanding such zoning regulations; or
(2) for any county that has not adopted zoning regulations pursuant
to K.S.A. 12-741 et seq. or 19-256 et seq., and amendments thereto, the
date of such agreement shall be the date that the county enters into a
development agreement with the facility owner that authorizes the facility
owner to construct such facility and imposes conditions relating thereto.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any otherwise
enforceable restriction on the use of any tract of land for the production of
wind or solar energy whether or not such restriction is in the form of an
easement for a definite term.
(f) As used in this section:
(1) "Commercial solar energy facility" means any device or assembly
of devices and supporting facilities that has a nameplate capacity of at
least one megawatt and uses solar energy to generate electricity for the
primary purpose of wholesale or retail sale of electricity.
(2) "Commercial wind energy facility" means any device or assembly
of devices and supporting facilities that has a nameplate capacity of at
least one megawatt and uses kinetic energy from the wind to generate
electricity for the primary purpose of wholesale or retail sale of electricity.
(3) "Facility owner" means any person who has a direct ownership
interest in or who is acting as the developer or operator of a commercial
solar energy facility or commercial wind energy facility.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 58-2272 is hereby repealed.
Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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