Approved by the Energy, Environment, and Water Policy Committee on December 16, 2025 
Approved by the Public Policy and Practice Committee on March 20, 2026
Adopted by the Board of Direction on July 21, 2026

Policy

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) supports enactment of state and federal legislation to ensure dams do not pose unacceptable risk to the public, property, and environment. To that end ASCE further supports:

  • Continued reauthorization and full funding of the National Dam Safety Program. 
  • Adequate funding for federal agencies to operate, maintain and regulate dams under their jurisdiction to standards and in alignment with Federal Guidelines for Dam Safety.
  • Reauthorization and full funding of the High Hazard Potential Dam Rehabilitation Program to cost share repairs for publicly owned non-federal, high-hazard dams.
  • Increased funding and resources for state dam safety.
  • Expanding the U.S. Army Corps Water Infrastructure Financing Program (CWIFP) eligibility to all dams.
  • Incorporation of risk assessments or ranking and priority systems into federal and state dam safety programs.
  • Retrofitting existing dams to add hydropower and produce clean, renewable, carbon free energy, where feasible.
  • Development and ongoing review, and implementation of emergency action plans for every high-hazard potential. 
  • Implementation of a national public awareness campaign to educate individuals on the location and condition of dams in their area.
  • Encourage state and federal agencies to meet reporting deadlines to ensure that adequate data on dams are available for policymakers to facilitate decision-making on funding and to promote public awareness.
  • Improved land use planning at the local level so that communication about how dams affect local areas is more accurately known and considered in future planning.
  • Improved public safety around low-head dams, including continued development of a National Low-Head dam Inventory.

Issue

There are more than 92,000 existing dams in the United States. Over half of these dams (66%) are privately owned. Roughly one-third are owned by various levels of government (20% local, 7% state, and 4% federal). While the federal government owns or regulates some of the largest dams, most (70%) are regulated by state dam safety offices. Dams serve many diverse and important roles including electricity generation, flood control, irrigation, navigation, water supply, and recreation but, in some cases, they may no longer be economically viable.

Dams are classified by hazard potential. A high-hazard potential rating does not imply that a dam has an increased risk for failure; it simply means that if failure were to occur, the resulting consequences would likely be a direct loss of human life and extensive property damage. The number of high-hazard potential dams has increased 20% since 2012, driven mostly by increased development in downstream areas. As the number of high-hazard potential dams has increased, the overall percentage of those dams protected by an Emergency Action Plan has increased as well. As of 2024, 82% of state-regulated high hazard-potential such dams had a plan on file, up 5% from 2015. Unfortunately, due to the lack of investment, the Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) estimates 19% of high-hazard potential dams are in need of repair to improve public safety. 

ASDSO estimates that an investment of $165 billion will be required to fix the nation’s non-federal dams. 

Dam safety issues are dynamic. As of 2024, the National Inventory of Dams indicates the average age is 64 years. These dams were designed and constructed with the best engineering and construction methods of their time; however, as scientific and engineering experience increase, many of these dams are no longer able to safely accommodate our current prediction of large floods and earthquakes. Structural portions of dams, including impact basins, spillways, and outlet works, deteriorate over time, and require ongoing maintenance and investment. Hazards increase as areas downstream develop and become more populated, thereby increasing the need to provide dam security and emergency action plans, especially for those classified as high hazard dams.

While some state and federal efforts have been taken to reduce these hazards, the National Dam Safety Program, administered through FEMA, is inadequately funded. This program, despite being small, is very effective at unifying the federal and state agencies overseeing dam safety in the U.S. The authority, staffing, and funding of state level dam safety programs varies significantly. State programs continue to require federal assistance and support from state legislators to improve the programs.

The safety and liability of a dam and financing required for its upkeep, upgrade, and repair are the sole responsibility of the dam owner. This can be a hardship for many private entities with very few resources available to finance the repairs, retrofit, rehabilitation, or removal for non-economically viable dams. The High Hazard Potential Dam Rehabilitation Program provides a means to help finance repairs, rehabilitation, or removal required for high hazard, public owned dams; however, the program is not fully funded. Additionally, funding assistance for repairs to privately owned dams is not addressed.

Low-head dams are a public safety concern. A low-head dam is a relatively small structure spanning a river with water flowing over the entire length of the dam. These dams can create turbulence that often contributes to people drowning. Currently, efforts are underway to inventory all low-head dams and better communicate the danger they pose.

Rationale

Dam failures not only put the public at risk, they can also cost our economy billions of dollars in damages. Failure includes more than the dam’s damage, but can negatively impact many other infrastructure systems, such as roads, bridges, water systems, and other important functions dams provide. When a dam fails, resources must be devoted to the prevention and treatment of public health risks as well as the resulting structural consequences. Civil engineers are responsible for designing, constructing, and overseeing operations of the nation’s dams in a manner that protects people and property downstream. ASCE’s Code of Ethics requires that engineers first and foremost protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public.

ASCE Policy Statement 280 
First Approved 1981