News Releases

State Sen. Jean Leising to serve as co-chair of Drainage Task Force

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kellyn Harrison, Press Secretary
Kellyn.Harrison@iga.in.gov
317-232-9498

State Sen. Jean Leising to serve as
co-chair of Drainage Task Force

STATEHOUSE (Oct. 6, 2022) — State Sen. Jean Leising (R-Oldenburg) will serve as co-chair of the Drainage Task Force in preparation for the 2023 legislative session.

The task force was created by Senate Enrolled Act 85, authored by Leising, during the 2022 legislative session to study the regulatory matters of agriculture land drainage.

The task force will:

  • Review the responsibilities of landowners and state and local authorities under current laws relating to the drainage of land;
  • Make determinations and recommendations concerning drainage and regulatory matters;
  • Determine whether the balance between state and local authority over agricultural land drainage favors state authority more in Indiana than in neighboring states; and
  • Issue an electronic report providing legislative recommendations no later than Dec. 1, 2023, to the executive director of the legislative services agency for distribution to the General Assembly and governor.

"I have heard from many constituents in my district and across the state who express unrelenting concern with current land drainage laws," Leising said. "As chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and author of SEA 85, I look forward to continuing discussion on the needs and issues pertaining to this topic and reviewing the state and local authority over drainage laws."

The task force will consist of 19 members including six members of the Indiana Senate, six members of the Indiana House of Representatives and seven governor-appointed individuals.

Governor-appointed individuals will include an employee of the Department of Environmental Management, an employee of the Department of Natural Resources, a member of a county drainage board, a member of the governing body of a soil and water conservation district, a representative of the Indiana chapter of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, a representative of a statewide farm organization and a county surveyor.

To view study committee agendas and stream hearings online, visit iga.in.gov. To view a list of topics that will be examined by the committees, click here.

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Click here for a high-resolution photo of Leising.