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HB 2340

Providing for an exemption from remediation costs or other liability from prior commercial pesticide application by the United States army for owners of certain property located in Johnson county.

2025-2026 Regular Session

HB 2340 retroactively shields Johnson County Army-property from state cleanup orders for pre-2005 pesticide contamination on nonresidential sites; residential use transfers costs.

Died in Senate Committee
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Bill Summary · HB 2340

Summary — HB 2340 (2025) — Exemption from pesticide remediation liability (Johnson County, KS)

Purpose

HB 2340 amends Kansas hazardous-substances law (K.S.A. 65-3453 and 65-3455) to exempt certain owners of former U.S. Army property in Johnson County from state-ordered cleanup requirements, cost-recovery, and related regulatory actions for contamination resulting from commercially registered pesticide applications made by the U.S. Army before 2005. The change is aimed at facilitating redevelopment (notably Astra Enterprise Park / Panasonic-related industrial development).

Key provisions

  • Adds a limited exemption to K.S.A. 65-3453(d):
    • Prohibits a state agency or subdivision from issuing cleanup orders, seeking recovery of costs, promulgating regulations/guidance, or otherwise requiring owners/possessors of interests in specified property to be responsible for restrictions on use or the costs of investigating, removing, or remediating soil, groundwater, or surface water contamination where legally registered pesticidal commercial chemical products were applied at or near structures by the U.S. Army prior to 2005.
    • Prohibits a state agency from “failing to timely grant approvals for any permit under any state program,” including issuance of a no-further-action approval or RCRA permit modification (added in committee).
  • Applicability and limits:
    • Applies only to property in Johnson County that was previously owned by the U.S. Army.
    • As amended, the exemption applies to nonresidential properties; owners become responsible for investigation/remediation costs if the property is converted to residential use or used as a day-care facility.
    • Requires owners of qualifying nonresidential property to include a notice in deeds alerting future owners to the potential presence of pesticidal products that may require remediation; the notice runs with the land until KDHE confirms contamination levels meet applicable criteria or remediation to residential levels is completed.
  • Retroactivity: the bill expresses legislative intent that the prohibition be applied retroactively.
  • K.S.A. 65-3455 is revised so that, except as provided in the new subsection, responsible parties remain liable for investigation and remediation costs; owners covered by the new exemption are specifically excluded from responsibility for costs of investigation under that subsection.

Who is affected

  • Primary: current and future owners/possessors of nonresidential property in Johnson County formerly owned by the U.S. Army (e.g., Astra Enterprise Park sites).
  • State agencies (Kansas Department of Health and Environment — KDHE) and local health departments: limits on enforcement authority and oversight actions concerning specified pesticide residues.
  • Developers and purchasers: reduced risk of state-ordered cleanup liability for specified nonresidential uses, but notified restrictions remain on title for future residential conversion or daycare use.

Fiscal and policy impacts

  • KDHE estimates reduced revenue of approximately $44,000 per fiscal year (billing/oversight fees for the affected facility); KDHE would reassign staff time to other projects.
  • KDHE raised concerns in testimony that the bill could restrict investigation/remediation of contaminants, create inconsistent standards, and risk eventual residential use without sufficient remediation.
  • The deed-notice requirement preserves disclosure to future buyers and provides a mechanism to manage land-use risk over time.

Procedural status (as provided)

  • Introduced: February 3, 2025 (by House Committee on Commerce, Labor & Economic Development at the request of Astra Enterprise Park representative).
  • Status noted in materials: Committee report recommending bill be passed as amended by Committee on Commerce (committee amendments described above). Fiscal note and committee testimony recorded in supplemental materials.

Notes: This summary focuses on the Kansas measure concerning pesticide-related remediation liability in Johnson County (HB 2340, 2025 session).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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