Clean Water Funding Fairness Bill

Protect Clean Water from Factory Farms!

Please contact your state Representative and state Senator immediately!

Ask them to support the Clean Water Funding Fairness Bill
(S.B. 1682 – Rep. Tryon)

HOUSE VOTE MAY HAPPEN THURSDAY MAY 26, SENATE VOTE BY MAY 31!

We need your help because Illinois Farm Bureau and the livestock assocations have been lobbying against S.B. 1682. Delay tactics are being used to keep the bill from coming up for a floor vote. The bill passed out of the House Executive Committee on May 18, but still needs to pass the full House and Senate by May 31 when the session ends.

This Bill will help protect clean water by requiring livestock operations that pollute to pay their fair share of Illinois’ Clean Water Act program costs.

Currently all pollution dischargers have to pay an annual permit fee, except livestock operations. The Illinois EPA uses these fees to fund its regulatory program. The bill ends this exemption by establishing a permit fee, to be set by Illinois EPA in rulemaking and not to exceed $1200.

This bill is endorsed by the Illinois EPA and by numerous environmental groups including the Illinois Citizens for Clean Air & Water, Environment Illinois, and Prairie Rivers Network.

For more information on this issue, see our Factory Farm pages.

To send an email that automatically goes to your elected representatives, use this link.

Or, call your Senator and Representative at their Springfield office and tell them that you support the Clean Water Funding Fairness Bill. See here to find your legislators’ telephone numbers.