AGO 98022.

• Court: Nebraska

Nebraska Attorney General Opinions 1998. AGO 98022. DATE: April 8, 1998SUBJECT: Constitutionality of LB 1126, the Buffer Strip Act; Unconstitutional Delegation of Legislative Authority to the Nebraska Pesticide BoardREQUESTED BY: Senator John A. Hilgert, Nebraska State LegislatureWRITTEN BY: Don Stenberg, Attorney General Dale A. Comer, Assistant Attorney General You presented your opinion request regarding the constitutionality of LB 1126 to us late in the day on April 7, 1998, and it is our understanding that the bill will be considered by the Legislature on Final Reading sometime during the day on April 8, 1998. Obviously, the short time frame surrounding your opinion request provides us with little opportunity for detailed research regarding the question you presented and little time for consideration of the issues involved. Therefore, while we will accommodate your late request, our opinion must necessarily be brief. LB 1126 creates the Buffer Strip Act. The bill pertains to the creation of buffer strips around cultivated land for the purpose of reducing the levels of pesticides and other materials introduced into surface water resources so as to improve water quality. The bill provides for the establishment of a Buffer Strip Incentive Fund and for various procedures whereby persons who wish to create a buffer strip around their property may apply to a natural resources district and the Department of Agriculture (the "Department") to do so. Persons establishing buffer strips under this procedure can be eligible for payments from the Buffer Strip Incentive Fund. The Department is specifically required to promulgate rules and regulations for the "enforcement and administration" of the Buffer Strip Act by Section 11 of the bill. Section 4 of LB 1126 also creates the Nebraska Pesticide Board "to advise and provide recommendations to the department [of Agriculture] regarding the administration of the Buffer Strip Act, the use of proceeds from the Buffer Strip Incentive Fund, and the approval or disapproval of the buffer strip plan required in section 5 of this act." Section 5 of the bill then provides, in its entirety: The department shall devise a statewide buffer strip plan with its priority being the improvement of the quality of the domestic and public water supply. Upon the approval of the board, the department shall submit...