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2006 JOINT RESOLUTIONS
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J.R. 5
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RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be forwarded by the Department of
Legislative Services to the Honorable Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr., Governor of Maryland;
the Honorable Michael E. Busch, Speaker of the House of Delegates Thomas V. Miller,
Jr., President of the Senate of Maryland: and the Honorable Michael E. Busch,
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
Signed May 2, 2006.
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Joint Resolution No. 5
(House Joint Resolution No. 7)
A House Joint Resolution concerning
Chesapeake Bay - Cleanup and Restoration - Federal Funding
FOR the purpose of urging the President of the United States to reconsider his
recently released budget proposal and maintain the current levels of federal
funding for Chesapeake Bay cleanup and restoration efforts, such as sewage
treatment plant upgrades, oyster restoration, and other existing and beneficial
programs that are designed to improve the health of the Bay.
WHEREAS, The Chesapeake Bay is part of Maryland's heritage and culture and
plays a vital role in many sectors of Maryland's economy, including the commercial
seafood, recreational fishing, and tourism industries; and
WHEREAS, The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in North America, and
the Bay and its tributaries are a national treasure; and
WHEREAS, Other national treasures, such as the Great Lakes and the
Everglades, receive 2 to 10 times respectively, more federal funding than what is
afforded the Bay; and
WHEREAS, While significant progress has been made in restoring the health of
the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, they remain in a significantly degraded
condition; and
WHEREAS, Oysters serve as natural water filters and current Bay oyster
population is at only 2% of historic levels; and
WHEREAS, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 275
million pounds of nitrogen enter the Bay every year and in order to make substantial
progress in Bay restoration, there must be a reduction of at least 110 million pounds
of nitrogen per year; and
WHEREAS, Maryland is a signatory to the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement, in
which the State pledged significant reduction of nitrogen pollution to improve the
health of the Bay, with federal funds being an essential part of that process; and
WHEREAS, The federal budget proposed by the President of the United States
decreases funding that is vital to continue cleanup and restoration efforts that play an
- 2944 -
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