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Their view: The impeachment of the American people

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Wilkes University names Paul Adams as interim president beginning Aug. 1

<p>Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority officials are asking U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser to help them provide &#8220;relief&#8221; to stormwater fee payers in 31 municipalities via grants or other means, according to a recent letter it posted at <a href="https://www.wvsa.org/sites/wvsapa/files/pages/ms4_legislative_update.pdf" target="_blank">wvsa.org</a>.</p><p>The authority also seeks the congressman&#8217;s help in getting some fee-related projects approved.</p><p>Meuser injected himself into the controversial issue when he penned his own letter to the state Department of Environmental Protection on Feb. 13. In it, he called for suspension of the new fee until more clarity is provided to property owners who must pay it.</p><p>With the recent removal of Warrior Run Borough, 31 municipalities are participating in a regional plan managed by the authority, which imposed the fee to cover pollution reduction expenses. These municipalities have MS4 (municipal separate storm sewer system) permits requiring them to reduce sediment, nitrogen and phosphorus washed into the Susquehanna River, and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay, over the next five years.</p><p>DEP, which issues and enforces the MS4 permits in compliance with federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, has said fines are possible if municipalities don&#8217;t meet requirements.</p><p>According to the Feb. 26 letter to Meuser, which was signed by authority Board Chairman Samuel Guesto and authority Executive Director James Tomaine:</p><p>In the process of issuing stormwater bills, the authority has received &#8220;substantial feedback relative to the burden that this fee is placing on our community.&#8221;</p><p>The authority is seeking Meuser&#8217;s regulatory and monetary assistance to deliver the &#8220;most cost effective program solutions&#8221; for participating municipalities.</p><p>On the regulatory side, the authority asks for Meuser&#8217;s help convincing DEP to approve the authority&#8217;s pollution reduction calculations for its proposed alterations to the giant Toby Creek detention basin in Pringle, which is a key part of its compliance plan.</p><p>The authority&#8217;s letter said its modeling concludes the Toby basin project would prevent 3 million pounds of sediment from reaching local waterways annually.</p><p>However, DEP is only allowing the authority to claim 400,000 pounds of sediment reduction, which would force the authority to construct additional infrastructure to meet reduction requirements.</p><p>The sanitary authority wants to make the water flow path more meandering inside the Toby basin to slow it down and reduce the amount of sediment ending up in the Susquehanna. Deep-rooted shrubs also would be planted on the basin floor to soak up nitrogen and phosphorus.</p><p>In addition to DEP approval, the authority would need authorization from the Army Corps of Engineers and the county Flood Protection Authority, which owns the basin, to proceed with the project.</p><p><strong>&#8216;Unfunded mandate&#8217;</strong></p><p>The authority&#8217;s other regulatory relief requests for Meuser:</p><p>&#8226; Help expedite regulatory agency review and approval of the authority&#8217;s significant pollution reduction projects, such as Toby Creek and stream bank restoration projects.</p><p>&#8226; Discuss with regulatory agencies possible ways to reduce the annual municipal pollution reduction requirements for the current MS4 permit cycle, including locating pollutants that are more cost effective to reduce in other sectors.</p><p>&#8226; Support a regional approach for municipalities to meet their federal and state MS4 requirements.</p><p>The monetary assistance the authority is requesting: help obtaining grant funding for pollution reduction projects to lessen the burden on fee payers and Meuser&#8217;s constituents, and the development of renewable federal and statewide sustainable funding sources to help offset any current or future program costs.</p><p>Approximately 65 green infrastructure projects are planned to meet the reductions, which are estimated to cost $16 million over the five-year period, the letter said.</p><p>It notes the authority also must fulfill other MS4 requirements for municipalities, including GIS mapping of all municipal stormwater assets and cleaning and repair of priority catch basins and storm pipes.</p><p>The letter requests a strategy meeting with Meuser&#8217;s office to discuss the matter.</p><p>&#8220;Thank you for your consideration of these very important requests, and we hope to be able to meet with you very soon with the goal of securing relief for everyone in our regional community,&#8221; the letter stated.</p><p>Meuser&#8217;s office released this statement in response to the authority letter:</p><p>&#8220;We are working together and already the fees for many have been reduced. The Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority has expressed ideas on how they can further be reduced. I see this as an unfunded mandate. My goal is that it is not a burden on taxpayers and property owners in my district.&#8221;</p><p>DEP had no comment on the authority letter, saying the agency had not received it.</p><p>Letters were also sent to other state and federal lawmakers who represent the areas where the stormwater fee is being imposed.</p><p><strong>&#8216;Substantial burden&#8217;</strong></p><p>After a public outcry, the authority had delayed the fee payment due date to March 15, eliminated all appeal fees for those contesting the authority&#8217;s calculations, increased some bill discounts and reduced the charge for properties with 7,000 square feet or more of nonabsorbent impervious area, or IA.</p><p>While residential fee bills were mailed, the authority has not yet announced when they will be sent to commercial property owners.</p><p>The authority letter said its rate structure is low compared to others in the state but still places &#8220;a substantial financial burden on many in our region.</p><p>&#8220;This is especially true for residents who are on fixed incomes and owners of parcels with larger impervious surfaces,&#8221; the letter said. &#8220;To be fair and equitable, the fee is placed on all entities, profits and non-profits, across the region.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_TTL101618Meuser2-6.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Meuser </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_TTL101618Meuser2-6.jpg</photo0><caption0>Meuser </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_TTL011618WVSA2.jpeg-5.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority Board Chairman Samuel Guesto, photographed here, sent a letter with the authority executive director calling on calling on U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser to help provide &#8216;relief&#8217; to stormwater fee payers in 31 municipalities. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_TTL011618WVSA2.jpeg-5.jpg</photo1><caption1>Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority Board Chairman Samuel Guesto, photographed here, sent a letter with the authority executive director calling on calling on U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser to help provide &#8216;relief&#8217; to stormwater fee payers in 31 municipalities. </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority asks Meuser for help with stormwater fee