Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the funding will supercharge essential conservation efforts by improving water quality, reducing pollutants, restoring and protecting wildlife habitats, mitigating climate change impacts, and helping preserve waterways critical to New York State’s environment, public health and economy.

This is the largest amount of funding ever received by the G-L-R-I. Senator Schumer said, “The Great Lakes are a massive economic engine, not only for the tourism and recreation industries, but also for the shipping, logistics, agriculture, energy, and finance industries, as well as a source of drinking water. Because of their huge impact on so many facets of life, investing in the Great Lakes means investing in the future of Upstate New York. I will continue to fight to ensure that generations to come can continue to enjoy the full natural beauty and economic energy of the Great Lakes.”

The Great Lakes region includes eight states – Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania – and two Canadian provinces. According to the Office of Coastal Management at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for every dollar invested in Great Lakes protection, the return on investment is $3.35, or 335%. NOAA said for every $1 million invested in Great Lakes restoration and protection, 16 jobs are created.

In total, the Great Lakes account for 84% of North America’s surface fresh water and contain about 21% of the world’s supply. More than 30 million people in the U.S. and Canada live in the Great Lakes Basin – roughly 10% of the U.S. population and more than 30% of the Canadian population.

Donald Trump

WASHINGTON – The poor and the disabled are big losers in President Donald Trump’s $4.1 trillion budget proposal, while the Pentagon is a big winner.

The president’s plan for the budget year beginning Oct. 1 was delivered to Congress on Tuesday.  It calls for deep cuts in safety net programs, including Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The proposal also calls for big cuts in Social Security’s disability program.

According to the Associated Press, the proposed budget would slash Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program by $616 billion over the next decade. It would also cut the food stamp program by $191 billion and would cut funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program by $22 billion. And Trump’s budget calls for cutting Social Security disability benefits by nearly $70 billion over the next decade by encouraging and, in some cases, requiring people receiving the benefits to re-enter the workforce.

As far as regional impacts, Trump’s budget would eliminate the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and the Chesapeake Bay Program, saving $427 million next year.

The budget would also prohibit any funding for certain entities that provide abortions, including Planned Parenthood.

Meanwhile, defense spending and border security would get significant boosts, with the proposal adding $469 billion to defense spending over the next decade, while also including $2.6 billion for border security technology, including money to design and build a wall along the southern border.

The budget plan also calls for an increase for the Veterans Administration, including $29 billion over the next decade for the Choice program. The program allows veterans to seek outside medical care from private doctors.

REACTION TO BUDGET PLAN

Some members of congress have already said the proposed spending plan is dead on arrival, because it is too austere for Democrats and most moderate Republicans.

Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

During a conference call with media on Tuesday morning, Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning, NY 23) said he hadn’t yet thoroughly reviewed the budget proposal, so he wasn’t going to offer an evaluation. However, he did say that the budget was a good starting point for lawmakers in Washington to have the conversation about spending and how to prioritize what’s most important for the American people.

“I think this was a good start, in the sense of the president putting out in black and white what his vision is, and it allows us to engage in what I believe definitely needs to happen – we need to have a conversation about priorities in America,” Reed said.  “The $21 trillion in national debt that is building each and every day is not sustainable. We have to get the spending under control. We need to grow this economy, because if you reduce the spending at the same time you grow, we can tackle this national debt crisis that is looming on the horizon.”

Reed wouldn’t specifically say if he supported the full cut for Medicaid and other safety net programs being proposed by the president, but did say it’s something Congress needs to look at.

“Do I believe we can do Medicaid in a more effecient, effective manner? Absolutely. So if that means we can do it more efficiently and save hard working taxpayer dollars, I think that is a step in the right direction when it comes to looking at the program, reviewing the program when it comes to Medicaid. And as to what numbers that could result in when it comes to a reduction in expenditures, we’ll let good policy drive those numbers,” Reed said.

Governor Andrew Cuomo also released a statement on the budget, saying it’s an egregious attack on the values and priorities that built this state and this nation. He said the radical conservative agenda in Washington is putting corporations before people and billionaires before vulnerable New Yorkers, and the consequences would be catastrophic.

Dr. Sherri Mason of SUNY Fredonia addresses the Chautauqua County Legislature, calling for its support of Great Lake Funding, during the legislator’s March 2017 meeting.

MAYVILLE – Several residents were on hand at the Chautauqua County Legislature meeting Wednesday night to speak out against a cut in President Donald Trump’s proposed federal budget and its impact on the health and preservation of the Great Lakes. In addition, others also showed up to voice their opposition to a proposed motion in support of the Collins Amendment in the proposed American Health Care Act – which would remove the local cost of Medicaid from county governments.

