EXCERPT: “Cities, industries and some livestock farmers could pay more for water quality permit fees under a proposal by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. The MPCA says revenue from the fees has not kept pace with its costs to administer the permits, which cover city and industrial stormwater and wastewater, septic systems and livestock feedlots. Most of the fees haven’t been raised in almost 25 years, said Katrina Kessler, assistant MPCA commissioner. ‘During that time, costs have gone up, expectations of our permit holders have gone up, but the fees have remained the same,’ she said. ‘So we don’t have any additional money to do the work that we are being asked to do.’ On average, permit fees cover about 17 percent of the MPCA’s costs to run the programs, Kessler said. The MPCA wants to raise that amount to 30 percent — an amount agreed to by a committee of cities, businesses and farmers that met several times starting in 2017.” FULL STORY: https://fluence-media.co/2GTyUGH
