Submerged Lands License Agreement

A Submerged Lands License Agreement (SLLA) is an agreement between an Applicant applying for a permit with DEP and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The SLLA is required for certain General Permits (GP) and Joint Permit Applications (JPA), in accordance with Chapter 105 § 105. 31-35 and the Dam Safety and Encroachments Act when the permitted water obstructions and encroachments are located on, over, in or under a stream, creek, or lake that has been legally determined to be the Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth. These water obstructions and encroachments are only necessary for facilities such as, but not limited to, docks, aerial wires, bridges, inlets, and pipelines that are located on the Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth.

Chapter 105 SLLA Regulatory Authority

Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth

All water in all streams in Pennsylvania are “owned and held in trust by the Commonwealth for the benefit of the public.” A subset of all streams are streams where the Commonwealth also owns the streambed because the streams were historically navigable and were declared “public highways” by the General Assembly in the late 1700s and early 1800s. This subset of streams is identified as the Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth. This context of Commonwealth ownership should not be confused with the navigable waters of the United States. Navigable waters in this context is also a historic test of navigability and is not based upon contemporary navigability. Historically, navigable traffic in Pennsylvania would have to do with boat traffic or logs from timber operations.

At this point in time a waterway or lake is only considered to be Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth if it has been legally determined so in a court case. A few decades ago, Pennsylvania pooled the results of all these court cases into two lists of streams of Pennsylvania that have been legally established lists of Navigable Waters of the Commonwealth. These lists are called:

• Public Highway Declaration Act,
• Stream Beds owned by the Commonwealth

In addition, the Federal Government, through the Army Corps of Engineers, has added a few rivers that cross state lines and have a portion of their waterway in PA. This list is called:

• Appendix II, Streams Declared Navigable by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

These lists are what is used to determine if a water obstruction and encroachment is located on a navigable water of the Commonwealth and would therefore require the Submerged Lands License Agreement when applying for a Chapter 105 permit.

All of these lists are contained in the following DEP List of Streams Subject to the Submerged Lands License Program document.

Submerged Lands of the Commonwealth – Licenses and Annual Charges

Information on Submerged Lands License Agreements, the types and fees can be found in the regulations at 25 Pa. Code § 105.31 through 105.35. View the Submerged Lands of the Commonwealth – Licenses and Annual Charges (§105.31-35). The permittee or applicant can estimate the annual charges based on what is outlined in the regulations, but it is up to the Commonwealth/DEP to make the final determination of the annual charges.  

Please note that recent legislation effected the annual charge for Groin Structures in Pennsylvania – reducing the annual charge from $750.00 to $250.00 (in accordance with Act of Jun. 30, 2025, P.L. 70, No. 19). If a groin structure is on your property and you have not been contacted by DEP about this change, please email RA-105-SLLA@pa.gov to resolve any discrepancies.

SLLA Resources

Historic Genealogical Map of the Counties

DEP’s List of Streams Subject to the Submerged Lands License Program

DEP and County Conservation District Offices and Contact

SLLA Process

Submerged Lands License Agreements (SLLA) are only required when a General Permit (GP) or Joint Permit Application (JPA) has a facilities area on the Navigable Waters on the Commonwealth. A reviewer from either the County Conservation District with Chapter 105 delegated duties or DEP Regional Office is assigned to process the GP or JPA. The reviewer will determine if the GP or JPA needs an SLLA and will send the appropriate information to the DEP’s Central Office (BWEW) for processing.

The processing timeline for an SLLA starts when the DEP’s Central Office receives the notification from the DEP Regional Office or County Conservation District when the SLLA is required. The following is a step-by-step timeline that shows what is done between receiving the notification to prepare the SLLA and returning the fully executed document to the client.

1. DEP Central Office receives notification from reviewing office of SLLA need. Note: permit application review will continue concurrently with the SLLA process.
2. DEP Central office will ensure it received sufficient SLLA information, or will request SLLA information from the permit applicant/registrant.
3. At the DEP’s Central Office, the agreement will be drafted using one of the SLLA agreement templates that were previously approved by the Office of Attorney General.
4. The draft agreement is prepared using the information provided by the reviewer.
5. The draft agreement is reviewed prior to sending to the client for signature. (Steps 1 through 5 will take about 2-3 weeks to complete)
6. The client will receive a package in an email asking to review the draft agreement and sign. The package will include:
   1. the draft SLLA
   2. the SLLA signature page,
   3. Exhibit B Right to Know Law Contract Provisions, and
   4. Exhibit C Affidavit of Signature Authority.
7. The client will return the signed signature page, a completed exhibit C, a document evidencing delegation of contracting authority (to be attached to exhibit C and the agreement), and the first-year annual charge (if required). Note: delays in providing this information may delay SLLA processing and permit issuance.
8. Once the items listed in No. 6 are returned, the agreement is sent to the Division Chief for review and signature, the Division Chief’s signature is witnessed, and the agreement is sent to DEP’s Chief Counsel.
9. DEP’s Chief Counsel will review the agreement for legality and sign.
10. The agreement is sent to the Governor’s office for the final signature.
11. The fully executed agreement is sent to the client and DEP reviewer. ((It takes about 3-4 weeks from when the required documents are returned (step 7 above) from the client to sending the fully executed agreement to the client (step 12 below)).
12. Once the executed SLLA is received, the permit may be issued or acknowledged. Note: a Chapter 105 permit that requires an SLLA agreement is not valid until the agreement is fully executed.

The processing timeline for an SLLA starts when the DEP’s Central Office receives the notification from the DEP Regional Office or County Conservation District to start processing. The applicant is responsible for returning the required documents back to the Central Office. The Central Office cannot proceed with gathering the required signatures until the client returns the required documents. Once the agreement is fully executed, we return it to the client the same day or following day.

For transfers and amendments, the process is similar to the above. A new SLLA is written to reflect the new information contained in the transfer application or amendment. Billing will be updated once the transferred or amended SLLA is complete. Please reach out to the reviewing office who issued the original permit to get started.

FAQs