Lawmakers Hear DLS Overview as Agencies Outline Targeting, Pay‑for‑Success and Funding Gaps for Chesapeake Bay Restoration

Andrew Gray, the subcommittee’s Department of Legislative Services analyst, told senators the Chesapeake Bay restoration effort remains guided by the 2025 Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) goal and two‑year milestones but faces multiple implementation challenges. He said mapping shows remaining nitrogen reduction work concentrated in the Shenandoah and Pennsylvania agricultural regions and the Delmarva Peninsula, and that recent wastewater treatment plant failures temporarily increased pollutant loads in Maryland.

Gray said the DLS analysis shows a substantial net reduction in governor’s proposed Bay‑restoration funding between fiscal 2024 and 2025 driven largely by lower transfer‑tax revenue and adjustments to prior estimates; the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays 2010 Trust Fund, by contrast, would see a modest increase for competitive grants. He warned that climate change, population growth and infrastructure or staffing failures are eroding the TMDL’s “margin of safety” and that federal funds often do not cover positions needed to administer or implement projects.

Josh Kurtz, secretary of the Department of Natural Resources, said the administration has created an executive council and a staff‑level watershed council to increase interagency coordination. Kurtz emphasized shifting some attention from technical load reductions to living resources — crabs, oysters and fisheries — and said DNR will pursue finer‑scale data and geographic overlays to target funds for maximum ecological benefit. “We’re data‑driven and we’re heart‑led,” Kurtz said, adding that the administration is exploring private capital and pay‑for‑success contracting to leverage additional investment.

Serena McElwain, Maryland’s environment secretary, described MDE’s approach as three R’s — reinvigorate permitting and enforcement, rethink stormwater and permit conditions to reflect climate risks, and reengage communities left out of past efforts. McElwain noted MDE’s recent creation of a first assistant secretary for environmental justice and said the agency will pursue performance measures and expanded enforcement where appropriate.

Kevin Addicks, secretary of agriculture, emphasized working with farmers on soil‑health practices and geographically targeted best management practices such as cover crops and manure management. He said agricultural cost‑share programs already exist but need better field‑level targeting to capture high‑loss areas.

On the Conowingo Dam, DLS highlighted a watershed implementation plan that includes a 6.75 million‑pound nitrogen reduction target and noted Maryland’s $25 million contribution; Gray also referenced ongoing relicensing and a reported long‑term restoration settlement with Constellation Energy. On consent decrees for Back River and Patapsco, DLS outlined civil‑penalty provisions and supplemental environmental project funding and asked the administration to update the subcommittee on compliance, staffing and plant operations.

Committee members pressed agencies on coordination with other Bay states, accountability for major wastewater plants, the implication of lower transfer‑tax revenue for land‑preservation programs and how pay‑for‑success contracts interact with state procurement rules. Kurtz said the administration is engaging neighboring states and federal partners to shape the post‑2025 negotiation, and McElwain said MDE is reviewing recent plant reports and a staffing strategy submitted by Baltimore City.

The subcommittee did not take formal action on the analysis; DLS recommended that the administration comment in budget responses on targeting strategies, consent‑decree status and how budget changes reflect new policy directions. The agencies accepted requests to provide additional detail in the administration’s budget narrative and to follow up with committee members on resilience and vessel turn‑in pilot concepts.

The committee will continue to review Bay‑related items in future hearings.