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Legislative Update - March 2007 Environmental Education Act Senator Mary Jo White introduced SB 356, the Environmental
Education Act, on March 5, 2007. The Environmental Resources and Energy
Committee, which Senator White chairs, passed the bill on March 13,
2007. SB 356 establishes a PA Center for Environmental Education and
a governing board. A Center for Environmental Education currently exists,
but does not have statutory authority. Even though a conservation district
representative serves on the current board, the legislation does not
specifically guarantee conservation districts a seat. It does state
that conservation organizations may be one of the entities to obtain
a seat on the Board. To see a copy of SB 356 go to http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/session.cfm Other Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee Actions Other bills voted out of Committee were SB 99, repealing the prohibition on General Fund dollars going to the Wild Resources Conservation Fund and SB 355 requiring additional public review of Clean Air State Implemenation Plans and their publication on the Internet. ACRE Update Attorney General Tom Corbett successfully challenged local farm ordinances that illegally restricted farming operations. Commonwealth Court ruled that a lawsuit against an anti-agriculture ordinance in Berks County may continue. Earlier cases limited the Attorney General's authority to challenge an ordinance enacted prior to the ACRE until the township "enforced" the ordinance. The Attorney General can now ask the court to declare the ordinance, which required a 1,500 foot setback from residences for buildings in high density poultry, livestock or mushroom operations, null and void, and take action to prevent its enforcement. The Court also ruled that the Attorney General's authority under ACRE is not limited to "nuisance" ordinances. The Attorney General may challenge attempts by townships to illegally regulate agriculture through zoning and land use ordinances. In Fulton County, supervisors rescinded an ordinance aimed at preventing contract farming in the township after being sued by the Attorney General under ACRE. Erosion and Sedimentation Regulations At a DEP Ag Advisory Committee meeting recently one of
the presentations concerned DEP ideas for Chapter 102 regulation revisions.
During the presentations DEP stated they are proposing a change to 102
regulations that "enables DEP to delegate administration and enforcement
of the Chapter to "municipal authorities" in addition to County
Conservation Districts with adequate and qualified staff." House and Senate Appropriations Committee Hearings The House and Senate Appropriations Committees held hearings this week concerning the PA Department of Agriculture and the PA Department of Environmental Protection budgets. In all cases, members of the Committees asked questions concerning the Governor's proposed budget for conservation districts. Secretary McGinty (DEP) and Secretary Wolff (PDA) were extremely complementary in their responses about the wonderful work accomplished by districts, but neither recommended additional funding for any line item. Both acknowledged that the General Assembly has increased district lines in the past, and stated that the Governor's proposed budget removed all legislative add-ons from previous years. Our task is to re-insert the legislative add-ons and increase those amounts to more closely reflect district financial needs. |
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