Illinois Administrative Code › Title 8 - AGRICULTURE AND ANIMALS › Part 700 - FARMLAND PRESERVATION ACT › Appendix J - Illinois Commerce Commission's Agricultural Land Preservation Policy Statement and Cooperative Working Agreement

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
PREFACE
On August 19, 1982, Governor James R. Thompson signed into law
				the Farmland Preservation Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1985, ch. 5, par. 1301 et seq.),
				which required the Illinois Commerce Commission to develop an Agricultural Land
				Preservation Policy Statement and Cooperative Working Agreement. The following
				Policy Statement and Working Agreement are submitted in accordance with the
				Act.
POLICY
Recognizing that the objectives of the Illinois Commerce
				Commission must be in accord with the overall goals of the state and of the
				requirements of The Public Utilities Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1985, ch. 1112/3,
				par. 8-406 and 8-509) and the Illinois Commercial Transportation Law (Ill. Rev.
				Stat. 1985, ch. 95½, par. 18c-8201 and 18c-8401), it is the policy of
				the Illinois Commerce Commission, in carrying out its regulatory
				responsibilities, to preserve Illinois farmlands to the extent practicable and
				feasible, giving appropriate consideration to the state's social, economic,
				conservation, aesthetic, environmental and energy goals, all subject to court
				review for compliance with the Act.
BACKGROUND AND PERSPECTIVE
Under Section 8-406 of The Public Utilities Act or Section
				18c-8201 of the Illinois Commercial Transportation Law, no utility or common
				carrier by pipeline may begin construction of any new plant, equipment or
				facility, which is not in substitution of and/or addition to or extension of
				existing facilities, without first obtaining a Certificate of Public
				Convenience and Necessity from the Commission. Under Section 8-509 of The
				Public Utilities Act or Section 18c-8401 of the Illinois Commercial
				Transportation Law, a utility or common carrier by pipeline may take or damage
				private property in a manner provided by the law of eminent domain when
				directed by the Commission to construct facilities requiring the use of private
				property. The Illinois Commerce Commission does not acquire any land on its own
				behalf for capital improvements.
IMPACT MITIGATION
Pursuant to the provisions of The Public Utilities Act and the
				Illinois Commercial Transportation Law, the Illinois Commerce Commission has
				established rules under which utilities and common carriers by pipeline may
				seek Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity. Included within these
				rules are notice requirements to interested parties. The Commission also
				conditions certificates granted for cross-country electric transmission lines
				so as to limit the impact upon farming operations to a minimum level.
Notice of all certificate applications filed by fixed utilities
				and common carriers by pipeline will be provided to the Illinois Department of
				Agriculture by mailing a copy of the Daily Filing Reports to the Department.
				Upon request by the Department to the Chief Clerk's Office, the Chief Clerk's
				Office will mail notice of hearings and other activities with respect to any
				filed certificate application proceeding pending before the Commission. The
				Department of Agriculture may, at its option, seek to be a party to any
				certificate proceeding.
If a project is to be located outside the corporate boundaries
				of a municipality and will require the purchase of an easement or land by fee
				simple acquisition, evidence to be presented by the utility or common carrier
				by pipeline in a certificate application shall include the following
				information, provided a site-specific project (e.g., power generating plant)
				will require more than 1 acre of land, or a linear-type project (e.g., electric
				transmission line) will require 3 acres or more of land per project
				mile:
A) For linear-type projects:
1) What length will be placed entirely on public
				right-of-way?
2) What length will be placed in whole or in part
				upon privately owned land?
3) What is the easement width needed?
B) On privately owned land in which easements will be
				purchased:
1) What is the location of easements which must be
				purchased, as indicated on a general county highway map(s)?
2) What is the current land use listed by acreage of
				crop land, pasture land, wooded or brushy land, or other land?
C) On privately owned land to be purchased via fee simple
				acquisition:
1) What is the location of the land which must be
				purchased via fee simple acquisition as indicated on a general county highway
				map(s)?
2) What is the current land use listed by acreage of
				crop land, pasture land, wooded or brushy land, or other land?
3) What is the proposed use of the land by the
				utility?
D) From how many private land owners must land be
				purchased:
1) Via easements?
2) Via fee simple acquisition?
E) For underground facilities:
1) How many inches of top cover will be placed above
				the top of the buried facility?
2) To what extent will the utility seek to discover
				field title damaged by construction operations anywhere within the construction
				easement and additional working rights area?
3) What method will be employed in repairing damaged
				field tile?
F) For electric transmission/distribution projects utilizing
				above-ground structures:
1) What type of support structures are
				proposed?
2) How many support structures will be placed on
				each of the following land uses?
a) Crop land.
b) Pasture land.
c) Wooded or brushy land.
d) Existing utilization lines (field borders, farm
				roads, grassed waterways, etc.).
e) Public right-of-way.
f) Other lands.
3) If the electric line parallels public
				right-of-way, but is to be placed on private land, how far from the edge of the
				right-of-way will the center line of the support structure be placed?
4) To what extent will the utility seek to discover
				field tile damaged by construction operations anywhere within the construction
				easement and working rights area, and how will damaged tile be repaired?
G) On lands disturbed by construction, what methods will the
				utility employ to:
1) Restore soil productivity, including the
				alleviation of soil compaction, on crop land, pasture land, or wooded or brushy
				land once construction has been completed?
2) Restore surface drainage and repair damaged
				conservation practices once construction has been completed?
