Wetland Permitting

Item 383 #2h

Language
Page 294, line 38, strike "$31,170,363" and insert "$31,656,363".
Page 294, line 38, strike "$31,170,363" and insert "$31,656,363".
Page 295, after line 9, insert:
"Included in this appropriation is $486,000 each year in nongeneral funds for the State Programmatic General Permit program.  The source of the nongeneral funds is $236,000 each year from fees associated with the program and $250,000 each year from the Virginia Emergency Environmental Response Fund, representing fines collected as a result of wetlands regulation violations.  In addition, the Department of Environmental Quality shall apply for federal grants, including a Coastal Zone Management Grant, to ensure effective implementation and enforcement of Virginia's nontidal wetlands program.

Explanation
(This amendment provides funding to allow DEQ to meet a statutory mandate to seek a State Programmatic General Permit (SPGP) from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The SPGP will allow DEQ to handle wetland permitting in an expedited manner, through a process that is simpler and quicker than any comparable federal regulatory program. DEQ has estimated that approximately 310 additional VWPP permit applications per year will be requested under the SPGP program. The source of the nongeneral funds is fees paid for the permits. The amendment also requires that DEQ apply for federal funding to provide addition resources to implement the SPGP. In order to implement the SPGP, DEQ will need eight additional FTE's.)