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DEP, DCNR To Furlough Or Eliminate 333 Full Time Positions Due To Budget Cuts
The Rendell Administration this week announced it will furlough 147 employees from the departments of Environmental Protection and Conservation and Natural Resources and eliminate another 186 full time vacant positions for a total reduction of 333 positions.

In addition 1,131 seasonal workers at DCNR had their positions eliminated or hours reduced in State Park and Forestry operations-- 240 seasonal positions were eliminated over the last year and 891 seasonal workers had their hours reduced.

With the furlough announcement this week, DEP has lost 612 authorized positions since the 2002-03 budget* (3,211 then and now 2,599)-- nearly 19 percent of its staff positions, and DCNR has lost 95 full time positions (1,390 positions then and 1,295 now)-- just under 7 percent of its positions since 2002-03.

The furloughs at DEP were by far the largest portion of the 319 state workers let go from all agencies this week-- 138 DEP employees were furloughed-- 5 percent of its entire workforce and 120 vacant positions eliminated at the agency for a total of 258 positions.

At DCNR, 9 workers were furloughed and 66 vacant positions eliminated for a total of 75 positions.

These actions were prompted by dramatic cuts in 2009-10 General Fund budget for these agencies. The Department of Environmental Protection budget was cut by 26.7 percent ($58 million) and there was an 18.5 percent reduction for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources ($21 million).

A fact sheet handed out by the Governor's Office at the time the final budget was adopted in October said spending at the Department of Environmental Protection was at the same level as in 1996-97, erasing 13 years of environmental progress.

DEP Eliminating Services

A budget impact summary provided by DEP noted it would be eliminating and reducing services in several areas as a result of the budget cuts--

Permit Reviews Delayed: "The elimination of some permitting staff in each region that may lengthen processing times for some permits; the department is in the process of raising any outdated fees to ensure effective permitting."

DEP Secretary John Hanger noted at budget hearings in March the agency already had a permit backlog that he hoped would be eliminated by the end of the Rendell Administration in January 2011.

Local Government Services: A reduction in planning and technical services for local governments, conservation districts and counties;

Consumer Education: Elimination of funding for this year of the Consumer Energy Program;
Black Fly Spraying:Reduction in the period of time Black Fly spraying can continue with spraying likely to terminate by the end of July 2010; and

West Nile Virus: Elimination of West Nile Virus county grants in 36 counties; DEP staff will attempt to provide some lessened coverage in those counties where county programs do not operate.

DEP did note, "the reduction in state funds will have no impact on the permitting and inspection operations performed by the Oil and Gas staff at DEP. Drilling companies - not taxpayers - pay for this critical environmental protection work. Fees for gas drilling permits were increased to make it possible for DEP to hire additional inspectors to oversee and make sure gas drilling in the state does not harm the environment."

DEP has not only raised permit review fees for gas well drilling, it has proposed permit fee increases for NPDES water quality, erosion and sedimentation, air quality and laboratory accreditation fees totaling about $23.4 million. (see separate story)

DEP also said, "Other important environmental also work continues, with significant levels of state funds not affected by the recently enacted state budget. For example, since April 2009, the state has invested $1.5 billion in new grants and loans for urgently needed repairs to local water, sewer, flood and dam infrastructure. That is more than four times the normal annual investment in these critical water project upgrades.

"When it comes to energy, major electric utilities will invest $1 billion in electricity conservation over the next four years in their service territories, making Pennsylvania a top five energy conservation state. In addition $650 million will be released for alternative energy projects that will make Pennsylvania a top five solar state by the end of 2010. Pennsylvania now has enough wind farms to provide the electricity for 198,000 homes and ranked second nationally in the growth of wind energy during both the second and third quarters of 2009."

Click here
 to find Budget Impact Statement issued by DEP.

DCNR Not Closing State Parks

Secretary of Administration Naomi Wyatt said Gov. Rendell has made a commitment to keeping Pennsylvania's 117 State Parks open using revenues left in the DCNR Oil and Gas Fund.

Secretary Wyatt noted the Fund received an unanticipated $25 million from Marcellus Shale natural gas leases that will keep the parks open, but many will have reduced services.

The reduced services include:shorten swimming season at pools, beaches;early closings of campgrounds;more selective snow removal, mowing;reduce environmental education, interpretive and recreational programming and teacher training.

In addition, the cuts will also cause DCNR to defer maintenance on state forest roads; potentially closing those roads as conditions warrant, eliminate program that raises/sells native seedlings to private forest landowners, eliminate gypsy moth spraying, curtail the surveillance of other forest pests and eliminate the PAMAP.

Click here  to find Budget Impact Statement issued by DCNR.

Biggest Cuts In History

The cuts included in the 2009-10 budget were the biggest environmental cuts in history to environmental programs. But over the last seven years the total environmental funding diverted or cut from environmental programs to help balance the state budget or to fund programs that could not get funding on their own is now $980 million.

Here's the rundown--

-- $376 million in Act 339 grants intended to support wastewater plant operations over the last seven years were eliminated to balance the budget;
-- $143 million diverted from the DCNR Oil and Gas Fund to balance the 2008-09 budget;
-- $79 million cut from the DEP and DCNR General Fund budget during 2009-10 fiscal year;
-- $60 million diverted from the DCNR Oil and Gas Fund to balance the 2009-10 budget;
-- $100 million in 2002 from the Underground Storage Tank cleanup insurance fund to balance the budget (although this is slowly being repaid over 10 years);
-- $52.7 million “one-time” diversion from the Keystone Recreation, Parks and Conservation Fund in 2006 to balance the budget;
-- $50 million in 2007 and 2008 from the Environmental Stewardship Fund, which supports mine reclamation and watershed restoration, to fund the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Program because there was no agreement on how to fund that program;
-- $85 million in FY 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10 from the Environmental Stewardship Fund to pay debt service on the Growing Greener II bond issue and taking funding away from restoration projects each year for the next 25 years – reflecting a pattern of only environmental programs being required to address their own bond debt service;
-- $15 million from the Recycling Fund in to balance the 2008-09 budget;
-- $18.4 million put into budgetary reserve in 2008-09 from the Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; and
-- $5 million reduction in Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) farm conservation tax credit program in FY 2009-10.

Growing Greener Ends

In addition to these cuts and diversions, next year funding for the Growing Greener Program runs out and will create a more than $60 million hole in environmental funding for FY 2010-11.

NewsClips:

*Complement numbers for 2002-03 obtained from the 2003-04 Governor's Executive Budget.

11/23/2009

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