U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

• 2010 Budget:  $10.486 billion
• Enacted 2009:  $7.644 billion

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for protecting human health and the environment through the abatement and control of pollution.  This involves research, monitoring, assistance to States, tribes, and territories, standard setting and enforcement.  With $10.5 billion in funding for the EPA, the President’s Fiscal Year 2010 Budget is 37 percent higher than 2009 enacted funding.  To protect water resources, the President’s budget accelerates the restoration of the Great Lakes, and includes an historic increase in funding for water infrastructure through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund.  Additional measures to secure our water supply include fully funding the Water Security Initiative (WSI) pilot cooperative agreements and the activities of the Water Alliance for Threat Reduction.  This Budget will also provide $1.3 billion to clean up contaminated sites through the Superfund program. 

PROTECTING OUR WATER RESOURCES

• Maintaining and improving our water infrastructure.  To maintain and improve outdated water infrastructure and keep our wastewater and drinking water clean and safe, the President’s budget invests $3.9 billion.  The funding will support efforts around the country to build and update an estimated 1,000 clean water and 700 drinking water infrastructure projects, support green infrastructure and create thousands of jobs. These funds will also help communities repair and upgrade the aging network of leaking drinking water and wastewater pipes that can result in water main breaks, affecting businesses, roads, and homes.

• Protecting Our Lakes and Rivers.  The budget includes a $475 million multi-agency Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to protect and clean up the largest fresh water system in the world through contaminated sediment cleanup, invasive species control, non-point source pollution mitigation and critical habitat protection.  The budget also includes funding for crucial efforts to protect, maintain, and restore the Chesapeake Bay, Puget Sound, San Francisco Bay, and other large water bodies.

TAKING ON THE CLIMATE CHALLENGE

• Addressing Climate Change.  To address the growing threat of climate change, EPA will make $19 million in investments in a new Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions inventory and other analytic products and partnerships.  EPA’s GHG registry investment will include data reporting and implementation efforts, data management systems, guidance and materials for the regulated community and source measurement technologies.  In addition, EPA will invest in developing analytic methods to evaluate the effectiveness of GHG emissions offsets.
• Reinforcing Scientific Integrity.  The budget supports rigorous, peer-reviewed scientific analyses with $842 million for science and technology, including additional funding for water sustainability to assess, develop and compile scientifically rigorous tools and models that will help advance the deployment of green water infrastructure.

CREATING NEW ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES AND PROTECTNG OUR COMMUNITIES

• Strengthening Superfund and Restoring brownfields.  The budget invests in hazardous waste cleanups through the Superfund and brownfields programs that employ thousands of people across the country and restore properties for economic use.  In the budget, $1.3 billion will go to increase the number of hazardous waste sites ready for anticipated use and to fund ongoing site cleanups.  In addition, the Budget proposes to reinstate the expired Superfund taxes beginning in 2011 to pay for future cleanups. The Superfund tax is estimated to generate $1.2 billion in receipts in 2011, increasing to $2 billion a year by 2019.  The budget also proposes $175 million for the brownfields program, which will provide additional assessment, clean-up, and job-training grants. 
• Managing Chemical and Toxic Risks.  A total of $55 million will go to an enhanced toxics program to screen, assess and reduce chemical risks.
•   Improving enforcement.  $600 million will go to the EPA’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance program.  It includes an increase of nearly 30 additional enforcement staff and will enhance efforts to integrate environmental justice considerations in EPA programs and policies.  It will also aid in the work to fulfill environmental requirements with respect to other federal agencies’ recovery act projects.
• Partnering with tribes, states, and communities.  States, localities and tribes are the front line in many environmental programs, as they implement major portions of almost all EPA programs.  The budget includes $1.1 billion for categorical grants to states and tribes.