2022 Agriculture, Environment, & Natural Resources
Updated: 4/26/22
Back to 2022 Indiana General Assembly
Bad Bills
HB1100: Agency Oversight and Rulemaking Procedures (dead)
Authors: Rep. Steve Bartels (R), Rep. Doug Miller (R), Rep. Jim Pressel (R), Rep. Chris Jeter (R)
Sponsors: Sen. Chris Garten (R), Sen. Blake Doriot (R), Sen. Mark Messmer (R), Sen. Jon Ford (R)
Status: Died in the Senate Commerce and Technology Committee
Position: CAC opposes this bill
Votes:
- 1/05/22: The House Government and Regulatory Reform Committee amended HB1100 by consent.
- 1/12/22: The House Government and Regulatory Reform Committee amended HB1100 by consent, then passed it out of committee by a vote of 8-2.
- 1/24/22: The House Ways and Means Committee amended HB1100 by consent, then passed it out of committee by a vote of 10-5.
- 1/26/22: The House amended HB1100 by a vote of 92-0.
- 1/27/22: The House passed HB1100 by a vote of 61-29.
Description: contains “no more stringent than” language from legislation in previous years, which would make it illegal for Indiana’s Executive Branch to pass policies that are tighter for public health than what the U.S. EPA does, for those situations where the EPA has set standards. While the EPA has acted decisively to protect our air quality, there are many areas where the EPA has been, candidly, weak. The EPA has not adequately protected the public from such serious environmental problems as pollution from fracking, factory farm manure pits, and outdoor wood boilers. HB1100 allows unnecessary legislative interference in administrative rule makings and places additional burdens on administrative agencies.
Good Bills
SCR3: Concerning Climate Change and Economic Development (dead)
Authors: Sen. Ron Alting (R), Sen. Vaneta Becker (R), Sen. Mike Bohacek (R), Sen. Jon Ford (R), Sen. Timothy Lanane (D)
Status: Died in the Senate Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: acknowledges that climate change is a serious problem, among other things encourages that Indiana’s response to climate change should “seek to capitalize on economic development that will combat ‘brain drain’, achieve better workforce development, enhance quality of place, and create jobs for all Hoosiers.”
SB255: Climate and Environmental Justice Task Force (dead)
Authors: Sen. Ron Alting (R), Sen. Mike Bohacek (R), Sen. Fady Qaddoura (D), Sen. Shelli Yoder (D), Sen. Vaneta Becker (R), Sen. Jon Ford (R), Sen. J.D. Ford (D), Sen. Timothy Lanane (D)
Status: Died in the Senate Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: establishes the climate and environmental justice task force, requires the task force to create a climate action plan and submit the plan to the legislature and governor by November 1, 2022
SB412: Regulation of Coal Combustion Residuals (dead)
Authors: Sen. Rodney Pol (D), Sen. Susan Glick (R), Sen. J.D. Ford (D)
Status: Died in the Senate Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: Establishes a state policy favoring beneficial uses of coal combustion residuals (CCR), strengthens the rules related to the disposal of CCR if it: (1) would be within a 500 year flood plain; (2) would be in contact with ground water; (3) could migrate into the uppermost aquifer; (4) would be left in an unstable area; or (5) would be in a seismic impact zone. Defines "closure in place"
HB1184: Regulation of PFAS Contaminates (dead)
Authors: Rep. Ryan Dvorak (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: requires the state department of health to establish state maximum contaminant levels for PFAS in water provided by public water systems.
HB1186: Fertilizer Runoff and Lake Michigan Discharges (dead)
Authors: Rep. Ryan Dvorak (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: addresses regulation of water pollution caused by fertilizer runoff in certain circumstances
HB1253: Old Forest Areas in State Forests (dead)
Authors: Rep. Chris May (R), Rep. Anthony Cook (R)
Status: Died in the House Natural Resources Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: requires DNR to set aside 10% of each state forest as an old-growth forest area, prohibits DNR from allowing timber management in old-growth forest areas
HB1276: PFAS Chemical Blood Testing Program (dead)
Authors: Rep. Maureen Bauer (D), Rep. Peggy Mayfield (R)
Status: Dead in the House Public Health Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: establishes the PFAS chemical blood testing program under the department of health for the purpose of blood testing certain individuals for a higher concentration of PFAS chemicals to study the health effects of a higher concentration of PFAS chemicals in an individual's blood.
HB1280: Air Pollution (dead)
Authors: Rep. Justin Moed (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: defines “odor nuisance”, requires environmental rules board to establish rules around “odor nuisance”, establishes criteria for bringing claims about an “odor nuisance”
HB1287: Climate Change Commission (dead)
Authors: Rep. Carey Hamilton (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: establishes the climate change commission with the purpose of studying “climate change impacts on Indiana, as well as resilience and carbon mitigation policies”, requires the commission to adopt recommendations in certain areas and report to the legislature by December 1st of each year.
HB1335: Closure of Coal Combustion Residual Impoundments (dead)
Authors: Rep. Pat Boy (D), Rep. Maureen Bauer (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affairs Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: places certain requirements on the owners or operators of a coal combustion residuals (CCR) surface impoundment under certain circumstances, including, but not limited to (1) removing all CCR from the CCR surface impoundment, (2) returning the site of the CCR surface impoundment to a nonerosive and stable condition, and (3) transferring the CCR for disposal in a landfill that meets certain requirements or putting the CCR to an encapsulated beneficial use.
HB1378: Preschool and Child Care Facility Drinking Water (dead)
Authors: Rep. Carolyn Jackson (D), Rep. Mike Aylesworth (R), Rep. Maureen Bauer (D)
Status: Died in the House Environmental Affaris Committee
Position: CAC supports this bill
Description: requires the person or entity having authority over a child care facility or preschool to test the drinking water in the child care facility or preschool before January 1, 2025, to determine whether lead is present in the drinking water in a concentration equal to or exceeding 15 parts per billion, requires that entity to take action to reduce the concentration of lead to below 15 parts per billion if the test results reveal that lead levels exceed those limits
Watching
HB1025: Septic System Inspection and Well Water Testing
HB1036: Watershed Development Commissions
HB1037: Wastewater Holding Tanks in RV Campgrounds
HB1063: De Novo Judicial Review of Certain Agency Actions
HB1103: Department of Natural Resources
HB1200: Repeal of Supplemental Fee on Electric Vehicles
HB1201: Radon Testing in School Buildings
HB1286: Request for Proposals for Solid Waste Contracts
HB1288: Supplemental Fee on Electric and Hybrid Vehicles
SB122: Annual Inspection of CFOS
SB186: Department of Natural Resources
SB301: Wastewater Holding Tanks in RV Campgrounds
