Governors for six Chesapeake Bay states and the Mayor of D.C. have written to congressional leadership with a request: one billion dollars in federal funding to support Bay restoration.

In the letter state leaders reference the looming 2025 Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) pollution reduction deadline and advocated for a new injection of funding. The governors argue that a significant increase in funding would help renew cleanup efforts while create jobs and spur economic activity during a time when state and local governments are struggling financially.

From the letter:

While we are making great progress and appreciate recent increases in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, the lion’s share of fiscal responsibilities for these efforts falls on our jurisdictions. As you know, state and local government budgets have been hit hard during the COVID-19 pandemic, making it much more difficult to afford wastewater treatment plant upgrades, enhanced stormwater management systems, stream, forest, and wetlands restoration, and agricultural best management practices necessary to restore the Bay. Many individuals, including farmers and ratepayers who must share in the cost of these upgrades, are also struggling.

From coverage in the Bay Journal:

“For me, the letter signed by every governor in the watershed, and the chair of the commission, clearly indicates that new and substantial federal resources will be needed to deliver clean water to the Chesapeake Bay,” said Ann Swanson, executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission.

Read the letter in Maryland Matters.