Indianapolis homeowners still rebuilding from flooding that struck in mid-August 2026 will no longer have to watch the calendar for a fee waiver deadline. Mayor Joe Hogsett has indefinitely suspended permit fees for properties in the affected areas, scrapping the expiration dates that have defined the relief program since it began two and a half months ago.
The move came through Hogsett's ninth executive order of the year, signed Friday, according to WISH-TV. The order directs the city's Department of Business and Neighborhood Services to keep suspending fees for permits submitted in flood-affected areas until Hogsett or a future executive order ends or changes the policy, the station reports. DBNS is tasked with determining which areas and properties the flooding directly affected, rather than applying the waiver citywide.
A Waiver That Kept Getting Pushed Back
Friday's order is actually at least the fourth time City Hall has touched this policy. Hogsett first ordered the fee suspension on August 20, days after flooding hit, and extended it twice before it lapsed in mid-October, per the same WISH-TV report. Rather than let the relief disappear for good, the mayor's latest order removes the deadline altogether.
The on-again, off-again timeline tracks with earlier coverage from WISH-TV, which reported in August that the initial suspension was set to run only through September 13. That first order also spelled out who qualified: properties sitting within Marion County's special flood hazard area were automatically eligible, while homeowners outside that zone could still apply if they submitted insurance documentation confirming flood damage, with DBNS reviewing those requests case by case.
What the Waiver Actually Covers
According to that same report, the suspension applies to application, review and issuance fees across several permit categories, including floodplain development, wrecking, drainage, improvement location and structural permits. As WTHR has reported, the waiver is retroactive to eligible permits submitted on or after August 14 and can also apply to related permits, including those needed for structural work — a detail that matters for homeowners whose repairs have dragged on for weeks.
WTHR's reporting also tied the relief directly to ongoing recovery efforts in the Ravenswood neighborhood, where residents have continued working through repairs well after the initial storm. Before Friday's indefinite order, the city had most recently extended the suspension through October 31, the outlet noted, meaning homeowners were facing yet another looming cutoff before Hogsett's latest move eliminated the deadline question entirely.
As WRTV reported on the latest order, the shift to an open-ended suspension gives flood-affected property owners more certainty as repairs continue, even as the city has not specified how many properties or permits have been affected so far.
