Yesterday I wrote
about a really, really bad bill that was up for a House Environmental Resources
and Energy Committee vote yesterday. House
Bill 1659 would allow polluters to shop around to find private consultants
to do reviews for their pollution control permits.
Well, the committee
did indeed consider the bill. The committee adopted an amendment offered by
Rep. Evankovich (R-Armstrong/Westmoreland) that took out the specific language
about the private permit contractors but inserted requiring DEP to “implement a
plan to use qualified non-departmental employees…to enhance the timeliness and
effectiveness of the permit review process…” Rep. Vitali (D-Delaware)
distributed amendments that he says he will offer on the floor if and when the
bill gets there.
The bill is
still a stinker. It still sets up a pollution permit shopping mall; it still has
tight deadlines for permit reviews and still requires DEP to automatically
approve permit applications if it does not meet the deadlines.
The committee
approved the bill on an 18 to 5 vote.
This is one bill that should be buried. However, if it lives and gets to the
floor, it should be defeated.
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