                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS; EFFECT OF IMPLEMENTATION; EXCLUSIONS (§ 10.1-104.7)

A. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, agricultural landowners or
operators who fully implement and maintain the applicable components of their
resource management plan, in accordance with the criteria for such plans set out
in &#xA7; 10.1-104.8 and any regulations adopted thereunder, shall be deemed to
be in full compliance with (i) any load allocation contained in a total maximum
daily load (TMDL) established under &#xA7; 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act
addressing benthic, bacteria, nutrient, or sediment impairments; (ii) any
requirements of the Virginia Chesapeake Bay TMDL Watershed Implementation Plan;
and (iii) applicable state water quality requirements for nutrients and
sediment.

B. The presumption of full compliance provided in subsection A shall not prevent
or preclude enforcement of provisions pursuant to (i) a resource management plan
or a nutrient management plan otherwise required by law for such operation, (ii)
a Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, (iii) a Virginia
Pollution Abatement permit, or (iv) requirements of the Chesapeake Bay
Preservation Act (&#xA7; 62.1-44.15:67 et seq.).

C. Landowners or operators who implement and maintain a resource management plan
in accordance with this article shall be eligible for matching grants for
agricultural best management practices provided through the Virginia
Agricultural Best Management Practices Cost-Share Program administered by the
Department in accordance with program eligibility rules and requirements. Such
landowners and operators may also be eligible for state tax credits in
accordance with &#xA7;&#xA7; 58.1-339.3 and 58.1-439.5.

D. Nothing in this article shall be construed to limit, modify, impair, or
supersede the authority granted to the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer
Services pursuant to Chapter 4 (&#xA7; 3.2-400 et seq.) of Title 3.2.

E. Any personal or proprietary information collected pursuant to this article
shall be exempt from the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (&#xA7; 2.2-3700 et
seq.), except that the Director may release information that has been
transformed into a statistical or aggregate form that does not allow
identification of the persons who supplied, or are the subject of, particular
information. This subsection shall not preclude the application of the Virginia
Freedom of Information Act (&#xA7; 2.2-3700 et seq.) in all other instances of
federal or state regulatory actions. Pursuant to subdivision 45 of &#xA7;
2.2-3711, public bodies may hold closed meetings for discussion or consideration
of certain records excluded from the provisions of this article and the Virginia
Freedom of Information Act (&#xA7; 2.2-3700 et seq.).

HISTORY: 2011, c. 781; 2015, cc. 27, 169; 2017, c. 616.