Land Quality Rulemaking

The Land Quality Bureau’s Solid Waste & Contaminated Sites Section and Financial & Business Assistance Section of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) continue to make progress on the Executive Order 10 (EO10) administrative rule process.

Publication, Public Hearing, and Public Comment Schedule

The proposed revisions to all Solid Waste rules have been drafted, and the proposed rules and a regulatory analysis were published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin on September 17th. 

Public hearings will be held according to the schedule below at which time persons may present their views. In addition, any interested person may submit written comments concerning these regulatory analyses. Details for attending each of the public hearings and submitting written comments are provided in each of the published regulatory analysis documents, which are hyperlinked in the schedule below.

October 7, 2025 - Public Hearings

• Chapter 105 - Hazardous Conditions & Chapter 149 - Fees For Transportation , Treatment and Disposal of Hazardous Waste (Recission) @ 9:00 AM
• Chapter 107 - Beverage Container Deposits @ 10:00 AM
• Chapter 100 - Authority and Purpose, Definitions, General Permitting Requirements @ 1:00 AM
• Chapter 101 - Sanitary Disposal Projects @ 2:00 PM (Includes MSW landfills, Industrial Landfills, Coal Combustion Residue Landfills and Transfer Stations )
• Chapter 102 - Solid Waste Management @ 3:00 PM (Includes Organic Composting Facilities, Land Application of Waste, Landfarming of Petroleum Contaminated soil, Beneficial use, Waste Tire Management. Special Waste Authorizations, Discarded Appliance Demanufacturing, and Cathode Ray Tube Device Recycling.)
• Chapter 152 - Criteria for Siting Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Facilities (Recission) @ 4:00 PM

October 8, 2025 - Public Hearings

• Chapter 103 - Financial and Operating Requirements for Regional Collection Centers & Chapter 104 - Solid Waste Comprehensive Planning and Environmental Management Systems Requirements & Chapter 109 - Landfill Alternatives Financial Assistance Programs & Chapter 119 - Used Oil and Used Oil Filters (Recission) & Chapter 145 - Household Batteries (Recission) & Chapter 213 - Packaging -- Heavy Metals Content (Recission) @ 9:30 AM

Formal Rulemaking Process

The steps in the formal rulemaking process are prescribed in the Administrative Procedures Act, found in Iowa code chapter 17A. This process includes review and approval by the Environmental Protection Commission and the Administrative Rules Review Committee; publication in the Administrative Bulletin, as well as public hearings and a public comment period. The newly revised rule becomes effective at the end of the formal rulemaking process.

Effective

These chapters have completed the formal rulemaking process and are effective.

• 567 IAC 11 - Tax Certification of Pollution Control or Recycling Property and rescission of 567 IAC 14 - Environmental Covenants, became effective on June 19, 2024.

Contacts: 

• Please use EO10_SolidWaste@dnr.iowa.gov to submit comments and questions regarding FABA and Solid Waste and Contaminated Sites related rule chapters.
• Contaminated Sites: Michael Sullivan, Matt Graesch and Shelley Nellesen
• Solid Waste: Michael Sullivan, Chad Stobbe, Theresa Stiner, Mary Klemesrud and Brian Rath
• FABA: Jennifer Wright

EO10 Solid Waste Updates Sign Up For Solid Waste Updates

Chapters 70-76 govern floodplain development and dam safety in Iowa.  Chapter 70 outlines definitions and permitting procedures, updates include landowner notifications, floodway determination, floodway development reviews and several new definitions.  Chapter 71 governs when permits are required and has been reformatted and streamlined.  Chapter 72 provides permitting criteria and includes minor cleanup.  Chapter 73 regulates dams in Iowa and is generally unmodified as it was complete updated in 2020.  It is proposed to rescind Chapter 75 that governed general floodplain establishment and floodplain management orders that is generally superseded in currently with FEMA mapping standards.  Applicable sections of Chapter 75 that are still relevant are moved into other chapters.   Chapter 76 is also proposed to be rescinded as it is no longer relevant.

Public Hearing

A public hearing at which persons may present their views orally will be held via conference call as follows. Persons who wish to attend the conference call should contact Jon Garton via email. A conference call number will be provided prior to the hearing. Persons who wish to make oral comments at the conference call public hearing must submit a request to Jon Garton prior to the hearing to facilitate an orderly hearing that were held on January 28 and January 29.

Public Comment

Any interested person may submit written comments concerning this Regulatory Analysis. Written comments in response to this Regulatory Analysis must be received by the Department of Natural Resources (Department) no later than 4:30 p.m. on the date of the public hearing, which were held on January 28 and January 29.

• NOI: Rescind and Replace Chapter 70, “Scope of Title—Definitions—Forms—Rules of Practice,”
• NOI: Rescind and Replace Chapter 71, “Floodplain or Floodway Development—When Approval is Required,” Rescind 75 and 76
• NOI: Rescind and Replace Chapter 72,“Criteria for Approval,”
• NOI: Rescind and Replace Chapter 73,“Approval, Construction, Use, Maintenance, Removal, Inspections, and Safety of Dams,”

Comments should be directed to:

Jon Garton, Supervisor Floodplain and Dam Safety Section
Iowa Department of Natural Resources
6200 Park Avenue, Suite 200
Des Moines, Iowa 50321

Email: jonathan.garton@dnr.iowa.gov

During the last legislative session, Iowa Code Chapter 458A was updated to include the regulation of naturally occurring, non-petroleum/hydrocarbon gases. As a result, the current Iowa Administrative Code 561 Chapter 17 must be updated to reflect the changes to Iowa Code. Further, we have been directed to complete this update this calendar year as part of the Executive Order 10 (EO 10).

