Trump plan could cut GC agencies

President Trump's budget plan that went to Capitol Hill on March 16 is expected to carry deep cuts to agencies and organizations with a long-standing presence along the Gulf Coast. The federal spending plan includes a likely 14 percent cut to the Coast Guard, which has operations in Mobile and Dauphin Island, Ala.; Pensacola and Panama City, Fla.; and the New Orleans area. Additionally, a 17 percent cut to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and 11 percent to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The EPA, which funds a wide array of programs affecting the Gulf Coast, is slated for a 25 percent cut. The cuts have regional environmental groups and governments that rely on the federal funding on edge. "We are very concerned about the future," said Roberta Swan, director of the Mobile Bay Estuary Program, which could be cut completely if the federal agency decides to approve it. The budget ax plan could trickle down to long established programs in the coastal region such as the National Estuarine Research Reserve System, which includes Weeks Bay and the Grand Bay Reserve in Moss Point, Miss. Also proposed is the elimination of the $73M Sea Grant program that has long provided support for fisheries and tourism along the coast. (Source: AL.com 03/16/17)  Gulf Coast Note: New Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz had previously called for the elimination of the entire EPA.