House Majority Leader Rep. Sam Smith (R-Jefferson) this week circulated an op-ed piece to underscore the commitment both the Senate and House have to environmental funding….

“As a legislator from a small town in western Pennsylvania, I know I am probably no match for a bunch of Philadelphia lawyers; however, I did expect that a deal was a deal. You see we agreed to address Growing Greener this fall.

“At the same time Gov. Ed Rendell and his administration were holding numerous media events to give themselves cover from their Growing Greener supporters, his staff informed us they were really not going to push the issue. As you should know by now, the governor’s true goal this past year was gambling –at any cost. Growing Greener could wait.

“Additionally, the governor’s “proposal” mainly redefined Growing Greener to include programs for parks and recreation, downtown beautification, brownfield development, mine reclamation and orphan well plugging. These are existing programs created and supported by Republicans.

“As we have come to expect, the governor’s plan was great for the “big picture” but short on details – details that were slow in being developed.

“As leader of the House Republicans, I had expressed concerns about the large bond issue the governor proposed to pay for this and instead advocated we pay for Growing Greener programs as we go. My concern was that the bond proceeds would be spent in four or five years, and then these programs would be unfunded for about 20 years while taxpayers pay off the $800 million loan.

“For his administration to now suggest that the legislature failed to fund Growing Greener is simply false.

“While we proposed additional funding for the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund, the governor’s staff opposed it. During the budget discussions and negotiations, the only time the governor’s staff brought up their “Growing Greener” proposal was to direct the legislature to NOT FUND the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund or other environmental programs. The budget secretary said he would be holding a meeting on June 30 to discuss the governor’s Growing Greener II proposal. To date, that meeting has not occurred or been scheduled.

“Since the Rendell Administration failed to revisit the issue, I proposed and Senate Majority Leader David “Chip” Brightbill agreed to invite him, along with House and Senate Democrats, to participate in a “Green Ribbon Commission.” The commission is being formed to jointly study and develop recommendations for environmental programs and to determine the best funding options and report back by the fall. This allows enough time that if a bond does need to be floated, a ballot question can be developed for the spring 2005 Primary.

“The Rendell Administration has accepted our invitation. (Ironically, they pushed us very hard to do this via a letter as opposed to a formal resolution voted on by the General Assembly that I originally suggested. That’s those smart Philadelphians getting the best of a country boy again!)

“While the media and the administration would like you to believe that the General Assembly ignored the environment entirely, this new state budget has creditable funding for environmental initiatives.

“House Republicans included $14.6 million to fund Waste Tire Recycling Grants, Safe Drinking Water Grants and the Senior Environmental Corps. The governor’s initial budget proposal eliminated the funds for these programs. House Republicans helped to increase an additional $1.5 million in state funds for the Susquehanna River Basin Commission and the Delaware River Basin Commission for water resource studies and related work; the County Conservation Corps and Mushroom Nutrient Management. Republicans maintained the dedicated funding for Growing Greener. In actual dollars, the Department of Environmental Protection received $17 million increase over the governor’s budget proposal. We allocated an additional $2 million to Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to help with the state parks and community parks.

“Republicans recognize the need for a long-term commitment to the Commonwealth’s environmental needs such as preserving open space in the east and reclaiming abandoned mines in the west. Like it or not, this is not a four-year, $800 million problem, nor a five year photo-op; it requires a lifetime commitment.

“The House and Senate are committed to working together to identify, develop and recognize the funding needs for Pennsylvania’s environmental programs -- programs that will help us actually “grow greener.” [end]

7/16/2004