DarthSikle
GFHH Moderator
well Dork?
Troll Kingdom
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TK is getting awfully quiet
- Thread starter Sadistic Bastard
- Start date
The Dork Lord
Whipping Boy
Well what?
NeonMercuryASH
beer, I want beer
It's dead, again.
The Dork Lord
Whipping Boy
All my fault.
NeonMercuryASH
beer, I want beer
Why?
The Dork Lord
Whipping Boy
Because I'm white, and I got a penis 
Towlie
Registered User
Because I'm white, and I got a penis
That makes you guilty right there.
Superman
Look! Up in the sky!
MDE 2007 Fiscal Analysis Project: 2010 Update
In 2007, the Maryland Department of the Environment completed an objective fiscal analysis of
expenditures and revenues for ten years showing an internal structural deficit that, unless
addressed, will require a reduction of FTEs beginning in fiscal year FY 2010. That analysis
concluded that MDE had, in 2007, a one time gap of $25M and 370 FTEs to meet current
mandates. That analysis also concluded that MDE’s revenue would need to increase by $4M
annually to maintain the current level of FTEs due to inflation and other fixed costs the agency
does not control.
The January 2010 update concludes that, despite two new and two expanded fees,1 MDE’s
fiscal prognosis is very similar to the 2007 report. The agency is still unable to keep pace with
increasing personnel costs and new mandates such as climate change legislation enacted in
the 2009 legislative session. The 2010 Update also conclude that the annual increase in
revenue needed to maintain current levels of staffing remains at $3M annually.
Since the completion of the original analysis in 2007, two new special funds have been
established within MDE, permit fees in the Air Pollution Control program have been increased,
and the authorized use of the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund has been broadened.
MDE received 67 new positions through the Board of Public Works since 2008 to meet a portion
of the increased workload associated with both the new and existing mandates. Despite these
actions, ongoing statewide cost containment requirements have impacted MDE’s ability to meet
statutory mandates and have further reduced the special fund balances that MDE has become
increasingly dependent on to meet basic program costs.
MDE reviews and updates the data from the 2007 Fiscal Analysis annually and continues to use
this information to determine how existing resources within MDE can be reallocated to meet the
highest priorities based on environmental and public health risks, and as a basis for decisionmaking
related to cost containment requirements. One outcome of this ongoing review process
is a departmental reorganization, finalized in FY 2009. This reorganization further streamlined
operations by consolidating similar activities and by eliminating certain overhead functions such
as the Customer Service Center, reallocating the positions to programs with a more direct
impact to public health or the environment.
The 2010 Update revises the MDE 2007 Fiscal Analysis to reflect current fiscal status of the
agency.
Recommended actions have not changed as a result of the Update. Actions to address the
internal structural deficit continue to include: identifying a mechanism to meet increased general
fund staff costs; diversifying revenue for generally fund programs; ensuring dedicated fees are
adequate to fund programs; and expanding available uses of special funds.
1 MDE has used the 2007 study to support legislation to increase permit fees in the Air Pollution
Control Program, to implement new fees in the Wetlands and Waterways Program and for the
regulation of Coal Combustion By-products, and to expand the authorized use of the Used Tire
Cleanup and Recycling Fund. These fees will provide revenue to support 34 new positions in
the Wetlands Program, 6 new positions in the Air Pollution Control Program, and 11 new
positions in the Solid Waste Program.
Page 3 of 7
Update
MDE programs continue to rely on a combination of general, special, federal, and reimbursable
funds to support activities. Due to increasing federal and state mandates, increases in salary
and fringe benefit costs despite furloughs and other statewide actions impacting salaries, and
reductions in State general funds available for environmental programs over the past several
years, MDE programs are increasingly dependent on non-general funds to support daily
operations. As a result, special and federal fund expenditures are increasing faster than total
revenues, which are insufficient for MDE to support all regulatory mandates and critical
programs and activities.
Funding and Staffing:
• While the number of FTEs declined from 1,062 in FY 2002 (Figure 1) to 973 in FY 2007,
from 2007 to 2009 the number of positions has increased. Regulatory mandates, such
as number of regulated sites, complexity of permit application reviews, and public
controversies regarding regulatory decisions continue to grow. Coal Combustion By-
Products is a new area requiring regulation and inspection capacity for which MDE
recently received eleven new positions to implement the regulations. Climate Change
legislation, enacted in the 2009 Legislative Session requires ten new positions which
MDE has not received. The staffing deficit identified in the 2007 report continues. The
current position demand is estimated to be 323 positions.
