Sponsors (2)
The bill channels federal advisory support and resources to strengthen Chesapeake Bay watershed restoration—boosting local restoration capacity and interagency coordination—while raising federal costs, adding administrative burdens for state/local agencies, and potentially diverting resources from other regional water programs.
Communities across the Chesapeake Bay watershed (rural and urban) will receive federal technical assistance and financial resources for restoration projects, helping improve water quality and habitat recovery.
State and local governments gain federal advisory support and improved interagency coordination for Maryland Whole Watershed–style programs, streamlining project planning, reducing duplication, and improving implementation efficiency.
All taxpayers could face higher federal spending or reallocation of EPA funds to finance the assistance and resources provided under the program.
Concentrating program support on the Chesapeake watershed may divert attention and funding away from other regional water programs and communities outside the Chesapeake Bay area.
State and local agencies will face additional coordination and administrative obligations, requiring staff time and effort to engage with the federal advisory role.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Designates the Chesapeake Bay Program Office as an advisory member of Maryland’s Whole Watershed Program State Management Team and authorizes it to coordinate and provide technical and financial assistance for Chesapeake Bay projects.
Introduced March 4, 2026 by Angela Deneece Alsobrooks · Last progress March 4, 2026
Designates the Chesapeake Bay Program Office (as established under 33 U.S.C. 1267(b)(2)) to serve as an advisory member of the State Management Team for Maryland’s Whole Watershed Program and any substantially similar State program. It authorizes that Office to coordinate with State, local, and Federal partners and to provide technical assistance and financial resources for projects in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The act otherwise only sets a short title and contains no explicit appropriations, new federal deadlines, or other substantive changes beyond the advisory role and coordination/assistance authority for the Chesapeake Bay Program Office.