The Trump Administration is again proposing large cuts in funding for the program in charge of coordinating state and federal efforts to protect and restore the Chesapeake Bay.

The Chesapeake Bay Program, part of the Environmental Protection Agency, had a budget of $73 million in 2019 and $85 million in 2020. The Trump administration's proposed budget cuts it down to $7.3 million in 2021 as part of a 26% cut to the EPA's total funding.

"This spending restraint includes targeted reductions and eliminations of low-value programs, and a number of policies to improve payment accuracy and eliminate wasteful spending in mandatory programs," the budget states.

The proposal comes just days after the House of Representatives voted to fund the program robustly over the next five years, with a total allocation of $455 million ($91 million per year).

Most of the Bay Program's budget is allocated to nonprofits or state and local governments throughout the watershed, and is used for various programs that improve bay health. The estuary and many of its tributaries have long been known to be suffering from a variety of problems including pollution, overfishing and invasive species.

In all, the administration's $4.8 trillion budget proposes eliminating $2.4 billion from the EPA. The budget at this stage represents a proposal only, and the actual 2021 budget will be edited by Congress.

The administration says the cuts will help drive down the federal deficit, with the intent of producing a balanced budget in 15 years.

But Chesapeake-area lawmakers and leaders disagree that this should come at the expense of the unifying power of the Bay Program.

More:Chesapeake Bay pollution goals an aspiration: EPA official

“I support President Trump, but I also support the Chesapeake Bay Program," said Rep. Andy Harris, R-MD, in a statement. "The Chesapeake Bay is one of our nation’s greatest natural treasures, and as a member of the Committee on Appropriations ... I am committed to working with my colleagues to maintain funding of this critical restoration program. The Bay is important to our economy and way of life on the Eastern Shore, and when the Bay is healthy and flourishing, all Marylanders benefit.”

In a statement, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan cited the need for federal backup to the state's bay health commitments.

“Maryland is leading the charge to safeguard the bay — we are simply asking our federal partners to keep up their share," Hogan said. "At his confirmation hearing, the EPA administrator said: ‘I am very much committed to the Chesapeake Bay and the Chesapeake Bay Program.’ Instead, the Trump administration recklessly and repeatedly proposes gutting Chesapeake Bay funding."

Chesapeake Bay Foundation President William C. Baker said progress on bay restoration is under "constant assault" from Trump administration policies.

"This action continues President Trump’s assault on the Chesapeake Bay and clean water," Baker said in a statement. "The administration is already attacking many of the bedrock environmental protections vital to the health of local rivers, streams, and the Chesapeake Bay. With only five years to finish implementing the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint, this drastic cut could be the final nail in the coffin for science-based restoration efforts."

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said the cuts to the EPA would "let polluters run amok."

"It is a non-starter," Van Hollen's statement said of the budget as a whole.

More:House approves Luria bill to fully fund Chesapeake Bay Program

Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., said the bay is "an ecological treasure and important economic engine that supports thousands of jobs," and needs to be protected.

“Simply put, the President’s budget fails Virginia," a statement from Warner said. "With the deficit at record highs thanks to the President’s massive tax cuts for big business and the wealthiest Americans, this proposal attempts to balance the budget at the expense of hardworking Virginians and investments in our local economy."

Hogan, Baker, Van Hollen, Harris and Warner all promised to fight the cuts.

The budget also proposes large cuts to Medicaid (reduced by $920 billion) and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance program (which would both be eliminated). Other areas facing cutbacks include the food assistance program known as SNAP, health care research at the National Institute of Health, and certain funding for after-school programs.

The budget adds funding for vocational programming in high schools, offers $5 billion to the Department of Health and Human Services to combat the opioids epidemic, and increases funding for the military. The budget also includes funding for President Donald Trump's proposed southern border wall.

This is not the first time the Trump administration has proposed slashing funding for the EPA.

More:Chesapeake Bay Program funding boost closer after Senate subcommittee push

The administration's 2019 and 2020 budget proposals also each called for 20%-30% cuts to the EPA, including 90% cuts to the Bay Program — money which Congress largely restored each time. The administration has approached the issue similarly for the last three years.

In 2020, the Chesapeake Bay Program is operating with the help of a $3 million funding boost secured for it by Congress, the first annual increase in funding for the program since fiscal year 2015.

The 2021 budget document cites "regulation relief" as one of this administration's key priorities, stating that since coming into office the Trump administration has cut "a historic number of regulations, and (they) have put the brakes on an endless assault of new, costly actions by Federal agencies."

"At the same time, we are maintaining America’s world-class standards of environmental protection," the budget states.