455K.5 - REQUIRED DISCLOSURE.
455K.5 REQUIRED DISCLOSURE. 1. A court or a presiding officer in an administrative hearing may require disclosure of a portion of an environmental audit report in a civil or administrative proceeding if the court or presiding officer affirmatively determines, after an in camera review, that any of the following exists: a. The privilege is asserted for a fraudulent purpose. b. The portion of the environmental audit report is not subject to the privilege under section 455K.6. c. The portion of the environmental audit report shows evidence of noncompliance with a state or federal environmental or other law, rule, or permit condition and appropriate efforts to achieve compliance with the law or ordinance were not promptly initiated and pursued with reasonable diligence after discovery of noncompliance. d. The portion of the environmental audit report shows clear and convincing evidence of substantial actual personal injury, which information is not otherwise available. e. The portion of the environmental audit report shows a clear and present danger to the public health or the environment. 2. A party seeking disclosure under this section has the burden of proving that subsection 1 applies. 3. A decision of a presiding officer in an administrative hearing under subsection 1 may be directly appealed to the district court without disclosure of the environmental audit report to any person unless so ordered by the court. 4. A determination of a court under this section is subject to interlocutory appeal to an appropriate appellate court. 5. If a court finds that a person claiming privilege under this chapter intentionally claimed the privilege for material not privileged as provided in section 455K.6, the person is subject to a fine not to exceed one thousand dollars. 6. Privilege provided in this chapter does not apply if an owner or operator of the facility or operation has been found in a civil or administrative proceeding to have committed serious violations in this state that constitute a pattern of continuous or repeated violations of environmental laws, administrative rules, or permit conditions, that were due to separate and distinct events giving rise to the violations within the three-year period prior to the date of disclosure.
Section History: Recent Form 98 Acts, ch 1109, §5