Except as otherwise provided in this section, a construction permit shall not be issued under section 1521.06 of the Revised Code unless the person or governmental agency applying for the permit executes and files a surety bond conditioned on completion of the dam or levee in accordance with the terms of the permit and the plans and specifications approved by the chief of the division of water resources, in an amount equal to fifty per cent of the estimated cost of the project.

If a permittee requests an extension of the time period during which a construction permit is valid in accordance with rules adopted under section 1521.06 of the Revised Code, the chief shall determine whether the revised construction cost estimate provided with the request exceeds the original construction cost estimate that was filed with the chief by more than twenty-five per cent. If the revised construction cost estimate exceeds the original construction cost estimate by more than twenty-five per cent, the chief may require an additional surety bond to be filed so that the total amount of the surety bonds equals at least fifty per cent of the revised construction cost estimate.

The chief shall not approve any bond until it is personally signed and acknowledged by both principal and surety, or as to either by the attorney in fact thereof, with a certified copy of the power of attorney attached. The chief shall not approve the bond unless there is attached a certificate of the superintendent of insurance that the company is authorized to transact a fidelity and surety business in this state.

All bonds shall be given in a form prescribed by the chief and shall run to the state as obligee.

The applicant may deposit, in lieu of a bond, cash in an amount equal to the amount of the bond or United States government securities or negotiable certificates of deposit issued by any bank organized or transacting business in this state having a par value equal to or greater than the amount of the bond. Such cash or securities shall be deposited upon the same terms as bonds. If one or more certificates of deposit are deposited in lieu of a bond, the chief shall require the bank that issued any such certificate to pledge securities of the aggregate market value equal to the amount of the certificate that is in excess of the amount insured by the federal deposit insurance corporation. The securities to be pledged shall be those designated as eligible under section 135.18 of the Revised Code. The securities shall be security for the repayment of the certificate of deposit.

Immediately upon a deposit of cash, securities, or certificates of deposit, the chief shall deliver them to the treasurer of state, who shall hold them in trust for the purposes for which they have been deposited. The treasurer of state is responsible for the safekeeping of such deposits. An applicant making a deposit of cash, securities, or certificates of deposit may withdraw and receive from the treasurer of state, on the written order of the chief, all or any portion of the cash, securities, or certificates of deposit, upon depositing with the treasurer of state cash, other United States government securities, or negotiable certificates of deposit issued by any bank organized or transacting business in this state equal in par value to the par value of the cash, securities, or certificates of deposit withdrawn. An applicant may demand and receive from the treasurer of state all interest or other income from any such securities or certificates as it becomes due. If securities so deposited with and in the possession of the treasurer of state mature or are called for payment by the issuer thereof, the treasurer of state, at the request of the applicant who deposited them, shall convert the proceeds of the redemption or payment of the securities into such other United States government securities, negotiable certificates of deposit issued by any bank organized or transacting business in this state, or cash as the applicant designates.

When the chief finds that a person or governmental agency has failed to comply with the conditions of the person's or agency's bond, the chief shall make a finding of that fact and declare the bond, cash, securities, or certificates of deposit forfeited in the amount set by rule of the chief. The chief shall thereupon certify the total forfeiture to the attorney general, who shall proceed to collect that amount.

In lieu of total forfeiture, the surety, at its option, may cause the dam or levee to be completed as required by section 1521.06 of the Revised Code and rules of the chief, or otherwise rendered nonhazardous, or pay to the treasurer of state the cost thereof.

All moneys collected on account of forfeitures of bonds, cash, securities, and certificates of deposit under this section shall be credited to the dam safety fund created in section 1521.06 of the Revised Code. The chief shall make expenditures from the fund to complete dams and levees for which bonds have been forfeited or to otherwise render them nonhazardous.

Expenditures from the fund for those purposes shall be made pursuant to contracts entered into by the chief with persons who agree to furnish all of the materials, equipment, work, and labor as specified and provided in the contract.

A surety bond shall not be required for a permit for a dam or levee that is to be designed and constructed by an agency of the United States government, if the agency files with the chief written assurance of the agency's financial responsibility for the structure during the one-year period following the chief's approval of the completed construction provided for under division (E) of section 1521.06 of the Revised Code.

Amended by 131st General Assembly File No. TBD, HB 64, §101.01, eff. 1/1/2016.

Amended by 128th General AssemblyFile No.9, HB 1, §101.01, eff. 7/17/2009.

Effective Date: 09-28-1990; 04-06-2007