Assemblyman John McKeon (D-Essex, Morris) issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s 2021 budget proposal calling for 26 percent in funding cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 8 percent in cuts to the Energy Department and 16 percent in cuts to Department of the Interior:
“President Trump has made it abundantly clear, yet again, in his proposal to slash more than $2.4 billion in funding across federal agencies and programs that pollution doesn’t matter, land conservation doesn’t matter, energy innovation doesn’t matter, safety net programs don’t matter and that the best interests of the people don’t matter.
“With the proposed $113 million cut to the Superfund, New Jersey stands to lose the most.
“The environmental impact of the industrial revolution hit us harder than it did most other states. Today we have 115 sites – contaminated properties and waterways – designated for clean up by the EPA. Further cuts to the Superfund only promise exacerbate the existing backlog and prolong critical remediation projects, threatening the vitality of local communities across the Garden State and those throughout the country.
“Doing a 180 on environmental policy progress does no one any favors. President Trump is waging a war against public health.”