Maryland Stormwater Showdown?
Two weeks ago, we learned that stakeholders had reached a compromise regarding the grandfathering in of new stormwater management regulations to extend the implementation date for those projects in the pipeline that meet certain threshold qualifications (see this past post for details specific to the compromise).
Now, we're hearing that the compromise might be...dead in the water. The terms of the compromise agreement state that the revised regulations must be in place by April 12, 2010 (Sine Die), but it now appears as though the regulations might not make it out of the Joint Committee on the Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review (AELR) in time.
HB 1125, whose scheduled March 10, 2010 hearing was canceled in light of the compromise, has been resurrected and a new hearing on this emergency legislation is scheduled for this Wednesday, March 24th, 2010 at 1:00pm before the House Environmental Matters Committee. This is a sponsor-only meeting and not open for public testimony.
There is a well-written article by Tim Wheeler, "Storm-water bill revived amid flak over compromise," published March 19, 2010 in the Baltimore Sun, that highlights various issues surrounding the status of the compromise.
