Allow data modeling for mine bond release

****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 1 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR DATA MODELING WHEN RELEASING A STRIP OR UNDERGROUND MINE
PERFORMANCE BOND; PROVIDING FOR CONTINGENT VOIDNESS; PROVIDING RULEMAKING
AUTHORITY; AMENDING SECTION 82-4-232, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:
Section 1. Section 82-4-232, MCA, is amended to read:
"82-4-232. Area mining required -- bond -- alternative plan. (1) (a) Area strip mining, a method of
operation that does not produce a bench or fill bench, is required where strip mining is proposed. The area of
land affected must be backfilled and graded to the approximate original contour of the land. However:
(i) consistent with the adjacent unmined landscape elements, the operator may propose and the
department may approve regraded topography gentler than premining topography in order to enhance the
postmining land use and develop a postmining landscape that will provide greater moisture retention, greater
stability, and reduced soil losses from runoff and erosion;
(ii) postmining slopes may not exceed the angle of repose or lesser slope as is necessary to
achieve a long-term static safety factor of 1.3 or greater and to prevent slides;
(iii) permanent impoundments may be approved if they are suitable for the postmining land use
and otherwise meet the requirements of this part, as provided by department rules; and
(iv) reclaimed topography must be suitable for the approved postmining land use.
(b) Spoil from the first cut is not required to be transported to the last cut if highwalls are
eliminated, box cut spoils are graded to blend in with the surrounding terrain, and the approximate original
contour of the land is achieved.
(c) When directed by the department, the operator shall construct in the final grading diversion
ditches, depressions, or terraces that will accumulate or control the water runoff.
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 2 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
(2) In addition to the backfilling and grading requirements, the operator's method of operation on
steep slopes may be regulated and controlled according to rules adopted by the department. These rules may
require any measure to accomplish the purpose of this part.
(3) For coal mining on prime farmlands, the department shall establish by rule specifications for
soil removal, storage, replacement, and reconstruction, and the operator must as a minimum be required to:
(a) (i) segregate the A horizon of the natural soil, except when it can be shown that other available
soil materials will create a final soil having a greater productive capacity; and
(ii) if not used immediately, stockpile this material separately from other spoil and provide needed
protection from wind and water erosion or contamination by other acid or toxic material;
(b) (i) segregate the B horizon of the natural soil, or underlying C horizon or other strata, or a
combination of the horizons or other strata that are shown to be both texturally and chemically suitable for plant
growth and that can be shown to be equally or more favorable for plant growth than the B horizon in sufficient
quantities to create in the regraded final soil a root zone of comparable depth and quality to that that existed in
the natural soil; and
(ii) if not used immediately, stockpile this material separately from other spoil and provide needed
protection from wind and water erosion or contamination by acid or toxic material;
(c) replace and regrade the root zone material described in subsection (3)(b) with proper
compaction and uniform depth over the regraded spoil material; and
(d) redistribute and grade in a uniform manner the surface soil horizon described in subsection
(3)(a).
(4) All available topsoil must be removed in a separate layer, guarded from erosion and pollution,
and kept in a condition so that it can sustain vegetation of at least the quality and variety it sustained prior to
removal. However, the operator shall accord substantially the same treatment to any subsurface deposit of
material that is capable, as determined by the department, of supporting surface vegetation virtually as well as
the present topsoil. After the operation has been backfilled and graded, the topsoil or the best available
subsurface deposit of material that is best able to support vegetation must be returned as the top layer.
(5) As determined by rules of the department, time limits must be established requiring backfilling,
grading, subsidence stabilization, water control, highwall reduction, topsoiling, planting, and revegetation to be
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 3 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
kept current. All backfilling, subsidence stabilization, sealing, grading, and topsoiling must be completed before
necessary equipment is moved from the operation.
(6) (a) (i) The permittee may file an application with the department for the release of all or part of
a performance bond. The application must contain a proposed public notice of the precise location of the land
affected, the number of acres for which bond release is sought, the permit and the date approved, the amount
of the bond filed and the portion sought to be released, the type and appropriate dates of reclamation work
performed, and a description of the results achieved as they relate to the permittee's approved reclamation
plan. The description of the results may include other information or methods, including predictive modeling,
which may be used in conjunction with monitoring data compiled for the performance bond release application
to demonstrate compliance with the approved reclamation plan.
(ii) In addition, as As part of any bond release application, the permittee shall submit copies of
letters that the permittee has sent to adjoining property owners, local governmental bodies, planning agencies,
and sewage and water treatment authorities or water companies in the locality of the operation, notifying them
of the permittee's intention to seek release from the bond.
(b) The department shall determine whether the application is administratively complete. An
application is administratively complete if it includes:
(i) the location and acreage of the land for which bond release is sought;
(ii) the amount of bond release sought;
(iii) a description of the completed reclamation, including the date of performance;
(iv) a discussion of how the results of the completed reclamation satisfy the requirements of the
approved reclamation plan, which may include a description of other information or methods, including
predictive modeling, which may be used in conjunction with monitoring data for the purposes of demonstrating
compliance with the approved reclamation plan; and
(v) information required by rules implementing this part.