The comments were the result of two motions the legisalture was scheduled to act on later in the meeting.

• MOTION 1: Support of Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
• MOTION 2: Support of Chris Collins Amendment

CONCERN OVER GREAT LAKES FUNDING CUTS

Last week, President Trump released his proposed federal budget, which increases military spending while at the same time slashing or eliminating dozens of domestic programs and initiatives.

Trump proposes cutting the Environmental Protection Agency budget by 31 percent, from $8.3 billion in fiscal year 2017 to $5.7 billion in fiscal year 2018. As part of those EPA cuts, the Trump budget eliminates the $300 million in annual funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), which finances environmental projects all over the region.

Among those who voiced concern for the possible Great Lakes funding cuts was Dr. Sherri Mason of SUNY Fredonia, who’s research on the impact of plastic microbeads on the great lakes ecosystem resulted in a local ban in Chautauqua County, and has received national attention.

“We are respectfully asking the legislature to pass a motion opposing the budget cuts, because of the impact that they will most definitely have on the Great Lakes,” Mason said. “Many of us remember that not too long ago, back in the 60s and 70s, when the rivers of the Great Lakes would regularly catch on fire, when the algal blooms were so bad, and when the Great Lakes were basically considered dead. Because of the things like the EPA, the Sea Grant agencies, the Clean Water Act, and various environmental initiatives that have taken place within the past 30 years that the Great Lakes have come back to this current state.”

COLLINS AMENDMENT RECEIVES PUBLIC CRITICISM

Former Chautauqua County Mental Health Commissioner Ralph Walton speaks during the legislature’s March 2017 meeting.

The legislature also considered a motion that would show support for the Collins Amendment, which is part of the American Health Care Act being considered by Congress and is named for its sponsor, Rep. Chris Collins (R-Clarence, NY 23). Collins amendment calls for the local cost of Medicaid to be eliminated, shifting it to the state level. While its an amendment to a federal bill, it would only impact counties in upstate New York and Long Island. According to state officials, the cost of such a shift would be $2.3 billion in lost Medicaid payments from local governments, if and when it takes effect in 2020, assuming of course the legislation passes both houses of Congress in its current form.

Speaking out against the Collins Amendment, both Bemus Point Resident Phyllis Caloren and Chautauqua resident John Brysacz explained to lawmakers that eliminating the local cost of Medicaid would have an adverse impact on local hospitals and nursing homes, as well as thousands of residents within the county. In addition, former Chautauqua County Mental Health Commissioner Ralph Walton also spoke to the legislature, explaining the negative impact the GOP-sponsored healthcare plan would have on drug addiction and other mental health services currently offered in the region.

Later in the meeting, the legislature unanimously approved the two motions of support.

Legislator George Borrello (R-Irving) offered comment prior to each vote, explaining that the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has not only provided environmental benefits, but also infrastructure, commerce, and industrial benefits as well. He also explained the support for the Collins Amendment, saying New York State has the largest Medicaid spending of any state in the nation, and the amendment will go a long way in changing policy in Albany, in order to bring down that spending and making it more similar to what the rest of the nation is spending.

Donald Trump

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump released the first budget blueprint of his new administration on Thursday, and it appears he’s held to his promise to build up the U.S. military while slashing domestic spending – even for programs that benefit the rural and lower-income Americans who voted for him last November.

The proposed $1.15 trillion “skinny” budget distills much of Trump’s sweeping campaign rhetoric into a set of hard choices and cold priorities. He is calling on Congress to boost defense spending by $54 billion, a move popular with many Republicans. A wall along the border with Mexico, a core campaign promise, would receive $4 billion to start construction.

Trump’s campaign promises to gut ineffective programs and shrink a bloated bureaucracy translated into a plan that cuts environmental protections programs, community development funding, housing vouchers, scientific research, a commission to create economic opportunities in Appalachia and other programs.

Funding for popular social services like Meals on Wheels, which provides food to the elderly, and after-school programs for children, also are on the chopping block. The outline – the start of negotiations with Congress – leaves untouched Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid spending.

Cuts that will impact his voting base in rural areas of the country include the elimination of funding to keep the Great Lakes clean, eliminating financial aid for rural and regional airports across the country, and flood insurance program funding.

EPA, GREAT LAKES CUTS

Trump proposes cutting the Environmental Protection Agency budget by 31 percent, from $8.3 billion in fiscal year 2017 to $5.7 billion in fiscal year 2018. That’s the largest cut among all Cabinet departments and major agencies.

