The Vermont House budget’s failure to ‘match’ federal funding endangers vital water quality and other infrastructure projects, Senate Republicans say.
Despite Gov. Scott’s urging, House budget drafters are spending on new programs rather than assure multi-year state “matching” funds for big federal works projects.
“I’ve asked a number of Vermonters this simple question: ‘Would you take $1 out of your savings account, if someone immediately would give you anywhere from $3 to $12 back?’”, asked Sen. Majority Leader Randy Brock (R-Franklin).
“Most Vermonters would consider that a no-brainer,” said Brock. “But the House budget proposal risks the loss of millions of dollars in federal infrastructure grants. Vermont must provide matching funds – in cash – to leverage these grants. But the House budget spends all of these surplus monies for current needs, leaving nothing to leverage for the future,” said Brock.
“The governor’s budget proposed setting aside $352 million for water infrastructure improvements and $341.5 million for transportation improvements. For water projects alone, this investment would achieve a 12-to-1 match. Put another way, for every $1 we use, we would receive $12 from the federal government.” Brock explained.
“We have repeatedly warned that failure to set aside money to meet federal match requirements could jeopardize millions of dollars in federal funding,” he emphasized.
“Our infrastructure is aging and in need of repair,” noted Assistant Senate Minority Leader Brian Collamore (R-Rutland). “The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has graded our infrastructure as a ‘C’. By leaving hundreds of millions in federal funding on the table, the deeply concerning House budget squanders this once-in-a-generation opportunity to revitalize our roads, bridges, and water systems.”
“By cutting the Governor’s infrastructure investments, federal funding for as many as 337 different projects in all 14 counties is being placed at risk–including up to 224 transportation projects (to be delayed by one or more years), 82 clean water projects, and 32 drinking water projects,” added Senate Institutions Committee Chair Russ Ingalls (R-Essex). “From resurfacing key highways to modernizing our wastewater treatment systems to upgrading our water lines, every single one of these infrastructure projects is now at risk of delays or funding loss.”
“It is not too late to restore funding in the budget for these investments,” concluded Brock. “Vermont Senate Republicans hope the Senate Appropriations Committee, at a minimum, will restore the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) reserve and Capital Expenditure Cash Fund (CECF) transfer to bolster Vermont’s infrastructure — and we stand ready, able, and willing to work with our colleagues across the aisle to achieve this crucial goal.”
***TO SEE DETAILS ON INDIVIDUAL AT-RISK INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, CLICK HERE***
NUMBER OF INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AT RISK BY COUNTY:
Addison County: Four clean water projects; five drinking water projects; 15 transportation projects (24 projects in total)
Bennington County: Five clean water projects; one drinking water project; 13 transportation projects (19 projects in total)
Caledonia County: Three clean water projects; two drinking water projects; 14 transportation projects (19 projects in total)
Chittenden County: Eight clean water projects; five drinking water projects; 17 transportation projects (30 projects in total)
Essex County: One clean water project; one drinking water project; eight transportation projects (10 projects in total)
Franklin County: Nine clean water projects; one drinking water project; 19 transportation projects (29 projects in total)
Grand Isle County: One clean water project; one drinking water project (2 projects in total)
Lamoille County: Two clean water projects; three drinking water projects; 11 transportation projects (16 projects in total)
Orange County: One clean water project; 13 transportation projects (14 projects in total)
Orleans County: Five clean water projects; one drinking water project; 17 transportation projects (23 projects in total)
Rutland County: 27 clean water projects; one drinking water project; 20 transportation projects (48 projects in total)
Washington County: Seven clean water projects; seven drinking water projects; 28 transportation projects (42 projects in total)
Windham County: Four clean water projects; 17 transportation projects (21 projects in total)
Windsor County: Five clean water projects; four drinking water projects; 31 transportation projects (40 projects in total)
STATEWIDE TOTAL: 82 clean water projects; 32 drinking water projects; 223 transportation projects (337 projects in total). – Source: Vermont House Republicans, Sen. Randy Brock.
Categories: Legislation
I’m speechless. Clean water is often a subject of concern, but they want to just ignore it! Is it because they want $$ to go to their “pet” projects? To top it off, leaving federal money on the table is insane-IMO. Am I missing something?
The Dems never seem to look at the big picture . . . tunnel vision is their modus operandi
If the dems/Legislature were genuinely environmentalists, they would FORCE Burlington to take the NECESSARY measures to STOP the spill off of wastewater directly into Lake Champlain. THEY DO NOT.
If the dems/Legislature were genuinely environmentalists, they would ENFORCE already extant Vermont environmental law & federal EPA laws to STOP & PROHIBIT residents from having ILLEGAL scrapyards on their properties that pollute ground water with at least twenty-seven different carcinogens. THEY DO NOT.
IF Brock was the majority leader this article would be moot as the senate would be doing the right thing!
The extreme hubris of D/P legislators is appalling and quite contrary to the oaths these people were required to swear or affirm.
Listening to the advice and counsel of real leaders such as Randy Brock- and heeding that advice is in the best interests of Vermonts taxpayers and citizens.
Perhaps, because there is no lobbyist or special interest group throwing dollars at these legislators, they are uninterested in good governance for Vermont?
Students for Life raises an excellent point:
With the passage of Act 47 by Phil Scott in 2019, and the ratification of Article 22 by voters in 2022, who is talking about the danger to our water from the prevalence of chemical abortions? “Chemical abortion pill are dangerous for not only babies but also women AND our environment.
“The FDA has ignored the pleas of doctors for more than 19 years about the safety of these pills, and they’ve also completely ignored the potential environmental harms of these pills.
“While the EPA tells us not to flush our dead goldfish down our toilets, the FDA and the abortion lobby has been telling women to flush chemically-tainted blood, placenta tissue, and human babies down their toilets since 2000.
“It is now widely recognized that pharmaceutical drugs in our waterways are harming the reproductive lives of fish, animals and humans. Who is talking about this?”
Not the Dems/Progressives, that’s for sure. Abortion is one of their “pet projects.”