"Given New England's long established history of working to provide its citizens with clean air and a healthy environment, we are concerned that the proposed changes would undermine these accomplishments," the letter reads.
In June, the EPA announced changes to the way the agency plans to distribute air quality funds. These revisions would reduce New England's funding in order to send money to other regions that have not done as much to improve air quality. If fully implemented, these changes could decrease New England's funding by 30%-40%, forcing state governments to make up the difference. In addition, other proposed changes would require more matching funds from states to support programs aimed at monitoring air quality. This would create a substantial burden on New England and could cripple the monitoring programs these states use to keep their air clean.
"We strongly encourage you to ensure that the air quality programs in New England are at least level funded by the EPA through FY 2014," the delegation wrote.
The letter was organized by Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter and was signed by Representatives