The budget says that change, which would cut 3,200 EPA jobs, is needed “to ease the burden of unnecessary Federal regulations that impose significant costs for workers and consumers without justifiable environmental benefits.”

As part of the EPA cuts, the Trump budget eliminates the $300 million in annual funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), which finances environmental projects all over the region. The initiative, created in 2010 with strong bipartisan support, has supported thousands of projects across the Great Lakes region. In December, the initiative’s funding was re-authorized by Congress.

TRUMP PROPOSES CUTS IN ARTS & HUMANITIES PROGRAMS

President Trump’s proposed budget calls for big cuts in a wide array of domestic programs — among them, agencies that fund the arts, humanities and public media.

Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) would be cut to zero under the proposal, and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) would be eliminated entirely, the first time any president has proposed such a measure.

CPB received $445 million in federal funding in the last fiscal year; the NEA and NEH got about $148 million each — a tiny portion of the roughly $4 trillion federal budget.

Most CPB funds go directly to local radio and TV stations, but the federal funds are especially crucial for local stations, as well as local arts groups, which often receive matching funds from other donors based on their federal allocations.

Trump’s plan now goes to Congress, which can make changes before enacting federal budget legislation

REACTION FROM NY OFFICIALS

New York Senator and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with fellow NY Senator Kirsten Gillibrand have both come out strongly against the budget.

Senator Schumer said the budget clearly shows that the president talks like a populist, but clearly is out to only help special interests, adding that democrats in the senate will emphatically oppose the spending plan.

Gillibrand also said the President’s budget is irresponsible and will short-change middle class New Yorkers, seniors, and students alike while doing harm to a fragile economy.

Meanwhile, Governor Andrew Cuomo called the proposed budget “dangerous, reckless, and contemptuous of American values, adding that should be rejected by Congress out of hand.”

And State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said the President’s budget threatens funding for vital services including housing assistance, environmental protection, anti-poverty programs and more.

He added that it provides little specific information regarding the impact of broadly proposed cuts, but it is clear this budget will hurt New Yorkers.

Congressman Tom Reed’s (R-Corning, NY 23) office didn’t release a statement on the budget, but the congressman is expected to address the issue during his weekly conference call with media on Tuesday, March 21.

Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

WASHINGTON – The Great Lakes are set to receive another round of federal funding.

On Monday Congressman Tom Reed announced that he and other members of the House have voted to allocate $300 million as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The program will allow eight member states – including New York – to come together to implement a science-based and outcomes-focused plan of action for restoring and protecting the Great Lakes and their watersheds.

Others that qualify for funding for the program will include local communities, Native American tribes, conservation organizations, businesses and private industries.

In total, the Great Lakes currently generate more than 1.5 million jobs and $60 billion in wages annually, providing the foundation for a $30 billion regional tourism economy.

Reed said the bill received bipartisan support in the house and now goes to the Senate for further consideration.

Last week, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand also announced the GLRI component in the Senate version of the bill.

GLRI saw funds increased to $300 million under the House bill. Those dollars will go toward combating invasive species like hydrilla, restoring wetlands and other habitats, protecting wildlife, cleaning up toxins and protecting watersheds. The 23rd district, which includes Lake Erie and Lake Ontario watersheds has more than a dozen projects funded through the GLRI.

SRFs help to fund critical drinking water and water quality protection projects across the country. New York is able to use this funding to assist municipalities and privately-owned water systems and infrastructure with improving drinking water systems and upgrading waste water treatment facilities and storm water management projects.

The federal funding bill addresses the Asian carp threat on two fronts. First by providing $3.5 million to the Department of Interior to prevent the spread of Asian carp, and second by authorizing the Army Corps of Engineers to take emergency measures to stop an imminent threat of Asian carp between the Mississippi and the Great Lakes.

Asian Carp are detrimental to the Great Lake ecosystem because they can grow to be as heavy as 100 pounds and as long as four feet. Because of their massive size and equally big appetite, they have the potential to eliminate entire populations of fish within the Great Lakes thereby putting a $7 billion industry at risk.

The bill also allocates up to $300 million to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative program for fiscal year 2014. This is an increase from the sequestered levels in fiscal year 2013 of $284 million.

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has leveraged the resources and expertise of 11 agencies across the federal government to collaborate on improving the health of Great Lakes ecosystems by:

• Cleaning up Areas of Concern;
• Reducing nutrients entering the Lakes; and
• Preventing the introduction of new invasive species.