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Have a question? +1 815-826-6324 (815-8-BondAI) phil@AmericasSuretyBonds.com
Army Veteran Owned | Expert Surety Bonds Since 2004
Every well driller registered in St. Joseph County carries a $10,000 bond payable to the County Health Department, and every one of those bonds expires on January 31, no matter when it was written. Get the bond, the renewal and the $200 registration lined up before that date and your crews keep drilling. You pay an annual premium, not $10,000 in cash.
St. Joseph County Code section 52.036(D) requires each person applying for a well driller registration to provide a $10,000 surety bond payable to the County Health Department, conditioned on faithful compliance with the county's well regulations and on paying all damages, costs, expenses and penalties caused by a failure to comply. The bond and the registration both expire on January 31 of each year. Applicants must also hold an Indiana well drilling license under IC 25-39 and pass the county's open book exam. The annual contractor registration fee is $200.
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Section 52.036 of the St. Joseph County Code sets one expiration date for everything. The registration expires on January 31 of each year, and all well driller bonds expire and are renewed on January 31 of each year. A driller who registers in November is renewing again within a few months. Order the renewal or continuation certificate ahead of that date so the Health Department has it with your renewal application.
The bond runs to the St. Joseph County Department of Health in the penal sum of $10,000. Under section 52.036(D) it is conditioned on faithful compliance with the well drilling subchapter as it relates to work performed by the applicant, and it agrees to pay all damages, costs, expenses and penalties caused by the applicant's failure to comply. The Health Department's Well Contractor Registration Application asks for the surety carrier and agent details and states the bond is $10,000 payable to St. Joseph County Department of Health.
The code defines a well driller as a person or business that operates well drilling or driving equipment or drills or drives wells for hire. Anyone who installs or abandons a potable or nonpotable water well in the county must first obtain the annual county registration, and the bond is part of that registration. Nonpotable wells include irrigation, geothermal, monitoring, dewatering, waterscape and fire suppression wells. The subchapter does not apply to wells installed to monitor or collect hydrogeologic or engineering data that are abandoned under the subchapter within 30 days of installation.
Section 52.036(A) requires a state well drilling license under IC 25-39 before any well is installed, abandoned, repaired or replaced in the county, and a copy goes in with the registration. Section 52.036(C) requires passing the Health Officer's open book exam with a score of 80 percent. There is no exam fee, and anyone who fails may retake it one week later. Previously licensed drillers in good standing may use the Health Department's Annual Test Waiver form instead of retesting, but the waiver covers the test only. The bond is still required. A licensed well driller must be present during all drilling and abandonment work.
The Health Department fee schedule effective November 1, 2025 lists contractor registration at $200 per year. Each well also needs its own permit before installation: $200 for residential new or replacement construction, $225 for commercial, and $75 per well for nonpotable, monitoring and geothermal wells with a $450 maximum. Abandoning a well requires an abandonment permit and a phone call to the Health Department at least two hours beforehand. Well logs are due to the Health Officer within 30 days of completing a well.
The Health Department's test waiver form summarizes the County Code 52 penalties as $500 for a first offense, $1,000 for a second and $1,500 for a third. Under section 52.036(F), the Health Officer may suspend, repeal or withhold a registration from anyone more than 30 days late paying a penalty. Unpaid penalties are among the amounts the bond agrees to pay.
January 31. Section 52.036 makes every registration and every well driller bond expire on January 31 of each year, regardless of when it was issued.
Yes. The state license is a prerequisite for county registration under section 52.036(A). The $10,000 bond is a separate county requirement under section 52.036(D).
No. The waiver lets previously licensed drillers in good standing skip the county exam. The bond is still required for registration.
Yes. The subchapter covers nonpotable wells including geothermal and monitoring wells. The exception is wells installed to collect hydrogeologic or engineering data that are abandoned under the subchapter within 30 days.
The Health Department fee schedule effective November 1, 2025 lists contractor registration at $200 per year. Well permits are billed separately.
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