Corbett Budget Permanently Diverts Funds for Environment, Parks, Trails, Farmland Preservation

Last edited Sat Mar 17, 2012, 03:15 PM - Edit history (1)

What is particularly bad is that Corbett is proposing to PERMANENTLY divert funds that are used each year to preserve farmland, buy parkland and build trails. These programs have been in place for 25 years, and the farmland preservation program was established in a Pa. voter referendum with widespread support.

I guess preserving land gets in the way of gas wells. If Corbett was really just motivated by a recession-driven budget shortfall, he was propose to divert these funds for one year.

Excerpts:

Column by PA. Dem. Housemember Greg Vitalli

http://www.phillyburbs.com/content/tncms/live/phillyburbs.com/news/local/the_intelligencer_news/opinion/corbett-budget-bad-for-the-environment/article_ce0a5dce-8acc-51ef-95eb-8131d975bc5b.html

"Gov. Tom Corbett's proposed budget would further weaken PA's Department of Environmental Protection and drain funds from valuable environmental programs.

The governor's proposed fiscal year 2012-2013 budget would cut an additional $10.5 million from the DEP general fund appropriation, reducing it to $124 million. The DEP state appropriation was cut $10 million last year, and its state appropriation has been reduced by $65 million since 2006. The department cannot perform its mission reasonably with a budget below $170 million, according to former DEP Secretary John Hanger. There has been about a 10 percent cut in DEP personnel since 2006.

Corbett's budget would also take monies from at least three popular and successful environmental programs: the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation fund; the Farmland Preservation program ...The governor would take $38.5 million from the Keystone fund in the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) budget. This program supports community parks and recreation, land trust projects and state park and forest rehabilitation. The DCNR has estimated about a billion-dollar backlog in state park and forest infrastructure projects.

PA's Farmland Preservation program receives about $20 million annually from cigarette tax receipts. The governor has proposed permanently eliminating this funding. The Farmland Preservation program not only protects Pennsylvania's agriculture industry but also preserves scenic landscapes. About 2,000 farms are on the waiting list for this program. Gov. Corbett has been ... refusing to consider logical funding sources for them. Two sources would be a reasonable severance tax on Marcellus drilling and the increase in air emission permitting fees proposed by the previous administration."