Ohio EPA seeks fee changes, H2Ohio and solid-waste funding in HB 96 budget testimony

Anne Vogel, director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, told the Ohio House Natural Resources Committee that the agency’s biennial budget request and associated policy changes in House Bill 96 are designed to sustain regulatory programs, support local cleanups and infrastructure projects, and modernize fee structures that fund Ohio EPA operations.

Vogel said the agency’s FY26 operating request is $277,000,000 and FY27 is $285,000,000. She described several proposals: extend or modernize fee authorities that fund more than 70% of Ohio EPA’s revenue stream; add base fees to Title V and minor air permits to close a roughly $7,000,000 annual shortfall in the Division of Air Pollution Control; restructure solid-waste disposal fees so all waste delivered to solid-waste landfills pays the solid-waste fee of $4.75 per ton rather than the lower $1.60 per ton charged for construction and demolition debris at some sites; continue H2Ohio and H2Ohio Rivers programs; expand the scrap-tire cleanup program; and create a cybersecurity grant program for public water systems.

On air permitting, Vogel said Ohio…