Clean Water Indiana is an eNewsletter from the Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts click here for the printer friendly version
November 18, 2008
Clean Water Indiana (CWI) Program
What is CWI?
The Clean Water Indiana legislation (IC 14-32-8) was passed by Indiana’s legislators in 1999. At the time, $1 million per year in 2001 & 2002 was appropriated through the Build Indiana Fund (BIF). However, the 2002 dollars were reverted back into the BIF. The CWI program remained unfunded until 2005 when a unanimous vote restructured Indiana’s conservation dollars and set aside dedicated funding from the cigarette tax to finance the CWI program. The program supports productive soil and safe water by providing funds to get conservation on the land, bring federal cost-share dollars into this state, and build capacity within our 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts. However, presently, only $1 out of every $3 in CWI actually goes to the local Soil and Water Conservation Districts for conservation delivery.
Who Administers the CWI Program?
The Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) Division of Soil Conservation (DSC) administers the CWI fund under the direction of the State Soil Conservation Board (SSCB).
Funding Issues
Indiana continues to lag behind its Midwestern counterparts in conservation funding. As other states’ Conservation Districts maximize federal and state dollars year after year, Indiana falls behind, putting our economic sustainability at risk. Just this year, citizens in Minnesota voted to fund the “Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment” which will provide dedicated funding of over $125 million each of the next 25 years for conservation programs. In Iowa, the legislature has convened a sustainable natural resources funding commission to develop viable funding mechanisms for funding conservation programs.
The Indiana Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts (IASWCD) and our 92 Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs) strongly believe Indiana must have an increase in state funds to leverage federal programs and build strong local Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) capacity to assist landowners in land stewardship and conservation practices.
IASWCD Clean Water Indiana (CWI) Platform
2010-2011 Budget
The IASWCD proposes the following request for the 2010-2011 biennium budget of the Clean Water Indiana fund and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture Division of Soil Conservation (ISDA DSC):
- An increase in the ISDA Division of Soil Conservation’s annual budget from $1,968,750 to $3,490,750 (a $1,522,000 increase)
Why? The increase in the Division of Soil Conservation’s budget would provide support for their
Resource Specialists, along with their contract and equipment expenses. This would free up funding in the current Clean Water Indiana program to allow the State Soil Conservation Board to direct more dollars for on-the-ground conservation on all working lands, as intended by the law.
- Continue to fund the CWI program with an additional $500,000 in general fund appropriation as was passed during the 2008/2009 budget cycle.
Why? The CWI fund received an additional $500,000 per year during the 2008/2009 budget cycle from a general fund appropriation. We advocate for this increase to be continued in the 2010/2011 budget cycle. This increase has been dedicated to the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP).
- Advocate for language which clarifies the Clean Water Indiana Fund as a non‐reverting fund.
Why? While the current CWI statute (IC 14‐32) does state that funds at the end of a state fiscal year do not revert to the state general fund, more specific and stringent language is needed to avoid any misinterpretations by the Indiana Office of Management and Budget.
You’ll hear more about the IASWCD legislative proposal when you convene again in January. And, we look forward to talking with you about this critical legislation at our January 14, 2009, Legislative Breakfast at the Downtown Hyatt Regency (7:30 a.m.). Look for details coming soon. >> Click here for more information on our 2009 Annual Conference for Indiana Soil and Water Conservation Districts January 12-14, 2009.
Thank you!
IASWCD Legislative Co-chairs
Ray Chattin, Knox County SWCD and Paula Baldwin, Marion County SWCD, IASWCD Vice President
Clean Water Indiana is published by the IASWCD Legislative Committee
