republic-os/legislation/us/states/in/2020/sb-340.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Private property matters."
description: "Requires a conveyance, a mortgage, or an instrument of writing to be recorded to be: (1) acknowledged by the grantor; and (2) proven before certain specified individuals; in certain instances. Requires the summons accompanying a complaint for condemnation to include language regarding the defendant's right to object to the condemnation within 30 days from the date notice is served. Requires a court to award reasonable costs and attorney's fees to a defendant whose objection to a complaint for condemnation is sustained. Caps the amount of attorney's fees a court may award if an objection to a condemnation is sustained at $25,000. Exempts a condemnation action brought by a public utility or by a pipeline company from the bill's provisions requiring a court to award a defendant in a condemnation action the defendant's reasonable costs and attorney's fees if the defendant's objections to the proceedings are sustained in the proceedings or upon appeal. Requires a municipality to provide notice by mail to affected owners, both residents and nonresidents of the municipality, of a condemnation. Permits an affected owner to file an objection that a municipality does not have the right to exercise the power of eminent domain for the use sought. Amends the time for a remonstrance hearing for a municipal condemnation and the defendant's right to judicial review of the decision made at the hearing to 30 days. (Current law requires a remonstrance hearing to be set no less than 10 days after notice and the defendant to appeal the decision within 20 days.) Provides parties the right to appeal a court's judgment in the judicial review of a municipal condemnation. Revises the statute allowing a municipality to condemn property for economic development to require a 3/4 affirmative vote of the municipality's legislative body to exercise the power of eminent domain. (Current law requires a 2/3 affirmative vote of the municipality's legislative body.) Allows a property owner to challenge a condemnation for economic development purposes by providing clear and convincing evidence that the owner's parcel is not necessary for the project."
jurisdiction: "us/states/in"
legislature: "Indiana General Assembly"
session: "2020"
identifier: "SB 340"
citation: "Indiana SB 340 (2020)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["EMINENT DOMAIN", "PROPERTY"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["David Wolkins", "Eric Koch", "Victoria Spartz"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 35
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2020-01-13"
last_action: "2020-03-18"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/bdeaf736-41e3-4f1a-b97f-9985f4b433b7"
source_url: "http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2020/bills/senate/340"
source_hash: "e53e999f275cc26a9416bf32e83ea7bf0748458fd39e7fb3a8ba57547c2b4bb0"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-in"]
---

# Indiana SB 340 (2020) — Private property matters.

Requires a conveyance, a mortgage, or an instrument of writing to be recorded to be: (1) acknowledged by the grantor; and (2) proven before certain specified individuals; in certain instances. Requires the summons accompanying a complaint for condemnation to include language regarding the defendant's right to object to the condemnation within 30 days from the date notice is served. Requires a court to award reasonable costs and attorney's fees to a defendant whose objection to a complaint for condemnation is sustained. Caps the amount of attorney's fees a court may award if an objection to a condemnation is sustained at $25,000. Exempts a condemnation action brought by a public utility or by a pipeline company from the bill's provisions requiring a court to award a defendant in a condemnation action the defendant's reasonable costs and attorney's fees if the defendant's objections to the proceedings are sustained in the proceedings or upon appeal. Requires a municipality to provide notice by mail to affected owners, both residents and nonresidents of the municipality, of a condemnation. Permits an affected owner to file an objection that a municipality does not have the right to exercise the power of eminent domain for the use sought. Amends the time for a remonstrance hearing for a municipal condemnation and the defendant's right to judicial review of the decision made at the hearing to 30 days. (Current law requires a remonstrance hearing to be set no less than 10 days after notice and the defendant to appeal the decision within 20 days.) Provides parties the right to appeal a court's judgment in the judicial review of a municipal condemnation. Revises the statute allowing a municipality to condemn property for economic development to require a 3/4 affirmative vote of the municipality's legislative body to exercise the power of eminent domain. (Current law requires a 2/3 affirmative vote of the municipality's legislative body.) Allows a property owner to challenge a condemnation for economic development purposes by providing clear and convincing evidence that the owner's parcel is not necessary for the project.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Engrossed Senate Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2020/bills/SB0340/versions/SB0340.03.ENGS)
2. **Enrolled Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2020/bills/SB0340/versions/SB0340.05.ENRH)
3. **Introduced Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2020/bills/SB0340/versions/SB0340.01.INTR)
4. **Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2020/bills/SB0340/versions/SB0340.04.COMH)
5. **Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2020/bills/SB0340/versions/SB0340.02.COMS)

## Votes

- SB 340 - Wolkins - 3rd Reading — **62–31** (pass) · lower
- SB 340 - Spartz - 3rd Reading — **43–7** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- David Wolkins — primary (person)
- Eric Koch — primary (person)
- Victoria Spartz — primary (person)
- Ethan Manning — cosponsor (person)
- James Buck — coauthor (person)
- Jeff Raatz — coauthor (person)
- Linda Rogers — coauthor (person)
- Lonnie Randolph — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2020-01-13** Authored by Senator Spartz
- **2020-01-13** First reading: referred to Committee on Judiciary `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2020-01-23** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2020-01-27** Amendment #1 (Spartz) prevailed; voice vote `amendment-passage, amendment-failure`
- **2020-01-27** Second reading: amended, ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2020-01-27** Senator Koch added as second author
- **2020-01-28** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 85: yeas 43, nays 7 `reading-3, passage`
- **2020-01-28** House sponsor: Representative Wolkins
- **2020-01-28** Senator Buck added as coauthor
- **2020-01-28** Senator Raatz added as coauthor
- **2020-01-28** Senator Rogers added as coauthor
- **2020-01-28** Senator Randolph added as coauthor
- **2020-01-29** Referred to the House
- **2020-02-10** First reading: referred to Committee on Judiciary `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2020-02-25** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2020-02-27** Amendment #1 (Shackleford) failed; Roll Call 230: yeas 28, nays 62 `amendment-failure`
- **2020-02-27** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2020-02-27** Representative Manning added as cosponsor
- **2020-03-02** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 262: yeas 62, nays 31 `reading-3, passage`
- **2020-03-03** Returned to the Senate with amendments `amendment-failure`
- **2020-03-03** Motion to dissent filed
- **2020-03-03** Senate dissented from House amendments `amendment-failure`
- **2020-03-03** Senate conferees appointed: Spartz and Taylor G
- **2020-03-03** Senate advisors appointed: Koch, Randolph Lonnie M, Buck and Mrvan
- **2020-03-04** House conferees appointed: Wolkins and Bauer
- **2020-03-04** House advisors appointed: Sherman, Manning, DeLaney and Pierce
- **2020-03-10** CCR # 1 filed in the Senate
- **2020-03-10** CCR # 1 filed in the House
- **2020-03-10** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the Senate; Roll Call 359: yeas 41, nays 7
- **2020-03-10** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the House; Roll Call 364: yeas 94, nays 0
- **2020-03-12** Signed by the President Pro Tempore
- **2020-03-16** Signed by the Speaker
- **2020-03-18** Signed by the President of the Senate
- **2020-03-18** Signed by the Governor `executive-signature`
- **2020-03-18** Public Law 80

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/bdeaf736-41e3-4f1a-b97f-9985f4b433b7`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Indiana legislature records).