WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the release of President Obama’s FY17 budget proposal, LCV President Gene Karpinski issued the following statement:

“With his final budget proposal, President Obama has laid out an ambitious roadmap for the future that will help protect our air, water, lands and wildlife, meet our climate commitments, and invest in low-carbon transportation solutions and innovative clean energy technologies. Building a clean energy future and continuing to lead the world in tackling climate change will require the critical investments the president has outlined. Republican leaders in Congress appear to be taking the highly unusual and disrespectful step of refusing even to hear testimony from the administration on its budget, which we hope does not signal their intent to escalate yet another war over the budget that damages our country. In light of the disaster in Flint, which has highlighted the urgent need to invest more in our water infrastructure, we urge Congress to both pass emergency funding to help the community and go above and beyond what the president has requested for the Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds to finally address the significant shortfall that has led to public health disasters across the country.”

###