On Thursday, Rep. Matt Salmon introduced the third bill in his Shrink our Spending Initiative which would, if passed, eliminate federal funding for the EPA’s BEACH Act programs.
In 2000, the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act (BEACH Act) was signed into law to assist state and local health officials in developing and implementing beach monitoring programs at our nation’s beaches. Since 2001, EPA has made available nearly 130 million in taxpayer dollars to eligible health officials. Cutting this program will save the U.S. taxpayer $9.5 million.
“Washington needs to understand that the reality of an 18 trillion dollar debt demands that we use every dollar efficiently. Under the BEACH Act, federal experts are assigned to assist state and local governments in monitoring beach conditions. But President Obama and the EPA both agree that ‘state and local government programs have the technical expertise and procedures to continue beach monitoring without federal support,” stated Salmon.
“Now, we’re being asked to spend millions of dollars on unnecessary federal efforts that are duplicative at best. Let’s work together. President Obama and I can mutually agree to cut wasteful federal spending like the EPA’s Beach Grant Program, so this should be an easy bill for Congress to generate instant savings for the U.S. taxpayer,” concluded Salmon.