Terms Used In Iowa Code > Chapter 161A - Soil and Water Conservation

• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Agricultural land: has the meaning assigned that term by section 9H. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Bequest: Property gifted by will.
• bluffland: means a cliff, headland, or hill with a broad, steep face along the channel or floodplain of the Missouri or Mississippi river and their tributaries. See Iowa Code 161A.80A
• Board: means the Iowa grain indemnity fund board created in section 203D. See Iowa Code 203D.1
• City: means a municipal corporation, but not including a county, township, school district, or any special-purpose district or authority. See Iowa Code 172D.1
• clerk: means clerk of the court in which the action or proceeding is brought or is pending; and the words "clerk's office" mean the office of that clerk. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conservation agreement: means a commitment by the owner or operator of a farm unit to implement a farm unit soil conservation plan or, with the approval of the commissioners of the soil and water conservation district within which the farm unit is located, a portion of a farm unit soil conservation plan. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• cost-sharing: means a contribution of money made by the state in order to pay a percentage of the costs related to the establishment of voluntary or mandatory practices as provided under this chapter, including but not limited to soil and water conservation practices and erosion control practices. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• County system: means the same as defined in section 445. See Iowa Code 169C.1
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Delivery: means the transfer of title to and possession of grain by a seller to a grain dealer or to another person in accordance with the agreement of the seller and the grain dealer. See Iowa Code 203.8
• Department: means the department of environmental quality in a reference to a time before July 1, 1983, the department of water, air and waste management in a reference to a time on or after July 1, 1983, and through June 30, 1986, and the department of natural resources on or after July 1, 1986, and includes any officer or agency within that department. See Iowa Code 172D.1
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Erosion control practices: means :
   a. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Farm unit: means a single contiguous tract of agricultural land, or two or more adjacent tracts of agricultural land, located within a single soil and water conservation district, upon which farming operations are being conducted by a person who owns or is purchasing or renting all of the land, or by that person's tenant or tenants. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Farm unit soil conservation plan: means a plan jointly developed by the owner and, if appropriate, the operator of a farm unit and the commissioners of the soil and water conservation district within which that farm unit is located, identifying those permanent soil and water conservation practices and temporary soil and water conservation practices the use of which may be expected to prevent soil loss by erosion from that farm unit in excess of the applicable soil loss limit or limits. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• fence: includes a fence bordering a public road. See Iowa Code 169C.1
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Forest: means stands of native or introduced trees containing at least two hundred trees per acre and located on privately owned land. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Fund: means the grain depositors and sellers indemnity fund created in section 203D. See Iowa Code 203D.1
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Internet: means the federated international system that is composed of allied electronic communication networks linked by telecommunication channels, that uses standardized protocols, and that facilitates electronic communication services, including but not limited to use of the world wide web; the transmission of electronic mail or messages; the transfer of files and data or other electronic information; and the transmission of voice, image, and video. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Landowner: means a person who holds an interest in land, including a titleholder or tenant. See Iowa Code 169C.1
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Legislative session: That part of a chamber's daily session in which it considers legislative business (bills, resolutions, and actions related thereto).
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Livestock: means cattle, sheep, swine, ostriches, rheas, emus, poultry, and other animals or fowl, which are being produced primarily for use as food or food products for human consumption. See Iowa Code 172D.1
• Loss: means the amount of a claim held by a seller or depositor against a grain dealer or warehouse operator which has not been recovered through other legal and equitable remedies including the liquidation of assets. See Iowa Code 203D.1
• Maintenance: means the provision of shelter, food, water, or a nutritional formulation as required pursuant to chapter 717. See Iowa Code 169C.1
• Owner: shall mean the person holding record title to real estate to include both legal and equitable interests under recorded real estate contracts. See Iowa Code 172D.1
• Payment: means the actual payment or tender of payment by a grain dealer to a seller of the agreed purchase price, or in the case of disputes as to sales of grain, the undisputed portion of the purchase price without reduction for any separate claim of the grain dealer against the seller. See Iowa Code 203.8
• Permanent soil and water conservation practices: means planting of perennial grasses, legumes, shrubs, or trees, the establishment of grassed waterways, and the construction of terraces, or other permanent soil and water practices approved by the committee. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• person: means individual, corporation, limited liability company, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership or association, or any other legal entity. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Professional forester: means a forestry graduate of an institution of higher learning, who has a minimum of two years of forest management experience. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• property: includes personal and real property. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• road: include public bridges, and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" "common road" and "state road". See Iowa Code 4.1
• Rule: includes "regulation". See Iowa Code 4.1
• seal: shall include an impression upon the paper alone, or upon wax, a wafer affixed to the paper, or an official stamp of a notarial officer as provided in chapter 9B. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Seller: means a person who sells grain which the person has produced or caused to be produced to a licensed grain dealer, but excludes a person who executes a credit-sale contract as a seller as provided in section 203. See Iowa Code 203D.1
• Soil and water conservation practices: means any of the practices designated in or pursuant to this subsection which serve to prevent erosion of soil by wind or water, in excess of applicable soil loss limits, from land used for agricultural or horticultural purposes only. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Soil loss limit: means the maximum amount of soil loss due to erosion by water or wind, expressed in terms of tons per acre per year, which the commissioners of the respective soil and water conservation districts determine is acceptable in order to meet the objectives expressed in section 161A. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
• State forester: means a person employed by the department of natural resources as required by section 456A. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Temporary soil and water conservation practices: means planting of annual or biennial crops, use of strip-cropping, contour planting, or minimum or mulch tillage, and any other cultural practices approved by the committee. See Iowa Code 161A.42
• undertaking: means a promise or security in any form. See Iowa Code 4.1
• United States: includes all the states. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Usury: Charging an illegally high interest rate on a loan. ^{Source: OCC}
• week: means seven consecutive days. See Iowa Code 4.1
• year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1