3) Control excessive erosion during and after
				construction?
4) Ensure that all construction debris is removed
				once construction has been completed?
H) What is the responsibility of the utility to correct or
				compensate landowners for damages to private property or crops caused by
				construction and future maintenance or repair?
IMPACT STATEMENT
Pursuant to Section 8-406(b) of The Public Utilities Act, "no
				public utility shall begin the construction of any new plant, equipment,
				property or facility which is not in substitution of any existing plant,
				equipment, property or facility or extension thereof or in addition thereto,
				unless and until it shall have obtained from the Commission a certificate that
				public convenience and necessity require such construction."
Pursuant to Section 18c-8201(1)(a) of the Illinois Commercial
				Transportation Law, no person shall begin or continue construction of any
				pipeline or other facilities, other than the repair or replacement of existing
				pipelines or facilities, for use in operation as a common carrier by pipeline
				unless the person possesses a certificate in good standing.
Many construction projects are in substitution of existing
				facilities or extensions to existing facilities or additions to existing
				facilities. For this reason, most construction projects do not require approval
				by the Commission.
The Commission has no knowledge of the amount of farmland
				conversion that occurred under these exceptions to the Act. Land conversions
				reported under this impact statement are, therefore, limited to conversion
				associated with certificate applications filed with the Commission during the
				years 1978 through 1986.
Electric
(certificates applied for)
Year
Number of Applications
Estimated Acres of Land Conversion
Estimated Miles of Rights-of-Way With Partial Land
						  Conversion
1978
12
N/A
82 Est.
1979
8
N/A
32 Est.
1980
7
N/A
38 Est.
1981
3
N/A
24 Est.
1982
2
N/A
40 Est.
1983
5
N/A
45 Est.
1984
None
1985
8
.300 Est.
30 Est.
1986
4
40 Est.
62 Est.
N/A - Not readily available but the acres converted were
				negligible.
Est. - Estimated.
Electric co-operatives and municipal utilities are not subject
				to the Illinois Commerce Commission's jurisdiction and do not need certificates
				from the Commission.
Gas
(certificates applied for)
Year
Number of Applications
Estimated Acres of Land Conversion
Estimated Miles of Rights-of-Way With Partial Land
						  Conversion
1978
0
0
0
1979
3
0
26
1980
3
0
4
1981
None
1982
None
1983
1
N/A
1984
None
1985
1
N/A
5 Est.
1986
3
3.0 Est.
10 Est.
Telephone
(certificates applied for)
Year
Number of Applications
Estimated Acres of Land Conversion
Estimated Miles of Rights-of-Way With Partial Land
						  Conversion
1978
Certificate applications to provide telephone service
						  to new land areas are nonexistent inasmuch as the total land area of Illinois
						  is assigned the present operating telephone companies.
1979
1980
Water and Sewer
(certificates authorized)
Year
Number of Applications
Estimated Acres of Land Conversion
Estimated Miles of Rights-of-Way With Partial Land
						  Conversion
1978
19
N/A
N/A
1979
22
N/A
N/A
1980
4
N/A
N/A
1981
4
N/A
N/A
1982
3
N/A
N/A
1983
5
N/A
N/A
1984
2
N/A
N/A
1985
5
N/A
N/A
1986
6
N/A
N/A
N/A - Not readily available.
Water utilities obtain certificates to serve areas. Nearly all
				new subdivisions are adjacent to existing built-up areas. The lands to be
				served are already platted for subdivisions. Acres are not readily available.
				Of the 9 certificate applications containing references to acres, we found that
				624 acres were covered by the applications to serve 1,587 residential and
				commercial units. Another application covered 6,700 acres by a development
				company but didn't list the units to be served in the heading of the
				case.
Common Carrier by Pipeline
Year
Number of Applications
Estimated Acres of Land Conversion
Estimated Miles of Rights-of-Way With Partial Land
						  Conversion
1986
1
1.20
110 Est.
ILLINOIS COMMERCE COMMISSION COOPERATIVE WORKING
				AGREEMENT
Pursuant to Section 4 of the Farmland Preservation Act, the
				Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) and the Illinois Department of Agriculture
				(DOA) hereby agree to the following:
1. A copy of the Daily Filing Reports, which identify all
				certificate applications submitted to the ICC by the fixed utilities and common
				carriers by pipeline, will be provided to the DOA for the duration of this
				agreement.
2. The DOA will review the reports to determine if the
				certificate applications qualify for the DOA's Study of Agricultural Impacts (8
				Ill. Adm. Code 700.Appendix A: Exhibit B).
3. Detailed project impact information relative to certificate
				applications is not available from the ICC. Therefore, the DOA will submit a
				request to the respective utility or common carrier by pipeline to obtain the
				needed data for the required Study of Agricultural Impacts.
4. The DOA may exercise its option to seek to intervene in
				certificate application proceedings. If a utility or common carrier by pipeline
				is unwilling to provide project impact information that is required for the
				Study of Agricultural Impacts, the DOA will petition the ICC to direct the
				utility or common carrier by pipeline to submit said information.
5. Pursuant to its role as Intervenor, the DOA will submit
				written and oral testimony to the ICC which reflects the results of the Study
				of Agricultural Impacts.
6. The ICC will consider the results of the DOA's study in
				determining whether a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity will be
				issued and/or modified for the project proposal.
7. All changes to this cooperative agreement shall be made
				after consultation with and concurrence by both parties.