Legislative Activity
SB 85 – Drainage Task Force
Senate Bill 85 proposed to establish a drainage task force consisting of six members of the senate, six members of the house of representatives, and six other individuals. The task force would be required to: (1) review the responsibilities of landowners and state and local authorities under current laws relating to the drainage of land; (2) make certain determinations concerning drainage and regulatory matters; and (3) determine whether the balance between state authority and local authority over drainage of agricultural land favors state authority more in Indiana than that of neighboring states. The bill would also require the task force to issue and submit a report to the executive director of the legislative services agency for distribution to the members of the general assembly and to the governor.
You can learn more about this bill here.
HB 1036 – Watershed Development Commissions
House Bill 1036 would provide that the executives of one or more counties may adopt ordinances designating their counties as members of a proposed watershed development commission and that the proposed watershed development commission is established as a legal entity with the counties as its members if it is recognized by the natural resources commission. It requires a watershed development commission to develop a flood control and drainage plan for its designated watershed and grants a watershed development commission exclusive authority to perform drainage and flood control activities within the channel of the river that is the surface water outlet of the commission’s designated watershed. It allows the Maumee River basin commission, the St. Joseph River basin commission, or the Upper Wabash River basin commission to be transformed into a watershed development commission if the county executives of all participating counties, by vote of at least two of the three members of the county executive, approve the proposed transformation.
You can learn more about this bill here.
Indiana Legislators
Contact information for 2021-2022 Indiana Legislators can be found in the linked PDF documents listed below.