[§205-46.5]  Agricultural processingfacilities; permits; priority.  (a)  Any agency subject to this chapter ortitle 13 that issues permits shall establish and implement a procedure for thepriority processing of permit applications and renewals, at no additional costto the applicant, for agricultural processing facilities that process crops orlivestock from an agribusiness; provided that the majority of the lands held,owned, or used by the agribusiness shall be land designated as importantagricultural lands pursuant to this part, excluding lands held, owned, or usedby the agribusiness in a conservation district.

Any priority permit processing procedureestablished pursuant to this section shall not provide or imply that any permitapplication filed under the priority processing procedure shall beautomatically approved.

(b)  As used in this section,"agribusiness" means a business primarily engaged in the care andproduction of livestock, livestock products, poultry, poultry products, apiary,horticultural or floricultural products, the planting, cultivating, andharvesting of crops or trees, or the farming or ranching of any plant or animalspecies in a controlled salt, brackish, or fresh water environment. [L 2008, c233, §11]