Carbon Dioxide Pipeline Regulations Pass in Testy Iowa Senate but Still Need Governor’s Signature

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Senate advanced a bill that could further complicate a massive carbon-capture pipeline project routed across several Midwestern states after a long-winded and testy debate that exposed a clear rift among Republicans over property rights and the future of the state’s agricultural dominance.

The legislation that narrowly passed late Monday would prohibit the renewal of permits, limit the use of such a pipeline to 25 years, and significantly increase the insurance coverage requirements for the pipeline company. Those provisions would likely make it less financially feasible for a company to build the pipeline.

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Already passed by the House, the measure now goes to Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk. A spokesperson for the governor said Tuesday that the governor’s office is reviewing the bill.

The legislation could force adjustments to Summit Carbon Solutions' plans for the estimated \$8.9 billion, 2,500-mile (4,023-kilometer) project, which are already strained after South Dakota’s governor signed a ban on the use of eminent domain to acquire land for carbon dioxide pipelines.

The project received permit approvals in Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota, but it does face various court challenges, and its application was rejected in South Dakota.

The Iowa Senate, already operating in overtime as legislative session drags on, came to a halt after a dozen Republican state senators insisted that their leaders bring a pipeline bill to the floor.

In response, Sabrina Zenor, spokesperson for Summit, outlined the company’s investment to date, saying that the company remained committed to building the project and to Iowa.

Summit Carbon Solutions has invested four years and nearly \$175 million on voluntary agreements in Iowa, signing agreements with more than 1,300 landowners and securing 75% of the Phase One route.

Zenor declined to comment Tuesday.

Dozens of Summit employees and leaders and members of the Iowa Corn Growers Association, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, and labor unions made a big showing as debate in the state Senate seemed inevitable. They told lawmakers that the project is essential for the future of Iowa’s ethanol industry, for farmers, and for construction jobs.

The pipeline would carry carbon emissions from ethanol plants in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota to be stored underground permanently in North Dakota. By lowering carbon emissions from the plants, the pipeline would lower their carbon intensity scores and make them more competitive in the renewable fuels market.

The project would also allow ethanol producers and Summit to tap into federal tax credits.

Monte Shaw, Executive Director of Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, said in a statement that a majority of the Iowa Senate "turned their back on Iowa agriculture tonight."

For 25 years, Iowa has benefited greatly from being the most profitable place in the world to convert corn kernels into ethanol. Iowa is poised to be left behind.

The pipeline’s critics accuse Summit of stepping on their property rights and downplaying the safety risks of building the pipeline alongside family homes, near schools and across ranches.

Lee Enterprises and The Associated Press reviewed hundreds of cases that reveal the legal lengths the company went to to get the project built. In South Dakota, in particular, a slew of eminent domain legal actions to obtain land sparked opposition closely watched by Iowa lawmakers.

Tensions flared among the Iowa Senate’s Republican supermajority, with senators openly criticizing one another. Thirteen Republican senators joined with 14 Democrats in voting in favor of the bill. Twenty-one Republicans and one Democrat voted against it.

Republicans who opposed it said they respect private property rights, but the bill has holes that will threaten infrastructure development in Iowa beyond carbon-capture pipelines. They criticized the bill for extending the permitting process, allowing broader legal intervention, and complicating insurance agreements.

The bill’s backers said those criticisms are overblown and distract from the issue.

Republican state Sen. Jeff Taylor, who supports the bill, said it ensures companies respect the constitutional requirement for eminent domain.

Both the Iowa Constitution and the federal Constitution specify what the requirement is for eminent domain: It’s public use. It’s not anything else. It’s not a positive business climate, it’s not helping the agribusiness in the state, it’s not the price of corn or helping the ethanol plants. It’s public use.