Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, this amendment prohibits the use of funds to take retaliatory actions against States that disagree with the EPA- mandated pollutant reduction goals that have been imposed upon them by the EPA. Importantly, this amendment would not prevent the EPA from working with States to restore things like the Chesapeake Bay, which is what the EPA is supposed to be doing. In 1985, the States in the Chesapeake Bay region recognized the need to address pollutants in the Bay and through their own initiative came together to conduct cleanup efforts. These State-driven efforts were largely successful. Water quality improved almost 50 percent from 1985 to 2010 without the EPA's involvement. However, in 2010, the EPA seized the States' authority to determine their own method of compliance and threatened to take over the water quality plants. This 2010 power grab, known as the Chesapeake Bay TMDL, total maximum daily load, directly contradicts the intent of the Clean Water Act. The Clean Water Act clearly acknowledges State authority in water quality and requires cooperation, which is happening through the Chesapeake Bay Commission rather than coercion between the States and the Federal Government. These coercive methods have been tried and have failed. Water quality improvement has slowed, and last year the EPA acknowledged the 2025 goals likely cannot be met.…”