Senate Bill 389 would put up to 80% of the remaining wetlands in the state at risk of permanent elimination. It would also remove costly mitigation requirements for developers.
Opponents say that doing away with the protections could increase flooding, degrade water quality and destroy wildlife habitat. More than 40 organizations have opposed the bill, some have raised ethics concerns and Gov. Eric Holcomb, who has expressed unease about the environmental impact, allowed his state environmental and natural resource agencies to oppose the measure during a recent hearing.
That bears repeating: The Republican governor has expressed unease with a bill moving through the Republican-controlled legislature, and has allowed state agencies, which rarely take a position on pending legislation, to oppose it.