IDEM makes red tape reductions, rescinding outdated policies

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) has announced a significant red tape reduction effort with the rescinding of more than a quarter of the agency’s Non-Rule Policies. IDEM has also identified hundreds of federal policies that should be considered for elimination.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) has announced a significant red tape reduction effort with the rescinding of more than a quarter of the agency’s Non-Rule Policies.

IDEM has also identified hundreds of federal policies that should be considered for elimination. These actions are part of an agency-wide focus to increase transparency, strengthen accountability, and ensure agency guidance remains aligned with statutory authority.

A non-rule policy document (NPD) is an agency-drafted interpretation of an environmental statute or rule. While NPDs are not intended to have the force of law, they can influence agency decision-making and guide regulated entities. Under legislation recently enacted by the Indiana General Assembly, IDEM's NPDs must be reviewed and re-adopted every five years.
“Business and communities benefit when standards are clear and free from bureaucratic burdens,” said Gov. Mike Braun. “By cutting unnecessary red tape, Indiana can better focus on achieving meaningful environmental outcomes.”

In October, IDEM announced plans to rescind 26 of its 103 non-rule policies that were identified as outdated, unnecessary, or overly burdensome. IDEM also transmitted a letter to U.S. EPA Deputy Administrator David Fotouhi outlining opportunities to enact swift and common-sense regulatory reforms by withdrawing potentially hundreds of similar federal quasi-regulatory guidance documents. In September, Fotouhi visited Indiana to announce the approval of Indiana’s Coal Combustion Residuals permitting program alongside Governor Braun.

Across the IDEM offices of Air, Land and Water Quality, eliminating the 26 non‑rule policies will remove approximately 176 pages of outdated guidance.

Among the NPDs identified:
— Water-006: Wetlands Deed Restriction – Identified as obsolete, duplicative, and conflicting with regulations.
— Air-017: Submission of Annual Non-Methane Organic Compound Reports for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills – Originally issued in 1998, rules have been repealed by subsequent rulemaking.
— Air-035: Permitting Ethanol Production Facilities – Originally issued in 2011, has since been suspended by rulemaking.
— Waste-0058: Use of Chipped Tires in Sewage Systems – Originally issued in 2005, has been suspended by subsequent rulemaking.

“While non-rule policies can serve useful purposes, without oversight they can evolve into shadow regulations,” said IDEM Commissioner Clint Woods. “Routine review is essential to keeping our regulatory framework clear, consistent, and aligned with statutory authority. This is one of the most significant single-day reductions in unnecessary red tape in Indiana’s history. ”

This review is part of IDEM’s broader effort to modernize its regulatory framework and aligns with recent executive orders from Governor Braun. Executive Order 25‑17, Promoting Freedom and Opportunity for Hoosiers by Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs, requires state agencies to reduce their regulatory requirements by 25 percent by 2029.

Consistent with its review of state policies, IDEM submitted recommendations to U.S. EPA identifying more than 500 federal guidance documents and agency actions that warrant review, consolidation, update, or elimination. EPA policies, most of which are cataloged in the recently relaunched Guidance Portal, are far more extensive than the state's with tens of thousands of guidance documents.

These "shadow regulations often do not go through a robust process... for public notice and comment, administrative procedures, scientific and information quality, or interagency review," Commissioner Woods said in the letter to Deputy Administrator Fotouhi.

“U.S. EPA must act swiftly to ensure all documents contained within the Guidance Portal are current and align with U.S. EPA’s operational practices and formally rescind those that are outdated or have been subsequently superseded by other documents,” Commissioner Woods continued. “State agencies, like IDEM, rely on EPA guidance to implement federal programs efficiently and consistently.”

“I applaud IDEM for undertaking this meaningful work to ensure its non-rule policy documents are aligned with statutory requirements and provide clarity to the regulated community,” said Dr. John Graham, Chair of the Indiana Environmental Rules Board, former Dean of the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs (2008-2019), and former Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (2001-2006). “Federal quasi-regulatory activities can cost states like Indiana thousands of jobs and impose millions in extra compliance costs for manufacturers and everyday consumers without going through a rigorous process subject to judicial, economic, or interagency review.”

Over the next several weeks, IDEM will remove the identified non-rule policies from the “Effective” page of its website and will add them to the “No Longer Effective” page with a watermark stating they are “Rescinded.” IDEM will also notify the Legislative Services Agency of the relevant updates.