CHAPTER 2 Substitute for SENATE BILL No. 243 An Act concerning electric generation facility siting; amending K.S.A. 66-1,159, 66-1,160,
66-1,161, 66-1,162, 66-1,169a and 66-1,169c and K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 66-1,158 and 66-
1,169b and repealing the existing sections.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:

      Section  1. K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 66-1,158 is hereby amended to read as
follows: 66-1,158. As used in this act, the following words and phrases
shall have the meanings ascribed to them herein:

      (a) ``Commission'' means the state corporation commission;.

      (b) ``Electric generation facility'' means any physical plant used for
the production or generation of electricity or electric power except that
the remodeling, reconditioning or retrofitting of any existing physical
plant shall not be deemed an addition to an electric generation facility.
Such term shall not include a facility or addition to a facility proposed to
be located outside this state if: (1) The need for the facility or addition
and the reasonableness of its proposed siting is subject to review by the
utility regulatory authority of that state; (2) less than 10% of the retail
customers on the electric system intended to be served by such facility
or addition are located in this state; and (3) such retail customers located
in this state number no more than 15,000;

      (c) (b) ``Electric utility'' means every public utility, as defined by
K.S.A. 66-104, and amendments thereto, which owns, controls, operates
or manages any equipment, plant or generating machinery for the pro-
duction, transmission, delivery or furnishing, of electricity or electric
power;.

      (d) (c) ``Landowner'' means any person having an estate or interest
in any land, which land is proposed to be acquired by an electric utility
in connection with the construction, operation and maintenance of an
electric a nuclear generation facility or an addition to an electric a nuclear
generation facility;.

      (d)  (1) ``Nuclear generation facility or addition to a nuclear genera-
tion facility'' means: (A) Any physical plant utilizing nuclear energy as
the primary fuel for the production or generation of electricity or electric
power; or (B) any addition of nuclear generation capacity to an existing
generation facility.

      (2) ``Nuclear generation facility or addition to a nuclear generation
facility'' does not include: (A) Remodeling, reconditioning or retrofitting
of an existing nuclear plant; (B) construction of nonnuclear generation
capacity at the site of an existing nuclear plant; or (C) any facility or
addition to a facility proposed to be located outside this state if: (i) The
need for the facility or addition and the reasonableness of its proposed
siting is subject to review by the utility regulatory authority of that state;
(ii) less than 10% of the retail customers on the electric system intended
to be served by such facility or addition are located in this state; and (iii)
such retail customers located in this state number no more than 15,000.

      (e) ``Party'' means any landowner, electric utility, governmental board
or agency, or any other person allowed to intervene in any proceeding
under this act;.

      (f) ``Person'' means any individual, partnership, corporation or other
association of persons.

      Sec.  2. K.S.A. 66-1,159 is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,159. No electric utility may begin site preparation for or construction
of an electric a nuclear generation facility or an addition to an electric a
nuclear generation facility or exercise the right of eminent domain to
acquire any land in connection with site preparation for or construction
of any such facility or addition thereto, without first acquiring a permit
from the commission. Whenever any such electric utility desires to obtain
such a permit, it the utility shall file an application with the commission,
setting forth therein that it the utility proposes to construct an electric a
nuclear generation facility or an addition to an electric a nuclear gener-
ation facility and specifying the description and the total number of acres
of land that such utility contemplates is needed in connection with the
construction, operation and maintenance of such facility or addition
thereto. Also, the electric utility shall file with the application documents
and plans which indicate the total planned utilization of a proposed lo-
cation for electric generation purposes and documents and plans for util-
ization of an alternative location or locations. Such documents and plans
with respect to alternative locations shall not be required for additions to
existing electric nuclear generation facilities. In addition, the electric util-
ity shall file with the application such documents pertaining to the con-
struction, operation and maintenance of the proposed electric generation
facility or addition to the electric generation facility and such other mat-
ters deemed relevant thereto as may be required by rules and regulations
of the commission. Thereupon, the commission shall fix a time for a public
hearing on such application, which shall be not less than 30 nor more
than 180 days from the date the application was filed and shall be con-
ducted in accordance with the provisions of the Kansas administrative
procedure act, to determine the necessity for the proposed electric gen-
eration facility or addition to an electric generation facility and the most
reasonable location and size of the proposed electric generation facility
or addition to an electric generation facility. The commission shall fix the
place for hearing, which may be in the county in which is located the
major portion of the land which has been or is proposed to be acquired
in connection with the construction, operation and maintenance of the
proposed electric generation facility or the addition to the electric gen-
eration facility or addition. Such hearing may be held in Topeka.

