Committee advances bill clarifying low-head dam ownership, permitting and safety rules

Representative Shane Lindauer, chair of the House Committee on Natural Resources, opened the committee hearing on Senate Bill 477, sponsored in the House by Representative Adam Manning, and the panel voted to advance the bill out of committee by recorded voice (11 yes, 0 no).

The bill clarifies that the state does not assume ownership of a low-head dam unless that dam is listed on the roster required by House Bill 1099 (2020); allows the Department of Natural Resources to reference FEMA standards when setting signage and warning requirements; permits a bond to satisfy an existing insurance requirement; and states a public policy preference for removing low-head dams in navigable waterways to promote public safety, protect fish and wildlife, and avoid impairing navigability. The bill also says that, under certain circumstances, a low-head dam in a navigable waterway may be treated as an encroachment and removed without a DNR construction-in-a-floodway permit, while preserving the requirement that other federal, local or state permits still apply.

Representative Manning described SB 477 as a follow-up to 2020’s House Bill 1099, which he said recognized “the threat to public safety posed by low head dams” and established earlier safety requirements, and he noted the stateʼs law had been considered a regional leader by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Manning said the earlier effort had led to many removals or modifications and that SB 477 refines remaining requirements and implementation details. He told the committee the bill would "allow DNR to reference FEMA standards" and would permit a bond instead of insurance to meet existing requirements.

David Van Gilder of the Hoosier Environmental Council testified in support, citing ecological benefits of dam removal and offering an anecdote about a local removal that restored upstream fish and mussel passage. Van Gilder said the council supports recognizing, improving the safety of, and ultimately removing these structures where appropriate.

The committee recorded the motion to pass the bill and a second; a roll call produced the tally of 11 yes, 0 no and the chair announced the bill as advanced. No amendments were adopted during the committee discussion. The bill text retains that any DNR permits issued after January 2021 for low-head dam removal remain in effect for two years after all judicial appeals, if any, have been finally adjudicated.

Supporters framed SB 477 as a public-safety and ecological measure; the committee did not adopt policy changes expanding or narrowing other permitting authorities beyond the DNR-specific construction-in-floodway exemption described above.