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Bill that would let some homes stay in the floodway passes House

By Rebecca Thiele, IPB News | Published on in Government, Local News, Politics, Weather
A floodplain map of the area where two Amish brothers built their homes in Wayne County. (Indiana Floodplain Information Portal)

A bill, SB 342, meant to help two Amish brothers who inadvertently built their homes in a floodway passed the Indiana House on Monday.

Wayne County neglected to check the state floodplain maps before issuing permits to the brothers. The bill would prohibit the state from making residents in the floodway in Wayne County move or put their homes on stilts.

READ MORE: Bills on floodplains, dams limit the Indiana DNR’s ability to protect Hoosiers from flooding

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But the Indiana Department of Natural Resources warns, if it becomes law, the bill could jeopardize flood insurance in the county and possibly the state.

Contact reporter Rebecca at rthiele@iu.edu or follow her on Twitter at @beckythiele.

Indiana Environmental reporting is supported by the Environmental Resilience Institute, an Indiana University Grand Challenge project developing Indiana-specific projections and informed responses to problems of environmental change.