As federal regulators await a commitment from the state to clean up Lake Champlain, lawmakers and the Shumlin administration have decided to not raise any money for the task this year.
House Fish, Wildlife and Water Resources Chair Rep. David Deen, D-Westminster, offered an amendment on Friday to strike a proposal to raise state revenue for improving the state’s water quality.
Deen has been pushing for a policy to reduce phosphorus runoff into the state’s waterways, including money to support the plan. But time ran out this session to raise taxes, and the Shumlin administration opposes raising state money for the cleanup this year.
The committee’s proposal is being stripped of all provisions designed to raise revenue: an increase in the state’s meals and rooms tax and a surcharge on rental cars, which together would have raised about $4 million in the first year, according to a fiscal note.
Nonetheless, Deen said the bill has been an important step for advancing the policy.
“It’s been a hell of an education effort and now I want to take the last step and have a discussion with the full body,” he said.
The Environmental Protection Agency has ordered the state to come up with a plan to limit the amount of phosphorus going into Lake Champlain – which has been linked to toxic algae blooms considered bad for human health, the aquatic habitat and the state’s tourism economy.
Gov. Peter Shumlin will send a letter to the EPA as soon as the end of the month to demonstrate his commitment to the cleanup. But he has said he will not raise any state money until there is a final plan in place and all federal resources have been tapped.
Frustrated by the administration’s unwillingness to show a near-term financial commitment, Deen wanted to raise revenue to show the EPA that lawmakers are serious about the cleanup.
“I don’t think the EPA is going to buy it without revenue,” Deen said, in reference the administration’s most recent plan to limit phosphorus loading into Lake Champlain, known as the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), which did not include any detailed revenue sources.
The Department of Environmental Conservation, which is spearheading the plan, said it will present a financing plan to lawmakers next session. But scientists and environmental groups, who have spent the past decade pushing for stronger water quality policy in the state, say the plan is too weak.
If the EPA rejects the plan, it could limit federal funding and tighten restrictions on wastewater treatment facilities.
The Vermont Natural Resources Council, an environmental group pushing for a stronger water quality plan, said Monday several components of the bill need funding to back them up.
“Without the money, it’s all just good ideas,” said Kim Greenwood, a water program director for the council. “So, if they don’t have the money, what do we have? Most of the provisions are tied to having more money.”
The bill still sets up new certification, training, education and outreach programs designed to help curb runoff from farms and towns.
But the amendment cuts several additional proposals — a program to provide technical assistance to foresters for skidder bridges and stream crossings; a provision to reduce a town’s local match for road and bridge repairs; and a tax credit for farming best management practices.
In place of the revenue sources, the amendment asks state agencies to bring lawmakers a financing plan next year. The report would include anticipated costs, proposed enforcement and administration of new programs, and how much money each revenue source would generate.
According to a January 2013 report, the total cost to clean up the state’s rivers, streams, lakes and ponds was estimated at $155 million a year for 10 years – costs that exceed the price tag to clean up Lake Champlain, state officials point out.
Shumlin last month let a water quality bill go into law without his signature. The bill asks the Agency of Natural Resources to develop a strategic plan and funding mechanism to improve all the state’s water bodies.