• Salary expenses (wages and fringe benefit costs) per FTE are increasing at an average
of 3.9% per year (Figure 2), despite savings from mandatory statewide furlough days
initiated in fiscal 2009. These increases are largely due to salary adjustments for
certain classifications and employee fringe benefit costs.
• Based on the current trend of increasing cost/FTE, MDE’s salary budget would need to
increase by $3 million per year to maintain the current level of staffing (Figure 3).
• If MDE operating revenue does not increase to cover the increasing personnel costs,
and if salary costs are not offset by reductions in operating costs, staffing levels are
projected to decline from 1015.5 FTEs in FY 2010 (970 permanent and 44.5 contractual
positions) to 843 FTEs by FY 2014, an average reduction of 43 FTEs per year (Figure
4). This is equivalent to one major MDE program function being eliminated annually,
beginning in FY 2011.
Page 4 of 7
Figure 1.
MDE Staff Positions
(PINs and Contractual)
839 870 899 945 956 1011 1028 975 951 954 949 951 957 979
159 107 81 48 49 40 34 23 16 15 19 22 20 21
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Number FTE
PINS Contractuals
Figure 2.
Average Wage/FTE
$74,459
$66,185 $68,434 $69,731
$57,891 $62,175 $62,124 $62,309
$54,630
$52,708
$45,451 $45,482 $45,769 $48,283
$-
$10,000
$20,000
$30,000
$40,000
$50,000
$60,000
$70,000
$80,000
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Figure 3.
Projected Revenue Need to Maintain Current Staffing
$131.76 $134.77 $137.90 $141.15 $144.53
100
150
2010 Appropriation 2011 2012 2013 2014
FY
$ Million
Page 5 of 7
Figure 4.
Reductions in FTE without Revenue Growth
1015 974 932 888 843
-
500
1,000
1,500
2010 Appropriation 2011 2012 2013 2014
FY
FTE
It is also important to note that (1) certain federal grants require that a baseline level of effort be
maintained, and if MDE falls below that level, the agency risks the loss of federal funds; (2) the
current staffing level is still not adequate to meet water quality goals as illustrated by the number
of impaired waters in Maryland and apparent lack of progress on the Bay Restoration; and (3)
federal and state mandates continue to increase, often without adequate staffing or funding to
support these new requirements.
Sources of Funds
• MDE’s operating budget relies on a combination of General, Federal, and Special funds,
with modest support from Reimbursable funds. The FY 2010 appropriation includes
$51.4 million in special fund appropriation (Figure 5), a significant increase over prior
years. The increase includes additional appropriation from the Maryland Clean Air Fund
and the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund resulting from legislative actions
increasing fees in the Clean Air Fund and expanding authorized uses of the Tire Fund.
• MDE has limited control over fixed costs such as salaries and fringe benefits, rent,
utilities, fuel, and debt service. Rent at MDE headquarters is expected to increase by
over $1 million annually in the near future.
• General funds have declined, from a peak of $45 million in FY 2002 to $36.5 million in
FY 2009. The gap has been offset primarily by increased Special fund expenditures
(Figure 6).
• Figure 7 shows the cumulative year-over-year MDE expenditure increase, compared to
the average rate of increase of 4.5% per year, which indicates that:
o Federal funds did not keep up with the rate of increase;
o General funds kept up with the rate of increase through FY 2004; and
o Special funds filled the shortfall by spending down of fund balances - a trend that
is not sustainable.
• Many of the fees collected to support the special funded programs have not been
increased over the course of time and cannot be adjusted to reflect workload increases
and inflation without statutory changes. MDE is currently reviewing all special funds and
Page 6 of 7
has introduced legislation to consolidate a small number of these funds to provide
additional financial support for the environmental programs included in the legislation.
Figure 5.
FY 2010 Appropriation by Fund Source
($131.8 Million)
$35.52
$51.40
$40.70
$4.15
General
Special
Federal
Reimbursable
Figure 6.
MDE Operating Expenses
(By Fund Type)
27 27 30 32 37 45 41 39 37 34 35 36 36
21 21 24 25
27
23 27 24 24 31 36 31
20 18 43
17
21
20 21 23
22 27 27
26 27
29
4 4 4
5
4 4 4
7 4 4 4 5
5
0
50
100
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
$ Million
General Special Federal Reimbursable
Figure 7.
Operating Expenses by Fund Type
vs. Rate of Increase (4.5% per year)
-40.00%
-20.00%
0.00%
20.00%
40.00%
60.00%
80.00%
100.00%
120.00%
140.00%
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Cumulative % increase
year over year
General Special Federal Reimbursable Rate of Increase
FY 2009 Special Fund increase is primarily due to higher expenditures in the Air Pollution Control Program and from the
Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund.
