State lawmakers could pause eminent domain proceedings under a bill that advanced Wednesday in the Iowa House of Representatives. The bill comes as the Iowa Utilities Board is set to decide if a carbon capture pipeline proposed by Summit Carbon Solutions can cross the property of unwilling landowners.
At least 21 state representatives or 11 senators could file a petition to pause the board’s consideration of a project that wants to use eminent domain. To let eminent domain proceedings continue, a supermajority of House and Senate members would have to sign an affidavit that they believe the project satisfies the public use requirement for eminent domain.
Julie Glade of Wright County, whose is resisting an eminent domain claim from Summit, said landowners have felt silenced. The IUB hearing process for the Summit pipeline included 26 days of testimony over eight weeks, but landowners who participated said they weren't treated fairly.
“It’s just important that we have a pause," she said. "There are a lot of unanswered questions that need to be answered.”
The bill would also allow affected landowners to more quickly ask a court to decide if a company’s use of eminent domain is constitutional.
Land of the Free Action lobbyist Victoria Sinclair said state regulators’ process for considering the Summit pipeline has been “grossly unfair,” and this bill would restore fairness.
“It does not hinder the ability to build pipelines, while at the same time providing landowners protections from possible abuses of power and drawn out processes that harm land values as decisions are pending," she said.
The bill advanced with a 3-0 bipartisan vote.
Rep. Charley Thomson, R-Charles City, said elected officials, rather than regulators appointed by the governor, should have the final say on the use of eminent domain because voters can hold them accountable on Election Day.
“The system has been manipulated to deprive very good Iowans of their due process rights and their constitutional rights," Thomson said. "And it’s very painful to see that.”
Rep. Megan Srinivas, D-Des Moines, also supported the bill.
“I view this bill as reinforcing the checks and balances that our constitution was really based upon," she said.
The Iowa House passed a bill last year that took a different approach to addressing Iowans' concerns about carbon capture pipelines. The Senate did not take up the bill.
“We’re going to do our best to do the right thing over here and let the chips fall where they may in the Senate," said Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison. "They can answer to the people in the election process that will be coming up.”
Summit Carbon Solutions did not comment publicly on the bill, but released a general statement about its proposed pipeline.
"Seventy-five percent of Iowa landowners along our proposed route have signed voluntary easement agreements, demonstrating widespread support by those who are directly impacted by this pipeline," said communications director Sabrina Zenor. "Summit Carbon Solutions will ensure the long-term viability of the ethanol industry, and boost land values and commodity prices.”
Summit proposes pipeline expansion
On Monday, Summit Carbon Solutions announced an agreement with North Dakota-based POET, the world’s largest biofuel producer. It would nearly double the number of ethanol facilities connected to Summit’s proposed carbon dioxide pipeline system in Iowa and five other states.
Jess Mazour, the conservation program coordinator with the Sierra Club of Iowa, said regulators should pause Summit’s permit requests.
“We need to look at all three of Summit’s proposals, because they have the Absolute Energy expansion, and now this potential POET expansion, and we need to consider this as one project and give all the landowners on all of the routes a fair shot at defending their land,” she said.
Kim Junker, a farmer in Butler County, resisted granting easement on her land for a separate pipeline project.
Pipeline supporters have argued it’s the same as other pipelines that have required eminent domain, but Junker rejects that comparison.
“With the government and all the subsidies and tax credits and things they’re throwing at them… if it wouldn’t be for that, they wouldn’t be building them in the first place," she said. "So I think it’s totally different from gas and oil pipelines.”
The Iowa Public Utilities Board is considering Summit’s initial permit request and whether to grant eminent domain. It hasn’t indicated when it will make any decisions.
