Chapter 49 — MINES AND MINING

49-421. History: L. 1968, ch. 395, § 21; Repealed, L. 1981, ch. 213, § 12; May 18. Previous | Next LEGISLATIVE COORDINATING COUNCIL General Policies 2026 Archived LCC Documents Archived LCC Meetings REVISOR OF STATUTES Archived Session Documents Archived School Finance Documents …

49-421a. Penalty for interference with performance of duties of department or its employees or agents. Except as permitted by law, any person who willfully resists, prevents, impedes or interferes with the department or any of its employees or agents in the performance of their d…

49-422. History: L. 1968, ch. 395, § 22; L. 1978, ch. 208, § 12; Repealed, L. 1981, ch. 213, § 12; May 18. Previous | Next LEGISLATIVE COORDINATING COUNCIL General Policies 2026 Archived LCC Documents Archived LCC Meetings REVISOR OF STATUTES Archived Session Documents Archived S…

49-422a. Judicial review. Any action of the secretary is subject to review in accordance with the Kansas judicial review act. History: L. 1979, ch. 169, § 19; L. 1981, ch. 213, § 7; L. 1986, ch. 318, § 74; L. 1988, ch. 192, § 26; L. 2010, ch. 17, § 95; July 1. Previous | Next LEG…

49-423. Savings clause. If any clause, paragraph, subsection or section of this act shall be held invalid or unconstitutional, it shall be conclusively presumed that the legislature would have enacted the remainder of this act without such clause, paragraph, subsection or section…

49-424. History: L. 1974, ch. 229, § 7; Repealed, L. 1978, ch. 208, § 13; May 11. Previous | Next LEGISLATIVE COORDINATING COUNCIL General Policies 2026 Archived LCC Documents Archived LCC Meetings REVISOR OF STATUTES Archived Session Documents Archived School Finance Documents U…

49-425. Interests in water resources not affected; replacement of water supply. (a) Nothing in this act shall be construed as affecting in any way the right of any person to enforce or protect, under applicable law, his or her interest in water resources affected by a surface coa…

49-426. Civil action to compel compliance with act; limitations; award of costs of litigation; rights to seek other relief not restricted; action for damages for injuries. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), any person having an interest which is or may be adversely affecte…

49-427. Coal exploration operations; exploration regulations; trade secrets or privileged commercial or financial information confidential; limitations on amount of coal removed under exploration permit. (a) Coal exploration operations which substantially disturb the natural land…

49-428. Reclamation of land having abandoned mines; plans and programs developed by secretary; abandoned mined-land fund created; priorities in development of plans and programs; abandoned mines eligible for inclusion; application to secretary of interior; lien on reclaimed land;…

49-429. Application of act to underground coal mining. Notwithstanding the general applicability of this act to surface mining, no person shall engage in underground coal mining in this state without first obtaining a permit from the secretary. The provisions of this act shall ap…

49-430. Supplemental provisions. The provisions of K.S.A. 49-405a to 49-405d, inclusive, 49-416a, 49-421a and 49-425 to 49-431, inclusive, and amendments thereto, are hereby declared to be a part of and supplemental to the mined-land conservation and reclamation act. History: L. …

49-431. Act not applicable to extraction of coal in certain circumstances. The mined-land conservation and reclamation act shall not apply to the extraction of coal as an incidental part of federal, state or local government-financed highway construction or other government-finan…

49-432. Authority of secretary and department personnel to enter property for certain purposes; entry construed as exercise of police power; studies, exploratory work. (a) If the secretary makes a finding of fact that: (1) Land or water resources have been adversely affected by p…

49-433. Acquisition of abandoned mined-land; findings required; eminent domain permitted, when; acquisition expenditures; disposition of revenue. (a) The secretary may acquire eligible abandoned mined-land by purchase or donation if the secretary finds: (1) That after restoration…

[Repealed or reserved.]

49-501. Limits on excavation of certain land; civil remedies for violations. (a) From and after the effective date of this act, land which is located outside the limits of any incorporated city and which is not zoned or is zoned for agricultural use shall not be excavated for lim…

49-511. Relocation assistance for Treece community in Cherokee county; definitions. As used in this act: (a) "Affected community" means a community, located in Cherokee county and within the boundaries of a superfund site, which the secretary of health and environment determines …

49-512. Creation of state public trust; trustees; compensation; bylaws; audit; reporting; conveyance, assignment and transfer of property; liability; abolition date. (a) A state public trust shall be created to administer relocation assistance pursuant to this act and to acquire,…

49-513. Grants to trust by secretary of health and environment. The secretary of health and environment is hereby authorized to make grants to the trust to be used to provide relocation assistance and to purchase property as provided in K.S.A. 49-514, and amendments thereto, to p…

49-514. Purchase of property and provision of moving expenses. (a) (1) For individuals who have rented and resided in their homes in the affected community continuously since March 13, 2006, and who can produce a valid rental contract or other proof of rental arrangement, the tru…

49-515. Grants to school districts. In addition to the relocation assistance pursuant to K.S.A. 49-514, and amendments thereto, the trust may provide grants to public school districts which are located within the boundaries of a federal superfund site and are adversely impacted b…

49-516. Funding of trust; application for assistance, procedure. (a) The trust may seek and expend funds from any other source, whether public or private, to further the purposes of this act. (b) The trust shall establish appropriate procedures for applications for relocation ass…

49-517. Rights not created; valuation determinations not subject to judicial review. (a) Nothing in this act shall create any property right or right in action. The courts shall have no jurisdiction to entertain any action against the trust, the secretary or department of health …