      Sec.  3. K.S.A. 66-1,160 is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,160. The commission shall publish notice of the time, place and subject
matter of such hearing in newspapers having general circulation in the
counties in which is located any portion of the land which has been or is
proposed to be acquired in connection with the construction, operation
and maintenance of the proposed electric nuclear generation facility or
addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility once each week for
three consecutive weeks, the last publication to be not less than five days
before such hearing date. Written notice of such hearing and a copy of
the application also shall be served not less than twenty (20) 20 days prior
to the hearing date upon all landowners, as shown by the files, records
and indexes of the register of deeds of the county in which such land is
located, and the chief administrative officer, or any person designated by
such officer to receive such service, of the department of economic de-
velopment, state board commerce, department of agriculture, state water
resources board Kansas water office, department of health and environ-
ment, department of transportation, state geological survey, Kansas en-
ergy office and the and division of the budget of the department of ad-
ministration. In addition to the information contained in the published
notice, such written notice shall state that the electric utility has filed the
application and supporting documents as required by K.S.A. 66-1,159 and
amendments thereto, and that such application and supporting documents
are available in the office of the commission for examination and copying
by the person or board or agency desiring copies thereof.

      Sec.  4. K.S.A. 66-1,161 is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,161. The commission shall appoint an attorney to represent the interests
of the landowners at the hearing and shall allow a reasonable attorney's
fee, which shall be taxed as part of the costs thereof. Landowners, at their
own expense, may retain counsel to represent their individual interests at
such hearing. The chief administrative officer, or any other person or
persons designated by such officer, of any governmental board or agency
affected by the siting of the proposed electric nuclear generation facility
or addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility shall be deemed to
meet the requirement for intervention contained in subsection (a)(2) of
K.S.A. 77-521 and amendments thereto. Any owner or lessee of land
whose estate or interest in such land would not be acquired by the electric
utility but would be affected in some other manner by the construction,
operation or maintenance of the electric generation facility or addition to
an electric generation facility may petition for intervention in accordance
with the provisions of K.S.A. 77-521 and amendments thereto.

      Sec.  5. K.S.A. 66-1,162 is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,162. Except as otherwise provided in this act, the rules and regulations
adopted by the commission pursuant to K.S.A. 66-106 and amendments
thereto to govern the commission's proceedings shall be applicable to any
proceeding before the commission under this act. The electric utility shall
proceed with the introduction of evidence of the necessity for the pro-
posed electric nuclear generation facility or addition to an electric a nu-
clear generation facility and of the reasonableness of the proposed loca-
tion and size of the electric generation facility or addition to an electric
generation facility. The burden of proof on any such matter shall be upon
the electric utility and shall be established by a preponderance of the
evidence. All parties present or represented by counsel at the hearing
shall have an opportunity to be heard and the right to cross-examine any
witness appearing before the commission at the hearing. The commission
shall cause a transcript to be made of the hearing. All costs of any hearing
shall be taxed against the electric utility. The hearing and all parties' ar-
guments shall be completed within 90 days after the commencement
thereof. At any time after the commencement of the hearing, the electric
utility may withdraw its application for the permit required by K.S.A. 66-
1,159 and amendments thereto.

