INDIANA, USA — Senate Bill 277, authored by Sen. Rick Niemeyer (R) and endorsed by Gov. Mike Braun, has passed its final vote 26-21 and is headed to the governor’s desk.
The bill seeks to deregulate the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). The IDEM is responsible for protecting the environmental and human health of Indiana. The state agency monitors the levels of air, water, solid and hazardous waste in the state, discharging permits to make sure the levels are environmentally safe.
Senate Bill 277 comes in the aftermath of Braun’s executive orders reducing environmental “over-regulation” and denouncing environmental justice as a “non-scientific” and “inconsistent” factor in environmental policy and regulation…