Rendell Proposes $132 Million Suspensions, Transfers From Environmental Funds To Balance State Budget

Gov. Rendell has given legislative leaders a list of proposed $182 million in fund transfers and suspensions to help balance the state budget with $132 million coming from environmental funds--
-- Growing Greener-- $12 million (transfer), $29.8 million (suspension) - total $41.8 million -- virtually all the money going into the fund in FY 2010-11 beyond paying for the Growing Greener II bond issue debt service;
-- Keystone Fund-- $54.8 million (suspension) -- virtually all the money going into the fund in FY 2010-11;
-- Surface Mining Conservation -- $10 million (transfer);
-- Clean Air Fund-- $8 million (transfer);
-- Energy Development Fund $2 million (transfer); and
-- Agriculture Easement Purchase Fund- $20.4 million (suspension) -- virtually all the money going into the fund in FY 2010-11.
He proposed an additional $643 million to be transfered out of two Tobacco Settlement Funds.
Over the last seven years more than $1.3 billion in environmental funding has been used to balance the budget or to fund programs that could not get funding on their own.
The proposed cuts to Growing Greener in particular will end any new project funding, period. It will also mean county conservation district watershed specialists cannot be funded bringing support to watershed groups to its knees.