HARRISBURG — Key senators want to tap part of a large reserve of federal American Rescue Plan dollars to fund state environmental programs.
Senate Majority Whip John Gordner, R-Columbia, and Sen. Bob Mensch, R-Lehigh, have sponsored Senate Bill 525 to launch Growing Greener III, a third edition of a multipurpose environmental spending program started by then-Gov. Tom Ridge two decades ago. SB525 would replenish the Growing Greener Fund with $525 million in ARP money.
Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Lycoming, majority chairman of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee; and Sens. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster, and Dan Laughlin, R-Erie, have sponsored Senate Bill 832 to create a new Clean Streams Fund to tackle water pollution from “non-point” sources such as agriculture runoff and drainage from abandoned mines. SB832, which includes Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, as a co-sponsor, would allocate $250 million in ARP money for this purpose.
Both SB525 and SB832 are in Mr. Yaw’s committee.
The reason why these two bills draw on the ARP is that $5 billion of Pennsylvania’s $7.2 billion share of money from this federal recovery plan enacted in the spring has yet to be allocated.
The $39.78 billion state budget for fiscal year 2021-22 allocated ARP money for the COVID-19 pandemic response, aid to nursing homes, emergency rent and homeowner assistance, and child care among larger spending items.
During the budget debate, Republican lawmakers who developed the budget argued that the $5 billion should be left in reserve as a hedge against the potential for a revenue shortfall in an uncertain economy. Democratic lawmakers urged more ARP spending to help small businesses, public health agencies and to upgrade school buildings.
The Senate starts its fall session Sept. 20, but there is no imminent deadline to allocate the unspent share of ARP money. But federal rules require that money to be spent by 2024.
Mr. Gordner and Mr. Mensch introduced SB525 to create Growing Greener III in June several weeks before the budget was adopted. There have been calls from environmental groups for a number of years to replenish a Growing Greener Fund, which has depleted a $625 million allocation from 2005.
SB525 would allocate funding for the state’s Farmland Preservation Program, Chesapeake Bay Cleanup, a backlog of infrastructure projects in the state parks and forests, and grants for the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System program.
“This funding is crucial in ensuring our future ability to reduce flooding and water pollution, restore streams and waterways, conserve open space, and more,” Mr. Mensch said.
SB832, introduced last month, is focused on creating the Clean Streams Fund to pay for best management practices to clean up streams impaired by agricultural runoff or mine drainage.
These best practices can include planting forested stream buffers, cover crops and no-till farming to reduce agricultural runoff and creating a series of treatment pools that allow sediments and minerals to settle to address mine drainage, according to bill sponsors.
Those sponsors also point out that new mapping and data technology allow for identifying the most strategic places and practices to get the quickest results.
“We propose $250 million, a mere fraction of a percent of Pennsylvania’s allocation, go to establishing a new Clean Streams Fund,” the bill sponsors wrote.
The fund would need a long-term funding solution after the ARP money is spent, they added.
First Published: September 6, 2021, 10:00 a.m.
