Posted by admin in Green Leaders, Green Opinions | 0 Comments
Budget proposals do not bode well for EPA and other environmental concerns
Warning: strip_tags() expects parameter 1 to be string, array given in /home/propelea/public_html/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 631
Following Monday's release of President Barack Obama's budget proposal for the fiscal year 2012, a number of lawmakers and analysts are picking apart each and every cut in spending, particularly those intended for the often controversial Environmental Protection Agency.
As pressure from Congressional Republicans has mounted regarding the EPA's regulatory powers and funding allocations, Obama's budget calls for a 12.6 percent cut to EPA spending to a total of $9 billion, compared to the $10.3 billion allotted in 2010.
While the cut is certainly substantial, it does not go as far as requested by many House Republicans, who are calling for $3 billion in reductions, according to their budget proposal.
"These cuts go far and wide, and will affect every community in the nation," Representative Hal Rogers of Kentucky, chairman of the Appropriations Committee, said in a statement. "These were hard decisions, and I know many people will not be happy with everything we've proposed in this package."
The president's proposal, on the other hand, points out his continued interest in limiting greenhouse gas emissions, while promoting investment in clean and renewable energy initiatives. According to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the budget calls for $43 million in new funding for rules aimed at curbing carbon dioxide emissions.
"We need to get started," Bloomberg quotes Jackson as telling reporters Tuesday. "Businesses are waiting right now to make investments, and one of the things they need to know is how we will be addressing carbon pollution going forward."
The budget's spending cuts extend to other areas of environmental concern as well, including a $125 million reduction in funding to the ecological restoration of the Great Lakes region and $70 million from the Superfund program, which seeks to clean up the most hazardous industrial waste sites in the nation, according to Time magazine.
Related Posts- Anti-EPA riders excluded from federal budget deal
- Anti-EPA riders excluded from federal budget deal
- Budget disputes address EPA funding, Planned Parenthood ahead of shutdown
- Budget disputes address EPA funding, Planned Parenthood ahead of shutdown
- Sacramento to revamp sewer system as a result of environmental concerns