Page 7 of 7
Although MDE actively applies for additional federal funds through competitive grants, federal
grants fulfill only a portion of the total needs, and typically require some level of matching funds.
Special fund revenues contribute significantly to the Department’s ability to address specific
environmental and public health issues. However, the Department’s inability to adjust fees
without statutory changes to address workload increases and inflation continues to hamper its
efforts to meet its mandates. In addition, because most fees have not been updated to keep up
with the true cost of the activity, the number of special funds showing annual deficits is
increasing.
Conclusions
Despite four recent legislative changes to generate new sources of non-general fund revenue,
MDE’s revenues do not keep pace with the rate of inflation and new requirements, and are
currently inadequate to fulfill the Department’s mandates despite significant and documented
productivity gains. Adding to the gap between revenues and inflation-adjusted needs are the
cost associated with rapidly increasing federal and state mandates, the complexity of regulatory
issues, and the increasing numbers of regulated entities, which are growing faster than inflation.
Caps and inflexible limits on spending of special funds, the inability to adjust fees for increasing
actual costs and, to a lesser degree than in the past, the inability to fill positions or receive new
positions even when special funds are available exacerbate the challenge.
Through Phase II of the study, MDE is reducing core functions such as the Voluntary Cleanup
Program based on available revenue and is recognizing the loss of positions for lower risk
programmatic areas such as Recycling and the Customer Service Center. To address these
fiscal trends and gaps, the following recommendations are made:
1. Identify a mechanism to provide for MDE’s increased general fund staffing costs.
2. Diversify fund sources for programs which are largely dependent on general funds.
3. Ensure that fees and other revenues are adequate to fully fund mission-critical
programs. Where applicable, legislative or regulatory changes should be made to allow
periodic adjustment of special fees to account for inflation and workload adjustments, so
that revenues support the actual cost of the activity.
4. To enable the Department to address the highest environmental and public health
priorities, single-purpose special funds should be combined, with a concurrent expansion
in the eligible use of these funds. This revenue-neutral approach would be very helpful,
but not a complete solution.
5. Authorized uses of existing special fund sources could be expanded to include related
activities similar to the expanded use of the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund
approved during the 2009 legislative session.
In 2007, the Maryland Department of the Environment completed an objective fiscal analysis of
expenditures and revenues for ten years showing an internal structural deficit that, unless
addressed, will require a reduction of FTEs beginning in fiscal year FY 2010. That analysis
concluded that MDE had, in 2007, a one time gap of $25M and 370 FTEs to meet current
mandates. That analysis also concluded that MDE’s revenue would need to increase by $4M
annually to maintain the current level of FTEs due to inflation and other fixed costs the agency
does not control.
The January 2010 update concludes that, despite two new and two expanded fees,1 MDE’s
fiscal prognosis is very similar to the 2007 report. The agency is still unable to keep pace with
increasing personnel costs and new mandates such as climate change legislation enacted in
the 2009 legislative session. The 2010 Update also conclude that the annual increase in
revenue needed to maintain current levels of staffing remains at $3M annually.
Since the completion of the original analysis in 2007, two new special funds have been
established within MDE, permit fees in the Air Pollution Control program have been increased,
and the authorized use of the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund has been broadened.
MDE received 67 new positions through the Board of Public Works since 2008 to meet a portion
of the increased workload associated with both the new and existing mandates. Despite these
actions, ongoing statewide cost containment requirements have impacted MDE’s ability to meet
statutory mandates and have further reduced the special fund balances that MDE has become
increasingly dependent on to meet basic program costs.
MDE reviews and updates the data from the 2007 Fiscal Analysis annually and continues to use
this information to determine how existing resources within MDE can be reallocated to meet the
highest priorities based on environmental and public health risks, and as a basis for decisionmaking
related to cost containment requirements. One outcome of this ongoing review process
is a departmental reorganization, finalized in FY 2009. This reorganization further streamlined
operations by consolidating similar activities and by eliminating certain overhead functions such
as the Customer Service Center, reallocating the positions to programs with a more direct
impact to public health or the environment.
The 2010 Update revises the MDE 2007 Fiscal Analysis to reflect current fiscal status of the
agency.
Recommended actions have not changed as a result of the Update. Actions to address the
internal structural deficit continue to include: identifying a mechanism to meet increased general
fund staff costs; diversifying revenue for generally fund programs; ensuring dedicated fees are
adequate to fund programs; and expanding available uses of special funds.
