Open Public Comment Session (Second Quarter 2023)

A breakthrough in water resources management occurred in 1961 when President Kennedy and the governors of Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York for the first time signed concurrent compact legislation into law creating a regional body with the force of law to oversee a unified approach to managing a river system without regard to political boundaries.Themembersof this regional body - theDelaware River Basin Commission(DRBC) - include the four basin state governors and the Division Engineer, North Atlantic Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who serves as the federal representative.When the DRBC was created, some 43 state agencies, 14 interstate agencies, and 19 federal agencies exercised a multiplicity of splintered powers and duties within the watershed, which stretches 330 miles from the Delaware River's headwaters near Hancock, N.Y., to the mouth of the Delaware Bay.The Compact's signing marked the first time since the nation's birth that the federal government and a group of states joined together as equal partners in a river basin planning, development, and regulatory agency.The five members appoint alternate commissioners, with the governors selecting high-ranking officials from their state environmental agencies. Each commissioner has one vote of equal power, with a majority vote needed to decide most issues. Exceptions are votes to apportion among the signatory parties amounts required to support the current expense budget and votes to declare a state of emergency resulting from a drought or catastrophe, which require unanimity.Commission programs include water quality protection, water supply allocation, regulatory review (permitting), water conservation initiatives, watershed planning, drought management, flood loss reduction, and recreation.The DRBC is funded by the signatory parties, project review fees, water use charges, and fines, as well as federal, state, and private grants.The commission holds business meetings and hearings on policy matters and water resource projects under regulatory review. These sessions, along with meetings of the commission's various advisory committees, are open to the public.

Delaware River Basin Commission

The Delaware River Basin Commission will hold an open public comment session Wednesday, June 7, 2023, after its scheduled business meeting.

Rutgers-Camden Campus Center

Advance registration to speak has closed for this event, however additional speakers may be taken as time allows. The event is free and open to the public. Visit https://www.nj.gov/drbc/meetings/upcoming/ for full details.

The DRBC will hold its second-quarter business meeting on Wednesday, June 7, 2023, beginning at 1 p.m. The business meeting is open to the public and will be held in person in the Multi-Purpose Room at Rutgers-Camden, 326 Penn St., Camden, NJ 08102. 
The public business meeting will include the adoption of the Minutes of the Commission&#x27;s March 8, 2023 business meeting; announcements of upcoming meetings and events; a report on hydrologic conditions; reports by the Executive Director and the Commission&#x27;s General Counsel; and consideration of any items for which a hearing has been completed or is not required. The agenda is expected to include consideration of the draft dockets for withdrawals, discharges, and other projects that were subjects of the public hearing on May 10, 2023. 
The second-quarter open public comment is anticipated to begin at approximately 2:30 pm. 
After all scheduled business has been completed and as time allows, the business meeting will be followed by up to one hour of Open Public Comment, an opportunity to address the Commission on any topic concerning management of the Basin&#x27;s water resources outside the context of a duly noticed, on-the-record public hearing. 

Open Public Comment Sessions provide an opportunity for interested persons to speak about other topics that are relevant to the management of the basin’s waters and the scope of DRBC’s authority. 
Comments made during Open Public Comment Sessions are not included in any decision-making record. The Commission affords this opportunity in order to be better informed about the concerns of basin water users. Open Public Comment Sessions generally will be held, as time allows, upon the conclusion of Commission business at DRBC business meetings; limited to one hour per quarter; and noticed in advance on the DRBC website.
PLEASE NOTE: Use of this registration interface is being provided on a pilot basis and is subject to change. Registration does not guarantee an opportunity to speak during the 1-hour Open Public Comment, based on time limitations and other factors. Those interested in giving public comment should register by June 6, 2023, at 5 pm. 
For complete instructions, updates and policies about the DRBC’s quarterly business meetings and Open Public Comment sessions, please visit: https://www.nj.gov/drbc/meetings/upcoming/

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Open Public Comment Session (Second Quarter 2023)

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Open Public Comment Session (Second Quarter 2023)

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