Zoning › State preemptions › Kentucky

KRS 224.71 et seq. — Wetlands & Waters of the Commonwealth (KPDES §401 Certification) (KY)

Tracked preemption from the Kentucky overlay bundle.

Overview

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Effective
1972-01-01
Sunset
—
Authority
state
Scope
state:KY
Other Kentucky preemptions
2024 HB 443 — Objective-Standards / Ministerial-Application MandateKRS 65.490 et seq. — Tax Increment Financing (Local Development Areas)KRS 67C / Ky. Const. §156a — Louisville Metro Consolidated Local GovernmentKRS Chapter 224A / 224.01-400 — Brownfield Voluntary Environmental RemediationKRS 100.348 — Manufactured Housing Anti-Exclusion & Parity (2025 HB 160)KRS Chapter 350 / SMCRA — Surface Coal Mining Regulation & Mountaintop RemovalOffice of Kentucky Nature Preserves (OKNP) — Designated Nature Preserves & T&E HabitatKRS 146.200 et seq. — Kentucky Wild Rivers System

Trigger predicate

When this evaluates true for a parcel, the law's preempted fields take precedence over base zoning.

OR
  • parcel.contains_wetlands_state_defined == True
  • project.involves_dredge_fill_or_stream_alteration == True
  • project.involves_section_404_corps_permit == True

Preempted fields

2 fields on the base district schema are rewritten when the trigger fires.

FieldOpValueNote
review_typerequirekdow_401_water_quality_certificationKRS 224.71-115 / 401 KAR 5:055: Kentucky Division of Water §401 water quality certification required for any federally permitted (USACE §404 / §10) activity affecting waters of the Commonwealth
land_development.dredge_or_fill_in_wetlandwaive—Dredge/fill in wetlands requires either §404 NWP / individual permit + §401 certification, or jurisdictional non-WOTUS determination and state-only review

Citation

Authority source
KRS §§224.71-100 through 224.71-145; 401 KAR Chapter 5 (Water Quality); 33 USC §1341 (federal CWA §401)
§ KRS §§224.71-100 et seq.; 401 KAR Ch. 5; 33 USC §1341
https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/chapter.aspx?id=37413

Research notes

Kentucky's wetlands regulation is primarily federally driven via CWA §404 (USACE) + §401 state certification (KDOW). After Sackett v. EPA (2023) narrowed federal WOTUS jurisdiction, isolated wetlands in KY may fall outside federal jurisdiction and into a state-only review pathway; KY has not enacted a comprehensive state-only isolated-wetlands statute equivalent to TN's. Ohio River and tributary wetlands dominate exposure. Practical implication: project must obtain both §404 (federal) and §401 (state) before earthwork.