The 30-member Senate Republican conference is poised to vote en masse against the bill that would keep state parks open and also has issues with a measure that would boost the charter cap from 200 to 460, GOP sources confirm.
The Republicans are still discussing their strategy behind closed doors, but one legislative source said he “wouldn’t be surprised” if they all emerge to vote “no” on the parks bill – at the very least – due to concerns about increased taxes and fees.
Senate Democratic spokesman Austin Shafran rejected the GOP claim that the parks/e-waste recycling bill includes new taxes, noting the proposed increases in civil and criminal fines for environmental conservation law violations are for crimes that already exist (estimated revenue generation: $1 million), and the same goes for the restructuring of fees for hazardous waste generation (estimated revenue generation: $2 million).
