Indiana SB 271 Is Now Law: What Scrap Yards Need to Know About Telecom Wire

Indiana already had one of the more structured scrap metal compliance frameworks in the country. As of July 1, 2026, Senate Bill 271 raises the bar. The new law specifically targets telecommunications network wire, a material that has become a high-value theft target as copper prices have climbed, and it places new obligations on every valuable metal dealer in the state who accepts it.

What Changed

Before SB 271, telecommunications network wire occupied a gray area in Indiana's valuable metal dealer statutes. The new law closes that gap by formally adding it to the definition of "valuable metal," which means every purchase of telecom wire is now subject to the full range of rules that govern scrap metal transactions in Indiana, including record keeping, seller verification, and holding requirements.

The most significant new burden is a 30-calendar-day hold on all telecommunications network wire purchases. Where Indiana's existing tag and hold provisions gave dealers some flexibility depending on the material and circumstances, telecom wire now gets its own mandatory hold period. Every piece of telecom wire that comes through your gate must be set aside for 30 days before it can be processed or sold. That is not a suggestion and it is not flexible.

Why Telecom Wire Is in the Crosshairs

Copper theft from telecom infrastructure has surged alongside copper prices. Thieves have been stripping wire from active utility lines, fiber nodes, and buried cable runs, disrupting phone and internet service for entire neighborhoods while walking away with material that a scrap yard will pay cash for by the pound. Indiana lawmakers pushed SB 271 through to make it harder to fence that material quickly, and to give law enforcement a window to investigate and recover stolen wire before it disappears into the processing stream.

The 30-day hold is explicitly designed to serve that purpose. It gives investigators time to cross-reference incoming material with theft reports, contact yards, and act before the wire is processed and untraceable.

Enforcement and Penalties

SB 271 is not a paperwork bill. Selling or attempting to sell telecom wire in violation of the law's conditions is a Class A infraction. Purchasing it in violation is also a Class A infraction for the dealer. If the material turns out to be stolen and the seller knew it, the charge escalates to a Level 6 felony. The law also adds vehicle forfeiture provisions: a vehicle used in the theft of valuable metal can be seized and civilly forfeited. Indiana moved the underlying criminal penalties into the criminal code as part of this legislation, so enforcement now runs through a cleaner statutory path.

In short, accepting telecom wire without following the 30-day hold exposes your yard to infraction charges, and if a transaction turns out to involve stolen material, the consequences are significantly worse.

What Indiana Dealers Need to Do Starting July 1

If your yard accepts any telecommunications network wire, you need a system that can flag those transactions, apply the correct hold period automatically, and prevent anyone from processing or releasing that material until the 30 days have elapsed. Doing this manually, with a spreadsheet or paper log, is exactly the kind of process that breaks down during busy days, staff turnover, or a back-lot audit.