Environment

HB 1607 prohibits storing road salt and de-icing chemicals (like sodium chloride) in ways that risk contaminating groundwater or surface water. It requires the Department of Environmental Services to create storage regulations, with stricter rules for areas already affected by chemical contamination. This directly affects local public works departments that store these chemicals for winter road maintenance. The bill establishes a regulatory framework but does not specify exact storage methods, leaving implementation to the department's future rules.

HB 392 directs the dissolution of three specific state entities: the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Health Equity, the Department of Environmental Services' environmental justice programs, and the Governor's Council on Diversity and Inclusion. The bill prohibits these agencies from re-establishing these offices or using any allocated funds for projects labeled "health equity" or "civil rights and environmental justice." It also removes the Office of Health Equity director position from state statute and repeals related membership requirements. This bill affects state agencies' program structures and funding allocations, with no new funding provided or positions authorized.