49-601. Citation of act. This act* shall be known and may be cited as the surface-mining land conservation and reclamation act. History: L. 1994, ch. 197, § 1; July 1. Revisor's Note: * The phrase "This act" means 49-601 through 49-624. Previous | Next LEGISLATIVE COORDINATING CO…

49-602. Policy statement. It is the policy of this state to provide for the reclamation and conservation of land affected by surface mining and thereby to preserve natural resources, protect and perpetuate the taxable value of property, and protect and promote the health, safety …

49-603. Definitions. As used in this act*: (a) "Director" means the executive director of the division or a designee. (b) "Affected land" means the area of land from which overburden has been removed or upon which overburden has been deposited, or both, but shall not include crus…

49-604. Application of act. K.S.A. 49-602 through 49-624 shall not apply to: (a) Affected land mined prior to the effective date of this act and shall apply only to those areas of land affected after the effective date of this act; (b) in any way affect or control the stockpiling…

49-605. License required; application and fees; duration of license; validity, when. (a) No person shall engage in surface mining or operation of an underground mine or mines, as defined by this act, without first obtaining a license from the director. (b) Licenses shall be issue…

49-606. Denial, suspension or revocation of license; proceedings. (a) The secretary, at the request of the director, may deny issuance or renewal of a license for repeated or willful violation of the provisions of this act or for failure to comply with any provision of a reclamat…

49-607. Registration of mining site, when; application, contents; fees; signing of site; unlawful acts. (a) At least 30 calendar days before commencement of mining or removal of overburden at a surface mining site not previously registered, an operator engaged in surface mining i…

49-608. Bond or security to accompany registration application; registration of site and authority to operate mine. The application for registration shall be accompanied by a bond or security conforming to the requirements of K.S.A. 49-615 and 49-616. After ascertaining that the …

49-609. Amendment or cancellation of registration, applications; procedures and requirements. (a) An operator may at any time apply for amendment or cancellation of registration of any site. The application for amendment or cancellation of registration shall be submitted by the o…

49-610. Transfer of site control responsibility; application. (a) If control of an active site or the right to conduct any future mining at an inactive site is acquired by an operator other than the operator holding authorization to conduct surface mining on the site, the new ope…

49-611. Conduct and activities required after completion of mining operations; release of bond or security. (a) An operator authorized under this act to operate a mine, after completion of mining operations and within the time specified in K.S.A. 49-613, and amendments thereto, s…

49-612. Periodic reports, contents; report after completion of mining operation. (a) An operator shall file with the director a periodic report for each site under registration. The report shall make reference to the most recent registration of the mine site and shall show: (1) T…

49-613. Reclamation of affected lands, when; extensions; inspections; approval; release of bond or security. (a) An operator shall reclaim affected lands within a period not to exceed three years after the filing of the report required under K.S.A. 49-612(b), and amendments there…

49-614. Extension of time for reclamation of affected lands. The time for completion of reclamation work may be extended upon presentation by the operator of evidence satisfactory to the director that reclamation of affected land cannot be completed within the time specified by K…

49-615. Bonds or other security; requirements; exceptions. (a) A bond filed with the director by an operator pursuant to this act shall be in a form prescribed by the director, payable to the state of Kansas, and conditioned upon faithful performance by the operator of all requir…

49-616. Single bond for multiple sites. Any operator who registers with the director two or more surface mining sites may elect, at the time the second or any subsequent site is registered, to post a single bond in lieu of separate bonds on each site. The amount of a single bond …

49-617. Cancellation of bonds by surety prohibited; substitute bond required, when. No bond filed with the director by an operator pursuant to this act may be canceled by the surety without at least 90 days' notice to the director. If the license to do business in Kansas of any s…

49-618. Inspections by director of sites; notice of violations; corrective measures. (a) The director or the director's designee, when accompanied by the operator or operator's designee during regular business hours, may inspect any lands on which any operator is authorized to op…

49-619. Violation hearings, conduct; bond forfeiture proceedings; duties of attorney general. Upon receipt of the referral, the commission shall schedule a hearing on the violation by the operator within 30 days after the date of receipt. The commission, upon written request, sha…

49-620. Bond forfeiture proceedings; satisfaction of operator obligation to reclaim affected lands; use of proceeds to reclaim affected lands. Once an order issued pursuant to this act becomes a final order, the secretary, upon request of the director, shall institute proceedings…

49-621. Civil penalties; amount; procedures. (a) The secretary, upon finding that the operator has failed to comply with any provision of this act, any provision of a reclamation plan or any condition of a license or site registration with which the operator is required to comply…

49-622. Land reclamation fund established; deposits and expenditures. (a) There is hereby created within the state treasury the land reclamation fund. (b) The director shall remit all moneys collected from fees and civil penalties imposed pursuant to this act to the state treasur…

49-623. Rules and regulations; fee amount determination. (a) The secretary, with the approval of the commission, shall adopt such rules and regulations as necessary to administer and enforce the provisions of this act. (b) The director shall determine annually the amount necessar…

49-624. Legal services for commission to enforce and administer act. The commission may request from the attorney general such legal services as necessary to enforce and administer this act. The commission may employ such other attorneys as necessary for such purpose, but all exp…

49-625. Natural resource development districts; application for creation, modification or dissolution; procedure; information required, notice to persons seeking to develop or make improvements in district; resolution of city or county approving or disapproving. (a) As used in th…