March 25th, 2019 by WCBC Radio

Maryland’s governor is urging congressional leaders to oppose cuts to Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts in President Donald Trump’s budget. Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, made the request in a letter Monday to top leaders of both parties. Hogan is asking them to boost federal funding to $90 million for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, which coordinates science, research, and modeling efforts.

Under the president’s budget proposal, the program would get $7.3 million, down from $73 million this year.

Hogan is the chair of the Chesapeake Executive Council. That is a panel comprised of governors of six watershed states that creates policy direction for the restoration and protection of the nation’s largest estuary.