Since our inception, the Coalition has worked to ensure steady progress toward the Bay Program's goals and outcomes codified in the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Agreement. In October 2022, the Executive Council of the Bay Program directed the partnership's leadership to create two documents; one that laid out a plan for accelerating progress on restoration goals before the Bay Agreement's 2025 deadline, and another that provided recommendations on how the work of the Bay Program should move forward beyond the 2025 deadline. The Coalition engaged in both processes this year, with Coalition staff and members serving in various roles.

This summer, the Coalition engaged the Bay Program's Reaching 2025 Steering Committee, which was created to accomplish the Executive Council's first directive on accelerating progress. With both staff and members participating on the committee, the Coalition directly influenced the discussion and elevated the views of the nonprofit community. The Coalition also submitted more than 16 pages of comments to the Steering Committee's draft Charting a Course to 2025 report, which was approved by the Executive Council in October 2023. The abbreviated comment period provided by the Bay Program made this comment letter challenging, but the Coalition reviewed the report, drafted comments, and circulated our comment letter for signatures in just 20 days. Ultimately, an impressive 88 members of the Coalition signed onto the letter, which focused on the outcomes of the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Agreement that we will not meet by 2025. It was extremely important that the Coalition organized this letter, as we were one of the only nonprofits that submitted comments in time.

After the recommendations were finalized, the Bay Program shifted its focus to drafting the recommendations for the work of the Bay Program partnership beyond 2025. This included the creation of the Beyond 2025 Steering Committee, consisting of state and federal agency representatives and two members of the public. The Coalition advocated for the inclusion of the public members and secured one of the seats. This allows us to represent our Coalition member interests and puts us in a position to ensure broad public engagement throughout the process.

Next year, the Coalition staff will provide opportunities for our members to participate directly in the recommendation drafting process through our existing policy workgroups, our state-level convenings, webinars with Steering Committee leadership, formal sign on letters, and our annual Choose Clean Water Conference, which is gathering in Ellicott City, Maryland at the end of May 2024. At this critical moment for the Bay restoration effort, we are committed to staying engaged in this process and holding the EPA Chesapeake Bay Program accountable. We look forward to the Beyond 2025 Steering Committee presenting its recommendations to the Executive Council of the Bay Program at the end of 2024, and ensuring there's a strong path forward to provide clean water to all in the Bay region.