INDIANAPOLIS – The group tasked with upgrading Indiana’s drainage handbook met for the first time in mid-December. The handbook advisory board is expected to complete its work by May 2026.

The board is charged with advising the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) on efforts to update the handbook, last done in 1999. The creation of the board was included in legislation (SB 140) introduced in January 2024 by Sen. Jean Leising (R-42nd district). The bill was signed by Gov. Eric Holcomb in March 2024. The legislation calls for the board to have 15 members.

“The Drainage Task Force, which I co-chaired during the 2022 and 2023 interim, found Indiana residents struggle to maintain their own property because of strict drainage laws they can’t easily review,” Leising said in a statement in March. “This law works to return some rights back to property owners and help them identify state drainage regulations by publishing an updated Indiana Drainage Handbook online.”

The advisory board includes farmers, a licensed county surveyor, a county commissioner, a licensed engineer, and representatives from a soil and water conservation district, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).

ISDA has contracted with Christopher B. Burke Engineering to create the updated manual. During the Dec. 17 meeting, the company’s vice president of government services, David Eichelberger, explained the process and gave a timeline. He will serve as project manager.

The current handbook is made up of six sections, he said. Included in the first section is information regarding the purpose for the handbook, which serves as an administrative and technical guide for drainage activities within Indiana’s streams and ditches. It’s meant to ease the process of obtaining permits, Eichelberger added.

“It describes what the handbook is and what the handbook is not,” he explained. “It’s not intended as an all-inclusive technical resource. It does describe different practices and points out considerations associated with each one of those. It does not offer detailed design and technical specifications for each practice. It addresses both regulated drains and also those waterways that are outside the jurisdiction of county drainage boards and it made it real clear that it is not imposing new policies or procedures or regulations in that current handbook.”

Other sections in the manual include descriptions of the permitting processes and of various codes, a selection guide for different practices, and details of different best management practices.

Burke will begin doing interviews and surveys to gather input. “We want to find out what you all think, or what other people think, our current handbook shortcomings (are), maybe some input on the updated content and format, current and emerging activities and practices, etc.,” Eichelberger said. “We’re going to do that with a variety of surveys and stakeholder interviews, either in person or virtual.”

Those to be contacted include board members, county surveyors, regulatory agencies and farmers.

Once it’s complete, a draft of permitting processes and procedures will be sent to regulatory agencies for their review and comment. Burke will also work on a draft updating the drainage improvement activities and practices section, including the required permits.

Both drafts will be reviewed by the board and ISDA. Eichelberger said the company hopes to have the process complete by mid-May 2026, and a public presentation in June 2026. The updated handbook will be available on ISDA and IDNR websites.

One board member said she was “looking forward to it, as a farmer as well, taking (an updated handbook) back to our ag community and seeing what we can come up with to help advise you.”

Eichelberger said the handbook should be updated about every five years or less.