1 MDE has used the 2007 study to support legislation to increase permit fees in the Air Pollution
Control Program, to implement new fees in the Wetlands and Waterways Program and for the
regulation of Coal Combustion By-products, and to expand the authorized use of the Used Tire
Cleanup and Recycling Fund. These fees will provide revenue to support 34 new positions in
the Wetlands Program, 6 new positions in the Air Pollution Control Program, and 11 new
positions in the Solid Waste Program.
Page 3 of 7
Update
MDE programs continue to rely on a combination of general, special, federal, and reimbursable
funds to support activities. Due to increasing federal and state mandates, increases in salary
and fringe benefit costs despite furloughs and other statewide actions impacting salaries, and
reductions in State general funds available for environmental programs over the past several
years, MDE programs are increasingly dependent on non-general funds to support daily
operations. As a result, special and federal fund expenditures are increasing faster than total
revenues, which are insufficient for MDE to support all regulatory mandates and critical
programs and activities.
Funding and Staffing:
• While the number of FTEs declined from 1,062 in FY 2002 (Figure 1) to 973 in FY 2007,
from 2007 to 2009 the number of positions has increased. Regulatory mandates, such
as number of regulated sites, complexity of permit application reviews, and public
controversies regarding regulatory decisions continue to grow. Coal Combustion By-
Products is a new area requiring regulation and inspection capacity for which MDE
recently received eleven new positions to implement the regulations. Climate Change
legislation, enacted in the 2009 Legislative Session requires ten new positions which
MDE has not received. The staffing deficit identified in the 2007 report continues. The
current position demand is estimated to be 323 positions.
• Salary expenses (wages and fringe benefit costs) per FTE are increasing at an average
of 3.9% per year (Figure 2), despite savings from mandatory statewide furlough days
initiated in fiscal 2009. These increases are largely due to salary adjustments for
certain classifications and employee fringe benefit costs.
• Based on the current trend of increasing cost/FTE, MDE’s salary budget would need to
increase by $3 million per year to maintain the current level of staffing (Figure 3).
• If MDE operating revenue does not increase to cover the increasing personnel costs,
and if salary costs are not offset by reductions in operating costs, staffing levels are
projected to decline from 1015.5 FTEs in FY 2010 (970 permanent and 44.5 contractual
positions) to 843 FTEs by FY 2014, an average reduction of 43 FTEs per year (Figure
4). This is equivalent to one major MDE program function being eliminated annually,
beginning in FY 2011.
Page 4 of 7
Figure 1.
MDE Staff Positions
(PINs and Contractual)
839 870 899 945 956 1011 1028 975 951 954 949 951 957 979
159 107 81 48 49 40 34 23 16 15 19 22 20 21
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Number FTE
PINS Contractuals
Figure 2.
Average Wage/FTE
$74,459
$66,185 $68,434 $69,731
$57,891 $62,175 $62,124 $62,309
$54,630
$52,708
$45,451 $45,482 $45,769 $48,283
$-
$10,000
$20,000
$30,000
$40,000
$50,000
$60,000
$70,000
$80,000
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Figure 3.
Projected Revenue Need to Maintain Current Staffing
$131.76 $134.77 $137.90 $141.15 $144.53
100
150
2010 Appropriation 2011 2012 2013 2014
FY
$ Million
Page 5 of 7
Figure 4.
Reductions in FTE without Revenue Growth
1015 974 932 888 843
-
500
1,000
1,500
2010 Appropriation 2011 2012 2013 2014
FY
FTE
It is also important to note that (1) certain federal grants require that a baseline level of effort be
maintained, and if MDE falls below that level, the agency risks the loss of federal funds; (2) the
current staffing level is still not adequate to meet water quality goals as illustrated by the number
of impaired waters in Maryland and apparent lack of progress on the Bay Restoration; and (3)
federal and state mandates continue to increase, often without adequate staffing or funding to
support these new requirements.
Sources of Funds
• MDE’s operating budget relies on a combination of General, Federal, and Special funds,
with modest support from Reimbursable funds. The FY 2010 appropriation includes
$51.4 million in special fund appropriation (Figure 5), a significant increase over prior
years. The increase includes additional appropriation from the Maryland Clean Air Fund
and the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund resulting from legislative actions
increasing fees in the Clean Air Fund and expanding authorized uses of the Tire Fund.
• MDE has limited control over fixed costs such as salaries and fringe benefits, rent,
utilities, fuel, and debt service. Rent at MDE headquarters is expected to increase by
over $1 million annually in the near future.
• General funds have declined, from a peak of $45 million in FY 2002 to $36.5 million in
FY 2009. The gap has been offset primarily by increased Special fund expenditures
(Figure 6).
