
FILE PHOTO: Shown is the Pennsylvania Capitol building Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.
Matt Rourke / AP Photo
FILE PHOTO: Shown is the Pennsylvania Capitol building Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.
Matt Rourke / AP Photo
Matt Rourke / AP Photo
FILE PHOTO: Shown is the Pennsylvania Capitol building Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2015, at the state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa.
As state lawmakers continue to search for ways to plug an estimated billion-dollar budget hole, they are taking a renewed look at state agenciesâ use of special funds, including money dedicated to environmental programs.
A House hearing scheduled for next week will examine how the state Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources are using special funds. These include things like cleaning up industrial sites and recycling.
Last fall, House Republicans sought to use $450 million from agenciesâ special funds to help balance the state budget. Although the move was unsuccessful, the money has been viewed as a potential surplus that could be diverted into the stateâs General Fund.
In a letter to House and Senate environmental committee chairs last September, DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell, called the plan a âraidâ that would have negative environmental consequences. âThese funds are not a piggy bank,â he wrote.
The House Appropriations Committee will examine the use of special funds in two hearings next weekâone with the Department of Community and Economic Development, another with DEP and DCNR.
âWe view it as an opportunity to showcase the great conservation and recreation projects that have occurred with these funds â hundreds of projects in all 67 counties,â says DCNR spokeswoman Chris Novak.
John OâBrien, a staffer for majority chair Rep. Stan Saylor (R- York) says the committee also recently heard from PennDOT on its use of special funds. He calls the process a learning experience for legislators.
âA lot of these funds have balances. The General Assembly is always told there are commitments to this money. Weâre seeking more detail on that,â he says. âWe look at it as a good practice. Before you go asking taxpayers for more money, to make sure youâre spending all the dollars you currently have in the most fiscally efficient manner possible.â
StateImpact Pennsylvania is a collaboration among WITF, WHYY, and the Allegheny Front. Reporters Reid Frazier, Rachel McDevitt and Susan Phillips cover the commonwealthâs energy economy. Read their reports on this site, and hear them on public radio stations across Pennsylvania.
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