Committee finds H542 favorable amid warnings of an unfunded PCB testing mandate
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Summary
A legislative committee voted to find House Bill 542 favorable while several members warned a 2027 PCB-testing deadline lacks funding for tests and remediation; the roll call in the transcript shows some dissent but does not include a fully verifiable tally.
A legislative committee voted to find House Bill 542 favorable after members expressed concern that the bill would trigger a 2027 deadline for PCB testing without providing funding for testing or remediation. Speaker 1 framed the debate as a funding issue rather than a scientific one, saying the principal problem was "the fact that there is a looming deadline that everybody has to be tested and there's no funding for the testing or, in case of finding something, the remediation."
The committee motion — "to find H542 favorable" — was made by Speaker 4 and seconded; the clerk called the roll. Several members announced they would vote in favor after consultations and private messages. Speaker 3 said, "I'm going to vote yes, but it is not — doesn't make me happy to do it," reflecting reluctant support tied to concern about the financial burden.
Speaker 1 and other members reiterated that the statutory compliance deadline remains 2027 and noted prior appropriations: "to date invested $35,000,000," and a reference to "just under 9" moved in last year’s budget. The transcript does not clearly identify whether "just under 9" refers to $9 million or another unit; the record lists the $35,000,000 figure verbatim.
The clerk’s roll call, as presented in the transcript, includes named representatives being called and affirmative and negative responses recorded. The transcript explicitly records Rep Taylor responding "No" during the roll call and Rep Coblin responding "Yes." The clerk summarized the result in conversational terms and thanked members, indicating the motion passed; the transcript does not contain a complete, unambiguous numeric tally for all members.
No amendment or specific remediation funding plan was adopted during the session recorded in the transcript. Members who raised concerns framed the issue as an "unfunded mandate" and suggested funding would need to come from the administration or the legislature in the future. The transcript contains no further formal direction to staff and does not record subsequent procedural steps for H542 in this excerpt.