Proposed pipeline routes would be widened under a bill introduced Tuesday by Senate Majority Leader Mike Klimesh, R-Spillville, which he said would “all but eliminate the need” for pipeline companies to use eminent domain.
He said the bill, Senate File 2067, would address the concerns of landowners who don’t want a pipeline crossing their land, while also ensuring projects like a proposed carbon capture pipeline can move forward and open access to new markets for Iowa’s agricultural products.
“I believe the proposals we are introducing today in the Senate can get us to the point where we all but eliminate the need for utilizing eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines or any other hazardous liquid pipelines, while still recognizing the fact that Iowa needs to have investment in linear infrastructure, but also recognizing the importance of landowner rights,” Klimesh said.
His bill would widen the pipeline corridor, giving pipeline companies more flexibility to find a route around unwilling landowners by seeking voluntary land use agreements within 5 miles of a proposed pipeline. Landowners could opt out of being contacted by a pipeline company, except by mail.
Before requesting permission to use eminent domain, pipeline companies would have to provide evidence to the Iowa Utilities Commission showing why they could not find a route around landowners who do not want a pipeline on their land.
“And the way we have the bill structured, due diligence is of the utmost importance to ensure the pipeline companies check all the boxes to make sure that, you know, before they make the request, that they’ve done everything they can possibly do to find a voluntary corridor,” Klimesh said.
He said the bill would apply retroactively and widen the corridor for phase one of the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline.
Klimesh said building the carbon capture pipeline would lower the carbon intensity score of ethanol made in Iowa, making it marketable for uses like sustainable aviation fuel and enhanced oil recovery.
“That would make Iowa farmers profitable again and have a huge impact on Iowa’s overall economic health,” he said. “Access to these markets is not optional for Iowa farmers and Iowa. It is a necessity.”
Key pipeline opponent says bill won't help landowners
Jess Mazour, conservation program associate at the Sierra Club, has been a leading opponent of using eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines. She said pipeline companies already have the option to find alternate routes around unwilling landowners, and Klimesh’s bill doesn’t guarantee protection from eminent domain.
“So, a lot of the stuff that he’s saying is simply just a misdirection and a distraction away from the issue at hand, which is property rights and the ability for someone to say no, and that’s not addressed in his bill whatsoever,” Mazour said.
Mazour and other pipeline opponents have called for a bill banning the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines, which the House advanced through a committee last week.
“The bottom line is this: this project has no public purpose, no public convenience or necessity, and it’s not a public use. So, it should not be allowed to have eminent domain,” she said.
Pipeline supporters say the bill could help build carbon pipelines in Iowa
Kelly Nieuwenhuis, who farms in O’Brien County, was at the Capitol on Tuesday with a group of carbon pipeline supporters. He said he wants lawmakers to help make the pipeline happen.
“As a corn farmer, you know, we’re kind of tough times right now,” Nieuwenhuis said. “We need to grow demand for what we produce, and this project will create a lot of growth in demand for the corn producers across the state of Iowa.”
He said he has neighbors who didn’t want the Summit pipeline on their land, so he and his brothers volunteered their own property.
“They moved the pipeline like 100 yards across the fence line into ours, and we signed easements with them,” Nieuwenhuis said. “So that’s why I think widening the corridor will help find those people that are willing to put the pipeline in their property.”
Sabrina Zenor, spokesperson for Summit Carbon Solutions, said the company is neutral on the bill.
“As proposals like this are considered, it’s important to maintain clarity, respect landowner interests, and avoid limiting economic opportunity for agriculture and rural communities,” she said in a statement. “We remain committed to working with landowners and policymakers on solutions that protect property rights and support rural economies.”
Other groups that support the pipelines, like the American Carbon Alliance and the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, expressed support for Klimesh’s bill.
Klimesh also proposed a second bill, SF 2069, that would put a severance tax on liquid carbon dioxide flowing through pipelines in Iowa. He said the money would be added to the Taxpayer Relief Fund and potentially used to continue lowering the state’s income tax.
House Republicans take a different approach
Klimesh’s proposals came a week after House Republicans advanced their own bill, House File 2104, to ban the use of eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines, a policy supported by landowners who oppose the pipelines.
Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, has repeatedly said that House Republicans want to target the use of eminent domain. But he also said last week that it’s a positive sign that Senate Republicans are proposing legislation on the issue.
“It sounds like the Senate is at least looking at solutions,” Grassley said. “Now that doesn’t mean necessarily we’re going to all start in an agreement, but I think it’s a positive sign that both sides of the rotunda are working on something.”
The House was scheduled to debate its own eminent domain bill on Wednesday afternoon.
