Does each state have its own dam inspection checklist?

Not in the same shape. Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Massachusetts publish an item-by-item inspection form. Wisconsin publishes only a public excerpt of its checklist. New York and Ohio publish no single checklist form at all — only guidance documents describing what an owner should inspect.

Why use a state-specific dam inspection checklist instead of a generic one?

A checklist that follows the state's own form covers the items that state's engineers expect to see, in the order they expect them, and uses that form's own condition-rating wording where it has one. A generic checklist covers the common ground across states and leaves the state-specific items to the inspector's memory.

Which states use a different condition-rating scale?

Massachusetts uses a five-point Unsafe, Poor, Fair, Satisfactory, Good scale. Wisconsin and Connecticut use Satisfactory, Fair, Poor, and Unsatisfactory wording, which Wisconsin extends with a Not Rated option.

State dam inspection checklists

Dam-Sure's field checklist follows each state's own published inspection form where one exists — and says so plainly where one does not.

Why it matters

Dam inspection forms are not interchangeable. Pennsylvania's high-hazard checklist runs to 85 named items; Ohio publishes no checklist at all, only guidance on what to inspect. A generic template covers the ground the states have in common and leaves everything state-specific to whoever is holding the clipboard. A checklist built around the state's own form covers what that state's engineers expect to see, in the order they expect it, so the report you file matches the form they review.

What each state's checklist is built from

Source, size and coverage of Dam-Sure's inspection checklist for each state
State	Built from	Size	Coverage note
Georgia	EPD's Embankment (Earth) Dam Inspection Form	6 sections, 41 items	Transcribed from the state's own form.
North Carolina	DEMLR's Dam Safety Inspection Report — the checkbox form state inspectors use	9 sections, 65 items	Transcribed from completed copies of the form.
Pennsylvania	DEP's High Hazard Dam Inspection Checklist (rev. 1/09)	13 sections, 85 items	Every named item on the real form is represented.
Massachusetts	DCR's Phase I Inspection Checklist (June 2021)	9 sections, 98 items	Uses the form's own five-point Unsafe to Good scale. The separate engineering-evaluation layer is not modeled.
Connecticut	DEEP's Dam Inspection Report Form	10 sections, 13 items	Covers the substantive inspection Parts of the form, not all sixteen Parts and appendices. Uses the form's own condition wording.
Wisconsin	DNR's Dam Inspection Checklist (public excerpt)	6 sections, 17 items	DNR withholds the full per-component sheets, so this is built from the published excerpt. Uses the form's own five-point sufficiency scale.
New York	NYSDEC's Inspection & Maintenance Plan template and Owner's Guidance Manual	6 sections, 46 items	No single checklist form exists. Assembled from two NYSDEC guidance documents.
Ohio	ODNR's Operation, Maintenance and Inspection Manual guidelines	5 sections, 17 items	No single checklist form exists. Assembled from ODNR guidance, which is a template for owners to write their own manual.
Any other state	A general checklist covering the common ground across published state forms	7 sections, 29 items	Used where Dam-Sure has no state-specific checklist.

The two "no single form exists" rows are stated as such on purpose. For New York and Ohio, the checklist is Dam-Sure's own assembly of what the state's guidance says to inspect, not a copy of an official form — because there is no official form to copy.

Where this fits with the deadline

The checklist covers the site visit; the filing deadline covers when the report is due. Dam-Sure handles both per state, which is the part a general-purpose inspection app does not. Compare filing deadlines by state or see how this compares to a general inspection app.

Each checklist was built from the state agency's own published material and is not an official state form. Agencies revise their forms, so verify against the current version before filing. This page is informational, not legal advice.

Filing deadlines by state · For engineering firms · Look up a dam