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Budget and Appropriations:
DEQ 'Reform'

Our Position: oppose
Bill Number: SB 438-439
Sponsor: Sen. Randy Richardville, Sen. Roger Kahn
Legislative Session: 2009-10

These bills are an attempt by Senate Republicans to cripple the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) by requiring additional paperwork, random sampling for permit inspections and other actions that would severely impact the DEQ's ability to protect public health and the environment.

Status

More information

Senate Bill 438 Official Document: http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2009-SB-0438

Senate Bill 439 Official Document: http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2009-SB-0439

Background

Senate Bill 438 proposes to amend the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA), in order to require the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Environmental Quality to use what is called a "stratified random sampling process" to perform inspections on selected persons belonging to distinct subgroups.  According to the Senate Fiscal Agency, "The bill would result in additional administrative workload for State departments."  According to the DEQ, the proposed bill would interfere with federal legislation already in place and slow down the administrative functioning of the department.

Senate Bill 439 is basically an addition to 438.  The bill would require the DEQ and DNR to hire an employee to "perform a benchmark analysis or arrange for independent peer review" for programs under NREPA.  The DEQ opposes this bill because it "attempts to structure a common method and procedure to evaluate environmental programs, but fails to recognize the complexity and differences among those programs."