WaterProposed EPA budget cuts funding from clean air and water grants

President Obama’s latest proposed budget for fiscal year 2013 cuts $105 million from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget, primarily from funds aimed at treating wastewater and drinking water.

Overall the cuts represent a 1.2 percent decrease in the EPA’s funding putting the agency at a total of $8.3 billion in discretionary funds.

In an effort to free up fund for other priorities, the budget cuts $359 million from stategrants for clean air and water projects, reduces funding for superfund cleanup efforts, and eliminates a clean diesel grant program, replacing it with a combination of rebates and grants.

The latest budget reflects the fiscal climate on the Hill with lawmakers and federal administrators seeking to find cost savings wherever possible.

In a news briefing about the latest budget, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said the proposed budget comes as part of a “government-wide effort to reduce spending and find cost savings.”

“It demonstrates the fiscal responsibility called for at this moment,” she said. “Some difficult choices are being made in this budget.”

In an interview with Bloomberg BNA, Steve Brown, the executive director of the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS), said he was anticipating cuts to the State Revolving Fund (SRF) for clean water, but the final numbers were “a little more than we were hoping to see.”

He added that “everybody goes to the SRF to find money” when looking for a place to cut funding.

The latest EPA budget does include some increases for priority programs like state and tribal air quality and water pollution programs and targeted water infrastructure projects. At the expense of assistance to states, EPA’s overall operating budget does increase from $3.57 billion to $3.74 billion.