Perc Tests and Soil Evaluations in Indiana

Called here: On-Site Evaluation (Registered Professional Soil Scientist) (this state no longer performs a literal perc test)

Indiana has a statewide residential rule, but local boards of health administer it through the health officer and authorized representatives. Contact the county health department for its forms, fee, submission format, field procedure, plan requirements, inspections, and approvals. Hire an Indiana-registered professional soil scientist to conduct and sign the on-site evaluation and soil-profile report. The owner or agent must obtain a written construction permit signed by the health officer before new construction and the replacement, repair, placement, or expansion work covered by the rule. The local health department must issue or deny the permit in writing within 30 days after receiving the application and plan submittal. That decision period does not include evaluator scheduling, report preparation, corrections, or the whole project.

Indiana has no statewide acreage exemption from the residential soil-evaluation and permit requirements. Section 53(n) has a narrow clause for individual lots in subdivisions approved and recorded before December 21, 1990 when the soils meet the stated slight-or-moderate rating condition. It exempts only two specific site-suitability provisions and does not remove the on-site evaluation or construction permit. After evaluation, do not add fill, cut, scrape, compact, or remove soil from the system site. Any such disturbance stops system construction until a new on-site evaluation is completed and a modified construction permit is issued.

Indiana-specific private pricing evidence is thin. Cool Soil Consulting in east-central Indiana published $650 for a standard residential evaluation and $1,300 for a residential moraine evaluation needing pit testing, with pit digging excluded. These are one operator's prices in one region, not a statewide range or average. The local construction permit is separate. Examples checked were $60 in Marshall County, $100 in Adams County, and $250 in Monroe County for new residential work; repair examples were $30 in Marshall and $150 in Monroe. Ask two or three IRSS registrants for itemized quotes covering travel, the report, county follow-up, excavation, and return visits, then ask the county for its current fee.

Indiana has no sourced statewide end-to-end timeline beyond the local health department's 30-day permit decision period after application and plan submittal. The state rule gives no fixed calendar validity period for a soil evaluation. Marshall County says seven years if the area stays undisturbed, but that is county practice, not a statewide expiration rule. Wet soil can affect installation: Adams County warns that an absorption field may not be installable during wet-weather months or when soil is wet and recommends planning for summer. That is county operational guidance, not a sentence from the statewide rule. Ask the evaluator, installer, and county how current conditions affect scheduling.

Indiana requires a professional soil scientist registered through its soil-scientist credentialing system. The Board of Registration for Soil Scientists is the licensing and disciplinary authority under IC 25-31.5 and is administered under the Natural Resources Commission. The Indiana Registry of Soil Scientists is the registry named by the health rule, and Purdue's Office of Indiana State Chemist hosts its public roster. IDOH neither licenses soil scientists nor operates the roster. Use the IRSS roster, start with its Available for Hire section, and confirm that the evaluator is a registered professional soil scientist whose registration number and signature will appear on the report. The cited rule does not establish that an associate may independently conduct and sign it.

Indiana Board of Registration for Soil Scientists · Verify a license