Central Oversight of Levees Needed in Arkansas

Arkansas is putting its residents and economy at risk by failing to adopt a centralized system for flood-levee oversight, the state’s lawmakers have been told. Representatives from the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission told members of the Legislative Joint Audit Committee that many levees in the state may not pass federal certification and could crumble under heavy rains.

Lack of federal certification would cost property owners in levee districts because they would have to start buying costly flood insurance, said Randy Young, executive director of the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission.

Without repairs, many of the levees – especially in northern and eastern Arkansas – could fail during heavy rains, resulting in catastrophic flooding. A state audit of levee districts conducted last fiscal year was presented to the lawmakers in mid-June. It said no state agency is responsible for maintaining a complete list of the districts and there are no procedures to approve the construction or registration of new levees.

Many levee districts no longer have active boards, some have none and often the districts do not have enough money to afford regular repairs of the levees.