ANR leaders tell Natural Resources & Energy committee federal funds have expanded workload; committee selects clerk by voice vote

Leaders from the Agency of Natural Resources told the Natural Resources & Energy committee on Jan. 14 that the agency’s budget and staff have grown sharply because of new federal funding, and they outlined near-term priorities including water infrastructure, PFAS and emerging-contaminant response, dam safety, state lands stewardship and climate planning.

“For the record, I’m Julie Warren, the secretary of natural resources,” Secretary Julie Warren said as she opened the briefing and described a large increase in staff and appropriations that the agency is now administering.

Nut graf: The agency reported a staffing increase and a multi-hundred-million-dollar rise in its budget tied to federal programs. Committee members were offered briefings from the commissioners of the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, and the Department of Fish and Wildlife on how those resources and assignments are being managed across programs such as water investments, dam safety, fisheries and state lands.

Warren said the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) has about 650 full-time employees, “about a 10% increase” from before the COVID pandemic, and that the governor’s proposed FY 2026 budget would show an ANR budget “in excess of $330,000,000.” She described that as roughly a 170% increase from the roughly $125,000,000 budget when she began in FY 2018 and said the growth largely reflects federal funding the agency is administering.

Warren identified three main federal sources: nearly $200 million in ARPA initiatives administered by ANR for projects including failed-well and septic repairs, manufactured-housing infrastructure, and stormwater work; almost $450 million available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (often called IIJA) focused on water infrastructure, lead service-line replacement and emerging-contaminant work (PFAS and PCBs); and roughly $20 million from the Inflation Reduction Act that supports climate pollution reduction programming and conservation work.

“Clean water is my hard work,” Warren said, describing longstanding state programs on lake and watershed protection while noting the recent influx of federal dollars and disaster-response demands. She told the committee ANR is providing technical assistance to municipalities and homeowners after multiple federally declared disasters over the past 18 months and that ANR owns 80 dams across the three departments it oversees and provides dam-technical assistance statewide.

Jason Batchelder, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, summarized DEC divisions that implement the agency’s work, including air quality and climate, drinking water and groundwater protection, environmental compliance, geology and waste management. He noted DEC’s role in monitoring emerging contaminants such as PFAS and in supporting municipal water and wastewater projects through the Water Investment Division.

Danielle Fitsko, commissioner of the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, described FPR programs that include forest health monitoring, the private lands program (noting more than 16,000 parcels enrolled in the use-value appraisal program), management of roughly 370,000 acres of state lands, and 55 developed state parks. Fitsko said the forest economy contributes about $1.4 billion annually and employs more than 10,000 people, and she noted the state parks’ infrastructure—about $280 million in assets—and the department’s seasonal workforce.

An FPR discussion also addressed wildland fire: Fitsko said the department counted 85 wildland fires in the most recent year, with “one of them” identified as a natural cause and the remainder largely tied to human causes (campfires, ashes, cigarettes). She described increased drought vulnerability in parts of the state, the existence of daily fire-danger forecasting, and mutual-aid compacts with neighboring states and Quebec for firefighting resources.

Commissioners and staff told the committee that several reports and deliverables are imminent: a feasibility report on the Climate Super Fund Act due to the committee the next day; the state Climate Action Plan and a companion resilience implementation strategy both due July 1; and a clean water fund report that will show roughly $600 million invested statewide over the past eight years. Warren also referenced Act 59 (the “30 by 30 / 50 by 50” conservation legislation) and ongoing work on a statewide conservation plan.

Procedural action: The committee moved to select a clerk during the meeting. The committee chair called the question and the committee approved the clerk by voice vote; the transcript records the roll call request and the response “Aye.” No individual vote tallies or a named nominee were recorded in the transcript.

The agencies offered to make technical staff available to the committee for deeper briefings on specific topics and asked legislators to identify topics where additional staff briefings would be helpful. Several commissioners noted the pace and scale of federal funding has increased administrative demand, and they urged continued coordination with municipalities and with other state offices.

Ending: Committee members were given lists of appointees to circulate for future confirmation consideration and were reminded that additional staff briefings and follow-up materials would be provided in upcoming meetings.