{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-224.18-760","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 224.18-760","heading":"Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Compact.","body":"The following Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Compact, which has been negotiated\nby representatives of the states of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio,\nPennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia, is approved, ratified, adopted, enacted into\nlaw, and entered into by the Commonwealth of Kentucky as a party thereto and signatory\nstate, namely:\nOHIO RIVER VALLEY WATER SANITATION COMPACT\nBetween the States of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania,\nTennessee and West Virginia\nPursuant to authority granted by an Act of the 74th Congress of the United States,\nPublic Resolution 104, approved June 8, 1936, conferences of delegates appointed to\ndraft the compact were held at Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 20, 1936; January 17,\n1938; May 24, 1938; June 13, 1938; October 11, 1938.\nWhereas, A substantial part of the territory of each of the signatory states is situated\nwithin the drainage basin of the Ohio River; and\nWhereas, The rapid increase in the population of the various metropolita n areas\nsituated within the Ohio drainage basin, and the growth in industrial activity within that\narea, have resulted in recent years in an increasingly serious pollution of the waters and\nstreams within the said drainage basin, constituting a grave menace to the health, welfare,\nand recreational facilities of the people living in such basin, and occasioning great\neconomic loss; and\nWhereas, The control of future pollution and the abatement of existing pollution in\nthe waters of said basin are of prime im portance to the people thereof, and can best be\naccomplished through the cooperation of the States situated therein, by and through a\njoint or common agency;\nNow, Therefore, The States of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Ohio,\nPennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia do hereby covenant and agree as follows:\nARTICLE I\nEach of the signatory States pledges to each of the other signatory States faithful\ncooperation in the control of future pollution in and abatement of existing pollution from\nthe rivers, streams and waters in the Ohio River basin which flow through, into or border\nupon any of such signatory States, and in order to effect such object, agrees to enact any\nnecessary legislation to enable each such State to place and maintain the waters of said\nbasin in a satisfactory sanitary condition, available for safe and satisfactory use as public\nand industrial water supplies after reasonable treatment, suitable for recreational usage,\ncapable of maintaining fish and other aquatic life, free from unsi ghtly or malodorous\nnuisances due to floating solids or sludge deposits, and adaptable to such other uses as\nmay be legitimate.\nARTICLE II\nThe signatory States hereby create a district to be known as the \"Ohio River Valley\nWater Sanitation District,\" hereinafter called the District, which shall embrace all territory\nwithin the signatory States, the water in which flows ultimately into the Ohio River, or its\ntributaries.\nARTICLE III\nThe signatory States hereby create the \"Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation\nCommission,\" hereinafter called the Commission, which shall be a body corporate, with\nthe powers and duties set forth herein, and such additional powers as may be conferred\nupon it by subsequent action of the respective legislatures of the signatory States or by act\nor acts of the Congress of the United States.\nARTICLE IV\nThe Commission shall consist of three commissioners from each State, each of\nwhom shall be a citizen of the State from which he is appointed, and three commissioners\nrepresenting the United States Government. The commissioners from each State shall be\nchosen in the manner and for the terms provided by the laws of the States from which\nthey shall be appointed, and any commissioner may be removed or suspended from office\nas provided by the law of the State from which he shall be appointed. The commissioners\nrepresenting the United States shall be appointed by the President of the United States, or\nin such other manner as may be provided by Congress. The commissioners shall serve\nwithout compensation, but shall be paid their actual expenses incurred in and incident to\nthe performance of their duties; but nothing herein shall prevent the appointment of an\nofficer or employee of any State or of the United States Government.\nARTICLE V\nThe Commission shall elect from its number a chairman and vice chairman, and\nshall appoint, and at its pleasure remove or discharge, such officers and legal, clerical,\nexpert and other assistants as may be required to carry the provisions of this compact into\neffect, and shall fix and determine their duties, qualifications and compensation. It shall\nadopt a seal and suitable bylaws, and shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for\nits management and control. It may establish and maintain one or more offices within the\nDistrict for the transaction of its business, and may meet at any time or place. One or\nmore commissioners from a majority of the member States shall constitute a quorum fo r\nthe transaction of business.\nThe Commission shall submit to the Governor of each State, at such time as he may\nrequest, a budget of its estimated expenditures for such period as may be required by the\nlaws of such State for presentation to the legislature thereof.\nThe Commission shall keep accurate books of account, showing in full its receipts\nand disbursements, and said books of account shall be open at any reasonable time to the\ninspection of such representatives of the respective signatory States as  may be duly\nconstituted for that purpose.\nOn or before the first day of December of each year, the Commission shall submit\nto the respective governors of the signatory States a full and complete report of its\nactivities for the preceding year.\nThe Commission shall not incur any obligations of any kind prior to the making of\nappropriations adequate to meet the same; nor shall the Commission pledge the credit of\nany of the signatory States, except by and with the authority of the legislature thereof.\nARTICLE VI\nIt is recognized by the signatory States that no single standard for the treatment of\nsewage or industrial wastes is applicable in all parts of the District due to such variable\nfactors as size, flow, location, character, self -purification, and usage of waters within the\nDistrict. The guiding principle of this compact shall be that pollution by sewage or\nindustrial wastes originating within a signatory State shall not injuriously affect the\nvarious uses of the interstate waters as hereinbefore defined.