17-5904.   Restrictions; exceptions;penalties.(a) No corporation, trust, limited liability company, limited partnership orcorporate partnership, other than a family farm corporation, authorized farmcorporation, limited liability agricultural company, family farm limitedliability agricultural company, limited agriculturalpartnership, family trust, authorized trust or testamentary trust shall, eitherdirectly or indirectly, own, acquire or otherwise obtain or lease anyagricultural land in this state. The restrictions provided in this section donot apply to the following:

      (1)   A bona fide encumbrance taken for purposes of security.

      (2)   Agricultural land when acquired as a gift, either by grant or devise,by a bona fide educational, religious or charitable nonprofit corporation.

      (3)   Agricultural land acquired by a corporation or a limited liabilitycompany in such acreage as is necessary for the operation of a nonfarmingbusiness. Such land may not be used for farming except under lease to one ormore natural persons, a family farm corporation, authorized farm corporation,family trust, authorized trust or testamentary trust. The corporation shallnot engage, either directly or indirectly, in the farming operation and shallnot receive any financial benefit, other than rent, from the farming operation.

      (4)   Agricultural land acquired by a corporation or a limited liabilitycompany by process of law in the collection of debts, or pursuant to a contractfor deed executed prior to the effective date of this act, or by any procedurefor the enforcement of a lien or claim thereon, whether created by mortgage orotherwise, if such corporation divests itself of any such agricultural landwithin 10 years after such process of law, contract or procedure, except thatprovisions of K.S.A. 9-1102, and amendments thereto, shall apply to any bankwhich acquires agricultural land.

      (5)   A municipal corporation.

      (6)   Agricultural land which is acquired by a trust company or bank ina fiduciary capacity or as a trustee for a nonprofit corporation.

      (7)   Agricultural land owned or leased or held under a lease purchaseagreement as described in K.S.A. 12-1741, and amendments thereto, by acorporation, corporate partnership, limited corporate partnership or trust onthe effective date of this act if: (A) Any such entity owned or leased suchagricultural land prior to July 1, 1965, provided such entity shall not own orlease any greater acreage of agricultural land than it owned or leased prior tothe effective date of this act unless it is in compliance with the provisionsof this act; (B) any such entity was in compliance with the provisions ofK.S.A. 17-5901 prior to its repeal by this act, provided such entity shall notown or lease any greater acreage of agricultural land than it owned or leasedprior to the effective date of this act unless it is in compliance with theprovisions of this act, and absence of evidence in the records of the countywhere such land is located of a judicial determination that such entityviolated the provisions of K.S.A. 17-5901 prior to its repeal shallconstitute proof that theprovisions of this act do not apply to such agricultural land, and that suchentity was in compliance with the provisions of K.S.A. 17-5901 prior to itsrepeal; or (C) any such entity was not in compliance with the provisions ofK.S.A. 17-5901 prior to its repeal by this act, but is in compliance with theprovisions of this act by July 1, 1991.

      (8)   Agricultural land held or leased by a corporation or a limitedliability company for use as a feedlot, a poultry confinement facility orrabbit confinement facility.

      (9)   Agricultural land held or leased by a corporation for the purposeof the production of timber, forest products, nursery products or sod.

      (10)   Agricultural land used for bona fide educational research or scientificor experimental farming.

      (11)   Agricultural land used for the commercial production and conditioningof seed for sale or resale as seed or for the growing of alfalfa by an alfalfaprocessing entity if such land is located within 30 miles of such entity'splant site.

      (12)   Agricultural land owned or leased by a corporate partnership or limitedcorporate partnership in which the partners associated therein are eithernatural persons, family farm corporations, authorized farm corporations,limited liability agricultural companies, family trusts, authorized trustsor testamentary trusts.

      (13)   Any corporation, either domestic or foreign, or any limited liabilitycompany, organized for coal mining purposes which engages in farming on anytract of land owned by it which has been strip mined for coal.

      (14)   Agricultural land owned or leased by a limited partnership priorto the effective date of this act.

      (15)   Except as provided by K.S.A. 17-5908, as it existed before theeffective date of this act, and K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 17-5909,agricultural land held or leased bya corporation or a limited liability company for use as a swine productionfacilityin any county which, before the effective date of this act, has votedfavorably pursuant to K.S.A. 17-5908, as it existed before the effectivedate of this act,either bycounty resolution or by the electorate.

      (16)   Agricultural land held or leased by a corporation or limitedliabilitycompany for use as a swine production facility in any county where the voters,after the effective date of this act, have voted pursuant to K.S.A. 17-5908,and amendments thereto, to allow establishment of swine productionfacilities within the county.

      (17)   Agricultural land held or leased by a corporation or alimitedliability company for use as a dairy production facility in any county whichhas voted favorably pursuant to K.S.A. 17-5907 and amendments thereto,either by county resolution or by the electorate.

      (18)   Agricultural land held or leased by a corporation or alimitedliability company used in a hydroponics setting.

      (b)   Production contracts entered into by a corporation, trust, limitedliabilitycompany, limited partnership or corporate partnership and a person engaged infarming for the production of agricultural products shall not be construed tomean the ownership, acquisition, obtainment or lease, either directly orindirectly, of any agricultural land in this state.

      (c)   Any corporation, trust, limited liability company, limited partnershipor corporate partnership, other than a family farm corporation, authorized farmcorporation, limited liability agricultural company, family farm limitedliability agricultural company, limited agricultural partnership, familytrust, authorized trust or testamentary trust, violatingthe provisions of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty of not morethan $50,000 and shall divest itself of any land acquired in violation of thissection within one year after judgment is entered in the action. The districtcourts of this state may prevent and restrain violations of this sectionthrough the issuance of an injunction. The attorney general or district orcounty attorney shall institute suits on behalf of the state to enforce theprovisions of this section.

      (d)   Civil penalties sued for and recovered by the attorney general shallbe paid into the state general fund. Civil penalties sued for and recoveredby the county attorney or district attorney shall be paid into the generalfund of the county where the proceedings were instigated.

      History:   L. 1981, ch. 106, § 2; L. 1986, ch. 96, § 3; L. 1987, ch.368, § 2; L. 1988, ch. 99, § 56; L. 1991, ch. 76, § 10;L. 1994, ch. 130, § 4; L. 1994, ch. 331, § 2;L. 1996, ch. 225, § 2;L. 1998, ch. 143, § 44; May 7.