JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri lawmakers have approved a bill reinstating fees that provide more than one-quarter of the funding for the state's water regulation programs.
The fees are paid by commercial developers, home builders, utilities, manufacturers and livestock producers for permission to discharge wastewater or divert storm water into streams and lakes.
House members gave the legislation final approval Thursday, sending it to Gov. Jay Nixon.
The fees had expired in December. The legislation reinstates them until September 2013.
Officials said the fees raised more than $4 million in the latest budget year for clean water programs overseen by the Department of Natural Resources.