Indiana utilities notify owners before extending water and sewer mains

A municipally owned utility must send notices to affected landowners and the county plan commission before seeking land for a main extension. The rules apply when the land is outside the municipality's boundaries or the utility's existing service territory when the taking is first proposed. They cover municipally owned water and wastewater utilities, but not utilities owned, operated, or held in trust by a consolidated city. The rules do not apply to temporary easements or condemnations needed to protect public health or safety. The utility may proceed with the proposed extension after meeting this section's notice requirements. The utility must send each owner notice at least 60 days before presenting a purchase offer. An owner or plan commission may request a meeting in writing within 30 days after receiving its notice.

The utility must offer a meeting after a landowner or county plan commission asks in writing. A landowner who receives the property notice or a county plan commission that receives the project notice may request a meeting about the proposed extension. The utility must offer a meeting; the text does not require that a meeting take place. The request must be made within 30 days after the notice arrives. The utility must offer a meeting within 30 days after it receives the request.

The commission must include specified extension project information in its annual report. The report covers the most recently concluded state fiscal year and may include other information the commission considers relevant to evaluating effects on landowners, utilities, and extension projects. The report must cover delays a utility reports and attributes to these requirements, complaints or disputes submitted to the commission, and the commission's actions on them. Beginning in 2027, the commission must include this information in its annual report, due before October 1 each year.