States Worry House EPA Budget Bill Will Harm State Waste Programs

Date: July 25, 2011

Source: News Room

State waste officials are worried that Congressional cuts to EPA's fiscal 2012 budget will leave them holding the bag for cleanup costs and hazardous waste programs. An analysis by the Association of State & Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO) says the funding bill approved earlier this month could result in a nearly $40 million cut for brownfields funding and a $17 million reduction in Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) core funding, compared with the President's budget request and that the Superfund trust fund could be decreased by $50 million compared to fiscal year 2011 appropriations. President Obama requested $99 million for brownfields, but the Appropriations Committee only approved approximately $60 million. The committee also approved only $1.22 billion for Superfund, compared to the $1.27 billion in approved funding in fiscal 2011. The Obama administration has threatened to veto the House committee's bill which it says includes "ideological and political provisions that are beyond the scope of funding legislation," offering strong opposition to numerous policy riders blocking key EPA rules and programs and a series of budget cuts that the administration says will hobble the agency.

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