Coalition and Others to Office of Management and Budget Regarding the Great Lakes

To: The Honorable Sylvia Mathews Burwell
Director
Office of Management and Budget
Executive Office of the President
Washington, DC 20503

From: The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition
And the undersigned environmental non-governmental organizations

Dear Director Burwell:

On behalf of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, we write to ask that you assure the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal provides funding for Great Lakes restoration priorities. The Great Lakes region has received much-needed support, and we are seeing on-the-ground results in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. However, while pressures to balance the U.S. budget will not diminish, neither will the urgent problems facing the Great Lakes. If we cut restoration funds, these serious problems will only get worse and the price we pay will be much higher…