1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

Protect the Chesapeake Bay After EO 13508 Rescission I have already contacted Governor Wes Moore and my Maryland state legislators. Now I am asking Congress to use its federal oversight and appropriations authority to protect the Chesapeake Bay following the rescission of Executive Order 13508. Issued in 2009, EO 13508 established coordinated federal leadership for Chesapeake Bay restoration. It brought together the EPA and the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Homeland Security, Interior and Transportation. It also required measurable environmental goals, annual action plans, progress reports, scientific monitoring, public accountability and coordination with Maryland and the other watershed jurisdictions. The replacement order directs agencies to redirect resources toward projects the administration determines will produce direct, measurable water-quality improvements. The administration says this will reduce administrative expenses and focus funding on nutrient and sediment pollution. Conservation organizations have warned that eliminating the previous framework could weaken federal coordination, scientific oversight and public accountability. This is not simply a partisan dispute. It concerns the environment taxpayers must live in: our water, public health, fisheries, farms, wildlife, shorelines, communities and regional economy. Maryland cannot restore the Bay alone. Its watershed crosses six states and Washington, D.C., and requires sustained federal coordination. I am asking Congress to: • Require every affected federal agency to identify which grants, programs, projects, staff positions and monitoring activities will be changed or redirected. • Protect congressionally appropriated Chesapeake Bay funding and confirm that it is used for the purposes authorized by Congress. • Hold public oversight hearings with EPA officials, scientists, state representatives, farmers, watermen, local governments and affected communities. • Require clear, public reporting showing where every redirected dollar goes, what result is expected and how that result will be independently measured. • Preserve water-quality monitoring, scientific research, pollution enforcement, annual progress reporting and interstate coordination. • Examine whether the federal coordination and accountability requirements previously contained in EO 13508 should be established through legislation rather than left dependent upon executive orders. • Ensure that reducing administrative expenses does not eliminate the scientific, technical or enforcement capacity needed to determine whether restoration projects actually work. Maryland residents have already invested decades of work and billions of public dollars in restoring the Chesapeake Bay. We deserve a complete accounting of what is changing and assurance that federal resources, scientific expertise and public accountability will not disappear during an unfinished restoration effort. Please provide a written response explaining what actions Congress will take to oversee implementation of the new order and protect the federal investment in the Chesapeake Bay. Original Executive Order 13508: https://www.govinfo.gov/link/cpd/executiveorder/13508 The administration’s explanation of the replacement order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/09/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-provides-meaningful-water-quality-improvements-through-collaboration-and-oversight-of-federal-support/ Chesapeake Bay Foundation response: https://www.cbf.org/news/trump-executive-order-takes-aim-at-chesapeake-bay-restoration/