ARCHIVE SITE - Last updated Jan. 19, 2017. Please visit www.NACWA.org for the latest NACWA information.
News & Media
EPA Withdraws Bush's Permit-Fee Rule
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Katherine Boyle, E&E reporter U.S. EPA today withdrew a Bush administration rule that would have given a larger percentage of federal cash to states that use fees to administer their Clean Water Act permit programs. Issued last September, the rule would have shifted money aimed at helping states with the administrative costs of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting of municipal and industrial discharges. Industry critics lobbied hard against the rule, painting it as an attempt by the government to get states to fully fund their own NPDES programs. "The problem with the permit fee program is instead of giving money to states across the board, they're trying to create a program to get states to fund themselves," said Nathan Gardner-Andrews, counsel for the National Association of Clean Water Agencies. "If the federal government removed federal money somewhere down the line in the future, it would have been a real disaster." The government provides about $220 million a year to help states run the program, said Linda Eichmiller, the executive director of the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators. Eichmiller praised EPA's decision to withdraw the rule, saying funding environmental programs should be a policy decision made by states. She noted that the rule change stemmed from a request by the Bush White House's Office of Management and Budget. "There have been states that have had to become pretty dependent on fees by their Legislature, and it's like a three-legged stool," Eichmiller said. "If you were in Michigan right now, and you were very heavily fee-dependent, your water program would be in big trouble because of the economic situation." Eichmiller said the rule would primarily have hurt smaller companies and utilities. "The Dow Chemicals and the Chicagos of the world, they have deep pockets, but small communities and small industries don't," she said. She noted that the program draws money from states without fee programs and directs it to those that already have a steady cash flow from permit fees. "That sort of incentive seemed to be a little counterproductive to the overall goal of water quality," Eichmiller said. Gardner-Andrews also said the rule would have significantly raised costs on permitted entities applying for NPDES permits. "That would have particularly negative consequences for public wastewater utilities, many of which are already struggling to meet financial requirements," he noted. Any funds that would have been used for the financial incentives will be allocated to states under an existing grant formula, according to EPA. |
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