Calls are mounting for Gov. Eric Holcomb (R) to veto a bill that would remove some protections from Indiana's already diminished wetlands amid mounting criticism that it could damage waterways, wildlife and vegetation. The wetlands measure passed out of the Legislature on April 14 and has sparked bipartisan opposition within the Republican-dominated Legislature. If enacted, it would eliminate a 2003 law that requires the Indiana Department of Environmental Management to issue permits for construction and development in state-regulated wetlands and end enforcement proceedings against landowners accused of violating current law. All Democratic members of the General Assembly, as well as a member of the Senate Republican Caucus, urged the governor to veto the bill in a letter sent Wednesday. Enacting the bill "will have long term consequences," they said, urging a "more in-depth study than what was accomplished in limited committee times during a legislative session in a pandemic."
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