Dam safety reforms move closer to law after Michigan Senate vote

The Michigan Senate on Thursday voted to overhaul Michigan's lax dam safety laws, moving long-awaited reforms one vote away from reaching Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Both legislative chambers have now approved versions of two companion bills sponsored by Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak, and Rep. Bill G. Schuette, R-Midland, to strengthen flood control standards, increase inspections and require owners to prove they can maintain the structures.

Because Thursday's Senate vote included substitute language for one of those bills – House Bill 5485 – it must return to the House for concurrence before reaching Whitmer's desk.

Schuette said he expects quick approval in the House, which last week passed McMorrow's Senate Bill 947.

The votes represent a breakthrough in a long-stalled effort to strengthen Michigan's dam safety standards, which are among the nation's weakest.

Reforms were first proposed after dam failures in mid-Michigan caused more than $200 million in damages. They languished until this spring, when flooding caused another round of costly dam failures and near-failures.

"While we can't undo what happened across our region in 2020, we can and should prioritize a better way forward," Schuette told Bridge Michigan on Thursday.

He called the legislation "a huge win for communities and families across our state who have homes and livelihoods near high-hazard dams."

Michigan is home to some of the nation's oldest dams, averaging about 80 years old.

A Bridge Michigan investigation in June found more than 100,000 state residents live in the path of a potential flood from a high or significant-hazard dam, which could kill people or inflict widespread damage if they fail.

Many of those dams are in poor or unsatisfactory condition, while hundreds do not meet the national standard for flood control.

Across much of the nation, high-hazard dams must be capable of passing 100% of the so-called probable maximum flood, or the worst-case-scenario flood in the surrounding area.

Michigan's standards are less than half as stringent.

"With inaction … other dams will fail. It's just a matter of when," Denver-based dam safety expert John France told Bridge at the time.

Thursday's votes are the latest in a flurry of activity to shore up Michigan dams in recent months. Lawmakers in July allocated millions toward shoring up problem dams and boosting staffing in the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy dam safety unit.

The funding, in part, was meant to alleviate concerns that higher dam safety standards would trigger costly infrastructure upgrades that communities couldn't afford.

Statewide, Michigan's 2,600 dams need a collective $1 billion in repairs and updates.

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This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.