All persons, companies, or local governments engaging in surface mining or operation of an underground mine shall be licensed. Only one license per operator or company is required and will permit the licensee to mine at any location in the state. This includes persons mining limestone, building stone, rock, gravel, sand, volcanic ash, shale, clay, gypsum, salt, sandstone, silt, caliche, silica, and other industrial materials or minerals. This Act does not include coal, oil, and gas. K.S.A. 49-605
Initial licenses are issued upon receipt of application and a first time fee of $300 if all local, county, state, and federal, conditional use permits are satisfied. License applications shall be accompanied by a site registration(s), reclamation plan, site map, and a reclamation bond. One license allows an applicant to operate a mine at any registered location in the state.
Licenses are renewed annually and are due December 1. Notices are sent out mid-November. The renewal amount is determined by the number of tons of material produced in the previous year and reported in the Annual Mine Report. K.A.R. 11-8-2 has established the renewal fee amounts between $25 and $150 depending upon the amount reported in the Annual Mine Report. A license shall be renewed annually until all sites registered by that person have been properly reclaimed or transferred to another licensed operator.
The mining license will expire December 31 if not renewed. If a company is issued a license after October 1, they will not be required to renew the license for the following year. They will, however, be required to submit an Annual Report by April 1.