Overall Documents:

• Stakeholder Meeting Agenda (June 28, 2024)
• Stakeholder Meeting Presentation (July 8, 2024)
• Chapter Schedule (July 2024)

Proposed Rule Document:

• The Proposed draft of Chapter 17, has been published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin.
• Any interested person may submit comments concerning this proposed rulemaking, which must be received by the Department no later than 4:30 p.m. on January 31, 2025. Comments should be directed to Matthew.Graesch@dnr.iowa.gov
• Public hearings will be held by videoconference call on January 30, 2025 at 1:00 p.m. and January 31, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. To participate, contact  Matthew.Graesch@dnr.iowa.gov to request a video conference link.

Contacts:

• Please use EO10_SolidWaste@dnr.iowa.gov to submit comments and questions regarding this chapter.
• Amie Davidson, Michael Sullivan, Matt Graesch, Noah Poppelreiter, Theresa Stiner, and Brian Rath

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) provides the following update regarding potential amendments to Iowa’s underground storage tank administrative rules and the Iowa Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Fund Board rules resulting from Executive Order 10 (EO10) signed by the Governor on January 10, 2023. The Land Quality Bureau of the DNR is responsible for all underground storage tank rules. More information about the formal rulemaking process and public hearings to be held in September will be published later this summer.

Persons who wish to make oral comments at the public hearings must submit a request to Keith Wilken via email notification to USTEO10@dnr.iowa.gov prior to the hearing to facilitate an orderly hearing.

Background
EO10 signed by the Governor on January 10, 2023 requires all state agencies to identify which administrative rule chapters will be retained or rescinded. The EO10 process includes the review of existing rule chapters, the reauthorization of rule chapters that will be retained, and public engagement with the opportunity for meaningful input throughout the process.

The proposed drafts to 567 Iowa Administrative Code Chapters 134, 135, and 136 are posted below.

Regulatory Analysis

• Regulatory Analysis 567-Chapter 134
• Regulatory Analysis 567-Chapter 135
• Regulatory Analysis 567-Chapter 136
• Regulatory Analysis 591-Chapters 1-4, 9, 11, 13, 16, 17

We value your input as a stakeholder and want to thank you in advance for your participation in this process. If you have any questions, please use our dedicated EO10 underground storage tank email address: USTEO10@dnr.iowa.gov.

Your Underground Storage Tank EO10 Team,
Keith Wilken, Tammy Vander Bloemen, James Gastineau, Charlotte Richards, Cody McCoy, Amie Davidson, and Noah Poppelreiter

Drafts

• Summary of Changes Statement for Chapter 134
• Draft Chapter 134 Underground Storage Tank Licensing and Certification Programs  - April 14, 2025 Version
• Draft Chapter 134 Underground Storage Tank Licensing and Certification Programs - February 27, 2025 Version
• Draft Chapter 135 Owners & Operators of Underground Storage Tanks
• Draft Chapter 136 Financial Responsibility for Underground Storage Tanks
• Proposed Replacement Chapters
  • Proposed 567 Chapter 134
  • Proposed 567 Chapter 135
  • Proposed 567 Chapter 136

Meeting Information

• 567 IAC Chapter 134 Public Hearing: September 23, 2025, 10-11am

  In person location information:
  Iowa DNR Central Office
  Lake Darling Conference Room
  6200 Park Ave, Suite 200
  Des Moines Iowa
  
  Virtual information:
  meet.google.com/osa-rgyy-qqf
  Join by phone: ‪(US) +1 347-773-0367‬ PIN: ‪659 354 229‬#

• 567 IAC Chapter 135 Public Hearing: September 23, 2025, 11am-12pm

  In person location information:
  Iowa DNR Central Office
  Lake Darling Conference Room
  6200 Park Ave, Suite 200
  Des Moines Iowa
  
  Virtual information:
  meet.google.com/oce-dbht-bdi
  Join by phone: ‪(US) +1 813-344-2686‬ PIN: ‪788 565 858‬#

• 567 IAC Chapter 136 Public Hearing: September 24, 2025, 9am-10pm

  In person location information:
  Iowa DNR Central Office
  Lake Darling Conference Room
  6200 Park Ave, Suite 200
  Des Moines Iowa
  
  Virtual meeting information:
  meet.google.com/xoq-sqmp-dgm
  Join by phone: ‪(US) +1 929-220-3000‬ PIN: ‪414 196 393‬#

• 591 Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Fund Board Chapters 1-4, 9, 11, 13, 16-17 Public Hearing: September 24, 2025, 2-3pm (virtual only)

  Virtual meeting information:
  meet.google.com/pkw-zdrs-ehd
  Join by phone: ‪(US) +1 984-444-8384‬ PIN: ‪564 222 370‬#

Frequently Asked Questions
What is EO10?
EO10 was signed by the Governor on January 10, 2023 and requires all state agencies to conduct a comprehensive evaluation and rigorous cost benefit analysis of existing rules to evaluate their public benefits, whether the benefits of the rules justify the costs, and whether there are less restrictive alternatives to achieve their intended goal. Each administrative rule chapter will either be rescinded, revised or combined with other chapters.

How does EO10 impact stakeholders?
The Land Quality Bureau (LQB) of the DNR is responsible for all underground storage tank rules. The EO10 process requires the DNR, in consultation with stakeholders, to review each rule and develop proposed changes to reduce regulatory burden. This may include changes to the current rules, combining the current rules, or rescinding the current rules, which in turn can impact you as a stakeholder.

Can stakeholders provide input?
Yes, the EO10 process requires public engagement, including the opportunity for stakeholder input throughout the process.

The early stakeholder outreach phase, which we are currently in, is an opportunity for you to shape the direction of rules before staff finalize the language. Due to the condensed schedule, this early outreach phase will occur in March.

However, there will be additional opportunities to comment on specific rule language later in the process.