Thank you to Senator Ted Stevens

for restoring EPA funding in federal budget

AN HISTORICAL DOCUMENT: REP sent this letter to Senator Stevens on October 5, 2005

October 5, 2004

Honorable Ted Stevens
Chairman,  Senate Appropriations Committee
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Stevens:

Republicans for Environmental Protection appreciates your leadership as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee in restoring $741 million to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. We respectfully request that you continue strongly supporting the EPA budget in FY05 appropriations legislation.

The administration’s proposed $500 million cut in Clean Water Act State Revolving Funds (CWSRF) would have harmed state efforts to build wastewater treatment plants and upgrade older facilities to meet new water quality standards. Federal funding for CWSRF will begin declining in the future as state CWSRF loans to local governments are repaid into state CWSRF accounts and these accounts become financially solvent and capable of floating infrastructure improvement loans on their own. We have not yet reached that time, but as Republicans, we will be pleased when this self-supporting program will no longer require annual infusion of federal funds. This “investment” program is superior to the old construction grants program, and should continue its planned path toward self-sufficiency.
We also commend you for restoring the budget for EPA’s science and technology research. It would be extremely difficult for us, as Republicans, to justify cutting these funds while at the same time continuing to claim that we support environmental regulations based on sound science.

In closing, we note that we have differed with you on public lands management issues, so it is our sincere pleasure to thank you for restoring EPA’s budget. We hope there will be future opportunities to send you congratulatory letters.

Regards,

Martha Marks, Ph.D.
President

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