Statewide tax should fund stormwater management
Editor: Pennsylvania passed a comprehensive stormwater management act in 1978. Unfortunately they did not have the political fortitude to pass a sound implementation plan as part of it. In 1966 they passed a statewide Act (Act 537) for sewage planning and placed DER (now DEP) to regulate its implementation. Local municipalities complained to the state legislature on requirements, so when it came to stormwater management, they placed a state agency that mostly handled grants to implement the regulations. They mandated counties to develop plans and local municipalities to implement the plans. That required multiple counties to work together to develop watershed plans, hence a lack of plans being developed.
The state continues to pass regulations that mandate local governments to regulate stormwater, but it creates spot planning. When regional planning is considered now, items like the rain tax for funding produce a war cry, but again it is regionally and not based on watersheds. The time has come to establish watershed management districts statewide, based on watersheds. The funding source (as was done by the Johnstown Flood Act, to pay for flood damage. Still being collected on liquor) should be a statewide tax for Stormwater and Floodplain Management. This would not take local control away from local municipalities, but guarantee its compliance and implementation across municipal lines.
Paul Weilage, Port Saint Lucie, Florida
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