(c) The department shall notify the applicant in writing of its determination no later than 60 days
after submittal of the application. If the department determines that the application is not administratively
complete, it shall specify in the notice those items that the application must address. After an application for
bond release has been determined to be administratively complete by the department, the permittee shall
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 4 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
publish a public notice that has been approved as to form and content by the department at least once a week
for 4 successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the mining operation.
(d) Any person with a valid legal interest that might be adversely affected by the release of a bond
or the responsible officer or head of any federal, state, or local governmental agency that has jurisdiction by law
or special expertise with respect to any environmental, social, or economic impact involved in the operation or
is authorized to develop and enforce environmental standards with respect to the operation may file written
objections to the proposed release of bond to the department within 30 days after the last publication of the
notice. If written objections are filed and a hearing is requested, the department shall hold a public hearing in
the locality of the operation proposed for bond release or in Helena, at the option of the objector, within 30 days
of the request for hearing. The department shall inform the interested parties of the time and place of the
hearing. The date, time, and location of the public hearing must be advertised by the department in a
newspaper of general circulation in the locality for 2 consecutive weeks. Within 30 days after the hearing, the
department shall notify the permittee and the objector of its final decision.
(e) Without prejudice to the rights of the objector or the permittee or the responsibilities of the
department pursuant to this section, the department may establish an informal conference to resolve written
objections.
(f) For the purpose of the hearing under subsection (6)(d), the department may administer oaths,
subpoena witnesses or written or printed materials, compel the attendance of witnesses or the production of
materials, and take evidence, including but not limited to conducting inspections of the land affected and other
operations carried on by the permittee in the general vicinity. A verbatim record of each public hearing required
by this section must be made, and a transcript must be made available on the motion of any party or by order of
the department.
(g) If the applicant significantly modifies the application after the application has been determined
to be administratively complete, the department shall conduct a new review, including an administrative
completeness determination. A significant modification includes but is not limited to:
(i) the notification of an additional property owner, local governmental body, planning agency, or
sewage and water treatment authority of the permittee's intention to seek a bond release;
(ii) a material increase in the acreage for which a bond release is sought or in the amount of bond
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 5 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
release sought; or
(iii) a material change in the reclamation for which a bond release is sought or the information used
to evaluate the results of that reclamation.
(h) The department shall, within 30 days of determining that the application is administratively
complete or as soon as weather permits, conduct an inspection and evaluation of the reclamation work
involved. In the evaluation, the department shall consider, among other things, the degree of difficulty in
completing any remaining reclamation, whether pollution of surface and subsurface water is occurring, the
probability of continuance or future occurrence of the pollution, and the estimated cost of abating the pollution.
Other information or methods acceptable to the department, including predictive modeling, may be used in
conjunction with monitoring data for the purposes of the evaluation and to demonstrate compliance with the
approved reclamation plan.
(i) The department shall review each administratively complete application to determine the
acceptability of the application. A complete application is acceptable if the application is in compliance with all
of the applicable requirements of this part, the rules adopted under this part, and the permit. Other information
or methods acceptable to the department, including predictive modeling, may be used in conjunction with
monitoring data for the purposes of determining the acceptability of the application and demonstrating
compliance with the approved reclamation plan.
(j) (i) The department shall notify the applicant in writing regarding the acceptability of the
application no later than 60 days from the date of the inspection.
(ii) If the department determines that the application is not acceptable, it shall specify in the notice
those items that the application must address.
(iii) If the applicant revises the application in response to a notice of unacceptability, the
department shall review the revised application and notify the applicant in writing within 60 days of the date of
receipt as to whether the revised application is acceptable.
(iv) If the revision constitutes a significant modification, the department shall conduct a new review,
beginning with an administrative completeness determination.
(v) A significant modification includes but is not limited to:
(A) the notification of an additional property owner, local governmental body, planning agency, or
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 6 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
sewage and water treatment authority of the permittee's intention to seek a bond release;
(B) a material increase in the acreage for which a bond release is sought or the amount of bond
release sought; or
(C) a material change in the reclamation for which a bond release is sought or the information used
to evaluate the results of that reclamation.
(k) At the request of the permittee, and for a designated area within the permit boundary within or
across affected drainage basins, the department shall release the bond in whole or in part if the reclamation
covered by the bond or portion of the bond has been accomplished as required by this part according to the
following schedule:
(i) When the permittee completes the plugging, backfilling, regrading, and drainage control of a
bonded area in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, the department shall release 60% of the bond
or collateral for the designated area within the permit boundary.
(ii) The department shall release a portion of the bond for the designated area that would be
sufficient for a third party to cover the cost of replacing soil after revegetation and soil stability have been
established in the designated area in accordance with the approved reclamation plan. Whenever a silt dam is to
be retained as a permanent impoundment, that portion of the bond may also be released under this subsection
(6)(k)(ii) if provisions for sound future maintenance by the operator or the landowner are made with the
department. Other information or methods acceptable to the department, including predictive modeling, may be
used in conjunction with monitoring data for the purposes of determining soil replacement costs or silt dam
maintenance and demonstrating compliance with the approved reclamation plan.
