Bill Text: PA HR17 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Directing the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to review the Commonwealth's program of providing grants for environmental protection and improvement projects under the Growing Greener Program and the Community Conservation Partnerships Program.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 21-6)

Status: (Passed) 2009-06-25 - Adopted [HR17 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2009-HR17-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 15
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No. 17 Session of2009
INTRODUCED BY HARPER, ADOLPH, ARGALL, BARRAR, BEYER, BOYD, CALTAGIRONE, CAUSER, FAIRCHILD, GEORGE, GODSHALL, HENNESSEY, HUTCHINSON, MUSTIO, RAPP, READSHAW, SCAVELLO, SIPTROTH, STERN, SWANGER, VULAKOVICH, WATSON AND MAJOR, JANUARY 26, 2009
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY, JANUARY 26, 2009
A RESOLUTION
Directing the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to review
the Commonwealth's program of providing grants for
environmental protection and improvement projects under the
Growing Greener Program and the Community Conservation
Partnerships Program.
WHEREAS, Open space, greenways, recreational trails, river
corridors, fish and wildlife habitats, park and recreation areas
protect the environment, conserve natural resources and add
value to this Commonwealth and its communities; and
WHEREAS, The Commonwealth owns approximately 2.4 million
acres of State park and forest lands which provide recreational,
economic and educational opportunities for Commonwealth
residents; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvanians have embraced the need for funding
dedicated to the improvement of our environment, the
preservation of our farmland and open spaces and the reduction
in the number of abandoned mines and hazardous sites; and
WHEREAS, Succeeding governors, over the last several years,
have attempted to ensure that adequate funding exists to achieve
these goals; and
WHEREAS, The General Assembly has expressed a willingness to
achieve the goals set forth by these governors to ensure that
future generations of Pennsylvanians are able to enjoy the
beauty and splendor of Penn's Woods; and
WHEREAS, This willingness has been signified by the passage
and subsequent enactment of one of the first State laws creating
mandatory recycling, preserving farmland and open space,
improving water quality and addressing the hazards of abandoned
mines; and
WHEREAS, This commitment reached a zenith with the enactment
of the Growing Greener initiative in 1999, 27 Pa.C.S. Ch. 61
(relating to environmental stewardship and watershed
protection), which now provides a dedicated funding source for
environmental improvement, farmland and open space preservation,
abandoned mine cleanup and the Community Conservation
Partnerships Program; and
WHEREAS, The General Assembly reaffirmed this commitment to
environmental stewardship by authorizing the Growing Greener II
initiative in 2005, which provided $650 million in additional
funding for watershed improvements, farmland and open space
preservation, acid mine drainage mitigation and State park and
forest infrastructure improvements; and
WHEREAS, The Growing Greener initiative's goals are laudable
and important for the future protection and enhancement of this
Commonwealth's environment and it provides a number of
organizations with significant amounts of financial assistance,
but the program is complex, involves a range of projects from
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simple purchases to highly technical design efforts; and
WHEREAS, The General Assembly has an obligation to the
citizens of this Commonwealth to ensure that this investment is
allocated wisely and achieves the results envisioned for the
program; and
WHEREAS, The House of Representatives has an interest in
ensuring the program is administered in accordance with the
goals and intent of the program and has an interest in
determining the costs and benefits associated with this
investment in the environment and specifically with the
investment made with the establishment of the Growing Greener II
initiative; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee
undertake a comprehensive review of the environmental programs
contained in 27 Pa.C.S. §§ 6115, 6116, 6117, 6118 and 6119,
referred to as the Growing Greener II initiative, and prepare a
report of its findings which shall, at a minimum, identify all
of the following:
(1) the overall amount of bond funding authorized, the
amount issued, the amount remaining to be issued and a
schedule of debt service on the bond issuance;
(2) the total amount of funds allocated to each agency,
a compilation of how the allocated funds were spent and the
amount of remaining funds to be allocated by the agency;
(3) a determination of the costs and benefits of the
program, including a compilation of the miles of stream
buffers restored, the total acres of wetlands restored, the
total acres of abandoned mine lands reclaimed, the total
number of abandoned oil and gas wells plugged, the total
miles of acid mine drainage-impaired streams improved, the
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total acres of open space and farmland preserved, the number
and type of infrastructure improvements made to the State
park and forest system and the number and type of energy and
brownfield remediation projects;
(4) a review of the projects completed under the County
Environmental Initiative Program, including the number and
type of projects by county, the amount of funding requested
and provided to each county and an evaluation of the costs
and benefits of the projects implemented under the program;
and
(5) a review and evaluation of the projects completed by
the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the
Pennsylvania Game Commission, including a list of the number
and types of projects completed and the costs and benefits
associated with the projects implemented by each agency;
and be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee make a thorough study of various
proposals for continued funding for environmental initiatives to
address watershed improvements, preservation of farmland and
open space, reduction in the number of unremediated abandoned
mine lands, for decreasing the number of streams impaired by
acid mine drainage, for improving the infrastructure of the
State park and forest system and for the Community Conservation
Partnerships Program; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee make a report of its findings,
including recommendations for legislation, to the House of
Representatives within one year of the adoption of this
resolution.
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