\nAll sewage from municipalities or other political subdivisions, public or private\ninstitutions, or corporations, discharged or permitted to flow into these portions of the\nOhio River and its tributary waters which form boundaries between, or are contig uous to,\ntwo or more signatory States, or which flow from one signatory State into another\nsignatory State, shall be so treated, within a time reasonable for the construction of the\nnecessary works, as to provide for substantially complete removal of settleable solids, and\nthe removal of not less than forty -five percent (45%) of the total suspended solids;\nprovided that in order to protect the public health or to preserve the waters for other\nlegitimate purposes, including those specified in Article I, in s pecific instances such\nhigher degree of treatment shall be used as may be determined to be necessary by the\nCommission after investigation, due notice and hearing.\nAll industrial wastes discharged or permitted to flow into the aforesaid waters shall\nbe mo dified or treated, within a time reasonable for the construction of the necessary\nworks, in order to protect the public health or to preserve the waters for other legitimate\npurposes, including those specified in Article I, to such degree as may be determi ned to\nbe necessary by the Commission after investigation, due notice and hearing.\nAll sewage or industrial wastes discharged or permitted to flow into tributaries of\nthe aforesaid waters situated wholly within one State shall be treated to that extent, if any,\nwhich may be necessary to maintain such waters in a sanitary and satisfactory condition at\nleast equal to the condition of the waters of the interstate stream immediately above the\nconfluence.\nThe Commission is hereby authorized to adopt, prescribe  and promulgate rules,\nregulations and standards for administering and enforcing the provisions of this article.\nARTICLE VII\nNothing in this compact shall be construed to limit the powers of any signatory\nState, or to repeal or prevent the enactment of an y legislation or the enforcement of any\nrequirement by any signatory State, imposing additional conditions and restrictions to\nfurther lessen or prevent the pollution of waters within its jurisdiction.\nARTICLE VIII\nThe Commission shall conduct a survey of the territory included within the District,\nshall study the pollution problems of the District, and shall make a comprehensive report\nfor the prevention or reduction of stream pollution therein. In preparing such report, the\nCommission shall confer with a ny national or regional planning body which may be\nestablished, and any department of the Federal Government authorized to deal with\nmatters relating to the pollution problems of the District. The Commission shall draft and\nrecommend to the governors of th e various signatory States uniform legislation dealing\nwith the pollution of rivers, streams and waters and other pollution problems within the\nDistrict. The Commission shall consult with and advise the various States, communities,\nmunicipalities, corporations, persons or other entities with regard to particular problems\nconnected with the pollution of waters, particularly with regard to the construction of\nplants for the disposal of sewage, industrial and other waste. The Commission shall, more\nthan one mo nth prior to any regular meeting of the legislature of any State which is a\nparty thereto, present to the governor of the State its recommendations relating to\nenactments to be made by any legislature in furthering the intents and purposes of this\ncompact.\nARTICLE IX\nThe Commission may from time to time, after investigation and after a hearing,\nissue an order or orders upon any municipality, corporation, person, or other entity\ndischarging sewage or industrial waste into the Ohio River or any other river, stream or\nwater, any part of which constitutes any part of the boundary line between any two or\nmore of the signatory States or into any stream any part of which flows from any portion\nof one signatory State through any portion of another signatory State. Any such order or\norders may prescribe the date on or before which such discharge shall be wholly or\npartially discontinued, modified or treated or otherwise disposed of. The Commission\nshall give reasonable notice of the time and place of the hearing to t he municipality,\ncorporation or other entity against which such order is proposed. No such order shall go\ninto effect unless and until it receives the assent of at least a majority of the\ncommissioners from each of not less than a majority of the signatory  states; and no such\norder upon a municipality, corporation, person or entity in any State shall go into effect\nunless and until it receives the assent of not less than a majority of the commissioners\nfrom such State.\nIt shall be the duty of the municipality, corporation, person or other entity to comply\nwith any such order issued against it or him by the Commission, and any court of general\njurisdiction or any United States district court in any of the signatory States shall have the\njurisdiction, by mand amus, injunction, specific performance or other form of remedy, to\nenforce any such order against any municipality, corporation or other entity domiciled or\nlocated within such State or whose discharge of the waste takes place within or adjoining\nsuch Stat e, or against any employee, department or subdivision of such municipality,\ncorporation, person or other entity; provided, however, such court may review the order\nand affirm, reverse or modify the same upon any of the grounds customarily applicable in\nproceedings for court review of administrative decisions. The Commission or, at its\nrequest, the Attorney-General or other law enforcing official, shall have power to institute\nin such court any action for the enforcement of such order.\nARTICLE X\nThe signato ry States agree to appropriate for the salaries, office and other\nadministrative expenses, their proper proportion of the annual budget as determined by\nthe Commission and approved by the Governors of the signatory States, one -half of such\namount to be pro rated among the several States in proportion to their population within\nthe District at the last preceding federal census, the other half to be prorated in proportion\nto their land area within the District.\nARTICLE XI\nThis compact shall become effective u pon ratification by the legislatures of a\nmajority of the States located within the District and upon approval by the Congress of\nthe United States; and shall become effective as to any additional States signing thereafter\nat the time of such signing.\nThe Commonwealth of Kentucky consents that the State of Virginia may become a\nparty to and a signatory state of the aforesaid compact as fully as if it had been expressly\nnamed therein.","path":[],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=10345","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:52:39Z","sha256":"49e3858555798603a7bc04c2e6a33be78d7594b6870546ec4460d87b97554556","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-224.18-715","next":"us-ky/krs-224.18-780"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}