(iii) Except as provided in subsection (6)(k)(iv), in accordance with the requirements of 82-4-235,
upon expiration of the period specified for responsibility, and after the designated area has been successfully
revegetated, the remaining total of the bond required for a third party to establish vegetation must be released
for the designated area.
(iv) The department shall retain a portion of the bond sufficient for a third party to fully satisfy
remaining permit conditions if:
(A) the disturbed areas eligible for release are contributing suspended solids to streamflow or
runoff outside of the affected drainage basin or permit boundary in excess of the requirements of 82-4-
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 7 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
231(10)(k), as demonstrated by either sediment sampling or predictive modeling as approved by the
department;
(B) soil productivity for prime farmlands eligible for release is not returned to equivalent levels of
yield as nonmined land of the same soil type in the surrounding area under equivalent management practices,
as determined from the soil survey; or
(C) the permittee has not successfully completed all reclamation activities, including water
replacement, in the designated area.
(v) On request by the permittee, the department shall release all final bonds when, in accordance
with the requirements of this chapter, the permittee successfully completes all prospecting, mining, and
reclamation activities within the designated area.
(l) If the department disapproves the application for release of the bond or a portion of the bond, it
shall:
(i) provide to the permittee detailed written findings demonstrating that the reclamation covered by
the bond or a portion of the bond has not been accomplished as required by this part; and
(ii) recommend corrective actions necessary to secure the release and allowing opportunity for a
public hearing.
(m) When an application for total or partial bond release is filed with the department, it shall notify
the municipality or county in which a prospecting or mining operation is located by certified mail at least 30 days
prior to the release of all or a portion of the bond.
(7) All disturbed areas must be reclaimed in a timely manner to conditions that are capable of
supporting the land uses that they were capable of supporting prior to any mining or to higher or better uses as
approved pursuant to subsection (8).
(8) (a) An operator may propose a higher or better use as an alternative postmining land use. If the
landowner is not the operator, the operator shall submit written documentation of the concurrence of the
landowner or the land management agency with jurisdiction over the land. The department may approve the
proposed alternative postmining land use only if it meets all of the following criteria:
(i) There is a reasonable likelihood for achievement of the alternative land use.
(ii) The alternative land use does not present any actual or probable hazard to the public health or
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 8 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
safety or any threat of water diminution or pollution.
(iii) The alternative land use will not:
(A) be impractical or unreasonable;
(B) be inconsistent with applicable land use policies or plans;
(C) involve unreasonable delay in implementation; or
(D) cause or contribute to violation of federal, state, or local law.
(b) As used in this section, the term "landowner" includes a person who has sold the surface
estate to the operator with an option to repurchase the surface estate after mining and reclamation are
complete.
(9) The reclamation plan must incorporate appropriate wildlife habitat enhancement features that
are integrated with cropland, grazing land, pastureland, land occasionally cut for hay, or other uses in order to
enhance habitat diversity, with emphasis on big game animals, game birds, and threatened and endangered
species that have been documented to live in the area of land affected, and to enhance wetlands and riparian
areas along rivers and streams and bordering ponds and lakes. Incorporation of wildlife habitat enhancement
features does not constitute a change in land use to fish and wildlife habitat and may not interfere with the
designated land use.
(10) Facilities existing prior to mining, including but not limited to public roads, utility lines, railroads,
or pipelines, may be replaced as part of the reclamation plan."
Section 2. Severability. If a part of [this act] is invalid, all valid parts that are severable from the
invalid part remain in effect. If a part of [this act] is invalid in one or more of its applications, the part remains in
effect in all valid applications that are severable from the invalid applications.
Section 3. Contingent voidness. (1) If the provisions of [this act] are disapproved by the United
States secretary of the interior pursuant to 30 CFR 732, then [this act] is void.
(2) Within 15 days of the effective date of a disapproval pursuant to subsection (1), the department
of environmental quality shall notify the code commissioner, certifying that the disapproval has occurred.
****
69th Legislature 2025 HB 616
- 9 - Authorized Print Version – HB 616
ENROLLED BILL
Section 4. Effective date. [This act] is effective on passage and approval.
- END -
I hereby certify that the within bill,
HB 616, originated in the House.
___________________________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
___________________________________________
Speaker of the House
Signed this _______________________________day
of____________________________________, 2025.
___________________________________________
President of the Senate
Signed this _______________________________day
of____________________________________, 2025.
HOUSE BILL NO. 616
INTRODUCED BY S. GIST, W. GALT, G. OVERSTREET, D. HARVEY, G. LAMMERS, S. FITZPATRICK, R.
MINER, J. SCHILLINGER, B. USHER, G. PARRY, B. PHALEN
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR DATA MODELING WHEN RELEASING A STRIP OR UNDERGROUND MINE
PERFORMANCE BOND; PROVIDING FOR CONTINGENT VOIDNESS; PROVIDING RULEMAKING
AUTHORITY; AMENDING SECTION 82-4-232, MCA; AND PROVIDING AN IMMEDIATE EFFECTIVE DATE.