      The commission shall make findings of fact and file such findings with
its decision to grant, grant conditioned by such findings or withhold the
permit applied for, except that whenever approval of applications are
pending with or must be obtained from any state regulatory authority
which relate to the operation of any such facility or addition to a facility,
the commission shall postpone its decision until proof of the approval or
disapproval of any such application is received. In any case where a state
regulatory authority cannot render final approval of any such application
until the facility or addition to a facility is in actual operation, the com-
mission shall accept as proof of approval or disapproval the state regula-
tory authority's certification of probable acceptability or unacceptability
of an application. Prior to making its determination with respect to the
most reasonable location and size of a proposed electric nuclear genera-
tion facility or addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility, the
commission shall make its determination of whether or not a necessity
exists for the electric generation capacity of a proposed electric generation
facility or addition to an electric generation a facility. In addition to any
other consideration deemed necessary in making such determination, the
commission shall consider and make determinations on the following fac-
tors: (1) Whether or not the electric generating capacity of the proposed
facility or addition to a facility meets or contributes to the meeting of the
electrical energy needs of the people of this state considering the probable
future statewide electrical energy needs thereof; and (2) whether or not
available electrical generating capacity exists within the state that is ca-
pable of being distributed economically, reliably, technically and environ-
mentally. Whenever the commission determines that a necessity exists for
electric generation capacity to be provided by a proposed electric nuclear
generation facility or addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility,
it the commission shall make its determinations with respect to the most
reasonable size and location of any such facility or addition to a facility.
In addition to any other consideration deemed necessary in making a
determination with respect to the size of a proposed facility or addition
to a facility, the commission shall consider the electric utility's total
planned utilization of a proposed location for electric generation purposes
as it relates to the necessity found by the commission for additional elec-
tric generating capacity in the state. In addition to any other consideration
deemed necessary in making a determination with respect to the most
reasonable location of a proposed facility or addition to a facility, the
commission shall consider the availability of natural resources necessary
in the operation of a proposed facility or addition to a facility as the same
relates to each alternative location submitted by the electric utility as
required by the provisions of K.S.A. 66-1,159 and amendments thereto.
The location of the existing nuclear generation facility shall be the most
reasonable location for any addition to such facility. Upon a determination
that a necessity exists for the proposed electric nuclear generation facility
or the addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility and that the
proposed location and size of such facility or addition thereto are the most
reasonable, the commission shall issue to the electric utility a permit to
construct such facility or addition thereto, except that the commission
may condition such permit with respect to the location and size of the
proposed electric nuclear generation facility or addition to an electric a
nuclear generation facility to provide for an alternate location or size, or
both, thereof, but in no case shall the commission provide for a size larger
than that applied for. Upon the issuance of such permit, no local ordi-
nance, resolution or regulation shall prohibit the construction of the elec-
tric nuclear generation facility or addition to an electric a nuclear gen-
eration facility, and the electric utility may proceed with such facility or
addition thereto notwithstanding any requirement to obtain any building
permit under any local zoning ordinance, resolution or regulation.

      Sec.  6. K.S.A. 66-1,169a is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,169a. In order to more effectively administer the provisions of the Kan-
sas electric nuclear generation facility siting act with respect to determin-
ing whether or not a necessity exists for a proposed electric nuclear
generation facility or addition to an electric a nuclear generation facility,
the commission shall compile and maintain a comprehensive statewide
electric generation capacity forecast. In compiling and maintaining said
forecast, the commission may hold such hearings deemed necessary. The
proceedings of any such hearing shall be governed by the rules and reg-
ulations adopted by the commission pursuant to K.S.A. 66-106 and
amendments thereto. For the purposes of this section, every municipally
owned or operated electric utility and every electric utility operating
wholly and solely within the legal boundaries of any municipality and
within three (3) miles thereof shall furnish to the commission such infor-
mation as to electric generation capacity as the commission may require.

      Sec.  7. K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 66-1,169b is hereby amended to read as
follows: 66-1,169b. (a) The provisions of the Kansas electric generation
facility siting act shall not apply to: (1) Unit number 3 of the Jeffrey
Energy Center; or (2) electric generation facilities that have a capacity of
100 megawatts or less and convert wind, solar, biomass, landfill gas or
any other renewable source of energy.

      (b) With regard to a facility proposed to be located outside this state,
K.S.A. 66-1,160 and 66-1,161, and amendments thereto, shall not apply
and, for purposes of determining the most reasonable location of a pro-
posed facility or addition to a facility pursuant to K.S.A. 66-1,162, and
amendments thereto, the commission shall consider only the effects on
system reliability and economic efficiency.

      Sec.  8. K.S.A. 66-1,169c is hereby amended to read as follows: 66-
1,169c. This act and the act of which it is amendatory shall be known and
cited as the ``Kansas electric nuclear generation facility siting act.''

      New Sec.  9. Any electric generation facility, or addition thereto, for
which a permit application was pending under the electric generation
facility siting act as it existed immediately before the effective date of this
act shall be required to have such permit only if the facility is required
to have a permit pursuant to this act.

 Sec.  10. K.S.A. 66-1,159, 66-1,160, 66-1,161, 66-1,162, 66-1,169a
and 66-1,169c and K.S.A. 1999 Supp. 66-1,158 and 66-1,169b are hereby
repealed.

 Sec.  11. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the Kansas register.

Approved February 15, 2000.
 Published in the Kansas Register February 24, 2000.
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