By
TIM FAULKNER/ecoRI News staff
In preparation for potential budget and staff cuts at the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), state lawmakers have passed a resolution to
measure those impacts on Rhode Island, specifically at the Department of
Environmental Management (DEM), which receives 30 percent of its budget from
the federal government.
DEM’s director, Janet Coit, said the potential cuts pose “very
dire concerns” and “devastating impacts on our environmental programs."
She noted diminished budgets for air and water pollution prevention as well as
the agency's new business-friendly permitting center.
As the House prepared March 29 to vote on the resolution, Rep.
Michael Chippendale, R-Foster, objected. He first defended DEM as a vital
agency that is overburdened, underfunded and understaffed.
However, he described the bill as partisan, befuddling and a knee-jerk reaction to media hype and tweets.
However, he described the bill as partisan, befuddling and a knee-jerk reaction to media hype and tweets.
Chippendale said it was unnecessary “to take time to deal with
stuff that hasn’t even happened yet and what may happen based on stuff that was
in the media.”
The resolution, he noted, was submitted before President Trump
signed an executive order killing the EPA’s Clean Power Plan and released his
budget.
However, it’s worth noting that Trump vowed to gut the agency and environmental regulations during his campaign and after he was elected. Trump’s budget cuts 31 percent of EPA funding. A Republican budget proposes eliminating a fifth of the federal agency’s staff.
However, it’s worth noting that Trump vowed to gut the agency and environmental regulations during his campaign and after he was elected. Trump’s budget cuts 31 percent of EPA funding. A Republican budget proposes eliminating a fifth of the federal agency’s staff.
Yet, Chippendale insisted that the cuts are only hypothetical.
“(DEM) doesn’t even know if that stuff is going to even happen,” Chippendale said. “We might as well put a line in there that says you should also nail Jell-O to a wall. This is a silly, silly resolution.”
Rep. Arthur Handy, D-Cranston, chairman of the House Committee on the Environment and Natural Resources, said Coit will meet with EPA officials in Washington, D.C. on April 6 and 7 to learn about the potential cuts. Coit will also be speaking at the event.
“I think it’s better to plan for the worst and hope for the best,”
Handy said. “Frankly, it’s not just tweets. There’s executive orders and other
things that a lot of us are worried about on our environment here.”
Rep. Deborah Ruggiero, D-Middletown, said Coit also is meeting
with the Gov. Gina Raimondo and the state's congressional delegation about
federal budget cuts.
“I don’t think this is premature in light of some things that
could occur with the federal EPA and a possible billion dollars being taken
away from that budget,” Ruggiero said.
At an early-March hearing, Rep. Lauren Carson, D-Newport, the
sponsor of the resolution, said preemptive action in needed, otherwise the
General Assembly won’t be able to fill budget gaps until the 2018 legislative
session.
The resolution passed, 64-6. It was opposed by Chippendale, and
Republicans Antonio Giarrusso of East Greenwich, Patricia Morgan of Coventry,
Justin Price of Richmond, Robert Quattrocchi of Scituate and Sherry Roberts of
West Greenwich. Five other Republicans and all Democrats supported the
resolution.
As for its 2018 budget, DEM is mostly spinning in place after years of staff reductions.
The number of full-time employees has dropped from 520 to 385 during the past
15 years. Since 2005, the number of compliance and inspection officers has
dropped from 35 to 25. Consequently, the number of violation notices issued to
polluters has dropped from 141 in 2005 to 33 in 2016.
DEM is requesting two new air-quality specialists and three
environmental police in its 2018 budget. The governor’s budget doesn't add
staff to either of those areas. Raimondo, however, is requesting funding for
one full-time employee to perform merchandising for the Outdoor Recreation Council,
which is chaired by her husband.
If the federal budget is enacted, Coit expects water pollution
monitoring and permitting to be most threatened. The state board that addresses
climate change, the Executive Climate Change Coordinating Council, is mostly
funded with federal funds.
“Do we slow our permitting or do we slow out monitoring — when you
see dead fish and stinking coves?” Coit said. “We have so many needs in the
water area.”
When asked if she had a contingency plan for the loss of funds,
Coit said, “We don’t really have contingency plans, we’re really spending all
of our efforts trying to prevent something bad from happening.”