With the passage of Sen. Herb Snyder’s funding bill Saturday, Shepherdstown can look forward to meeting the new Environmental Protection Agency regulations under its Chesapeake Bay restoration program with less cost to consumers.

Having already begun construction on an EPA-compliant waste water treatment plant reported to cost the town about $500,000 and approximately $9 million total, Shepherdstown will benefit considerably from the bill.

Now considered a “Chesapeake Bay watershed compliance project,” under the new bill, pending the governor’s signature, the town should expect to see 40 percent of the project’s costs covered by bonds from the video lottery revenue granted in the bill.

These costs would otherwise likely fall on the residents who pay for utilities.

As Snyder suggested, Shepherdstown’s progressive approach to environmentally responsible construction should not be overlooked.

And in this case it looks like the state will rightfully compensate a town “ahead of the curve.”