• Figure 7 shows the cumulative year-over-year MDE expenditure increase, compared to
the average rate of increase of 4.5% per year, which indicates that:
o Federal funds did not keep up with the rate of increase;
o General funds kept up with the rate of increase through FY 2004; and
o Special funds filled the shortfall by spending down of fund balances - a trend that
is not sustainable.
• Many of the fees collected to support the special funded programs have not been
increased over the course of time and cannot be adjusted to reflect workload increases
and inflation without statutory changes. MDE is currently reviewing all special funds and
Page 6 of 7
has introduced legislation to consolidate a small number of these funds to provide
additional financial support for the environmental programs included in the legislation.
Figure 5.
FY 2010 Appropriation by Fund Source
($131.8 Million)
$35.52
$51.40
$40.70
$4.15
General
Special
Federal
Reimbursable
Figure 6.
MDE Operating Expenses
(By Fund Type)
27 27 30 32 37 45 41 39 37 34 35 36 36
21 21 24 25
27
23 27 24 24 31 36 31
20 18 43
17
21
20 21 23
22 27 27
26 27
29
4 4 4
5
4 4 4
7 4 4 4 5
5
0
50
100
1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
$ Million
General Special Federal Reimbursable
Figure 7.
Operating Expenses by Fund Type
vs. Rate of Increase (4.5% per year)
-40.00%
-20.00%
0.00%
20.00%
40.00%
60.00%
80.00%
100.00%
120.00%
140.00%
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
FY
Cumulative % increase
year over year
General Special Federal Reimbursable Rate of Increase
FY 2009 Special Fund increase is primarily due to higher expenditures in the Air Pollution Control Program and from the
Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund.
Page 7 of 7
Although MDE actively applies for additional federal funds through competitive grants, federal
grants fulfill only a portion of the total needs, and typically require some level of matching funds.
Special fund revenues contribute significantly to the Department’s ability to address specific
environmental and public health issues. However, the Department’s inability to adjust fees
without statutory changes to address workload increases and inflation continues to hamper its
efforts to meet its mandates. In addition, because most fees have not been updated to keep up
with the true cost of the activity, the number of special funds showing annual deficits is
increasing.
Conclusions
Despite four recent legislative changes to generate new sources of non-general fund revenue,
MDE’s revenues do not keep pace with the rate of inflation and new requirements, and are
currently inadequate to fulfill the Department’s mandates despite significant and documented
productivity gains. Adding to the gap between revenues and inflation-adjusted needs are the
cost associated with rapidly increasing federal and state mandates, the complexity of regulatory
issues, and the increasing numbers of regulated entities, which are growing faster than inflation.
Caps and inflexible limits on spending of special funds, the inability to adjust fees for increasing
actual costs and, to a lesser degree than in the past, the inability to fill positions or receive new
positions even when special funds are available exacerbate the challenge.
Through Phase II of the study, MDE is reducing core functions such as the Voluntary Cleanup
Program based on available revenue and is recognizing the loss of positions for lower risk
programmatic areas such as Recycling and the Customer Service Center. To address these
fiscal trends and gaps, the following recommendations are made:
1. Identify a mechanism to provide for MDE’s increased general fund staffing costs.
2. Diversify fund sources for programs which are largely dependent on general funds.
3. Ensure that fees and other revenues are adequate to fully fund mission-critical
programs. Where applicable, legislative or regulatory changes should be made to allow
periodic adjustment of special fees to account for inflation and workload adjustments, so
that revenues support the actual cost of the activity.
4. To enable the Department to address the highest environmental and public health
priorities, single-purpose special funds should be combined, with a concurrent expansion
in the eligible use of these funds. This revenue-neutral approach would be very helpful,
but not a complete solution.
5. Authorized uses of existing special fund sources could be expanded to include related
activities similar to the expanded use of the Used Tire Cleanup and Recycling Fund
approved during the 2009 legislative session.
Blindgroping
U mad 'bro?
SB needs his account back.
Enkephalen
My Stars!
I say we resuscitate TK *stat* and then smother it. Kill it dead!! Wash, rinse, repeat. . .
NeonMercuryASH
beer, I want beer
Lochtyderm orgy! how quaint!
NeonMercuryASH
beer, I want beer
House and Pennar Go to White Castle!
'Gear
RIP 1970~2018
What could possibly be better then insulting Sarek?
HEY SAREK! YOU'RE UGLY AND YOUR MOMMA DRESSES YOU FUNNY!
NeonMercuryASH
beer, I want beer
We already know that.
