NEMWI Weekly Update
December 13th, 2021
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Bipartisan, Bicameral Group of Congress Members
Call for Marine Debris Funding 

A bipartisan letter was sent to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees last week calling on the Committee to include full funding for the Save our Seas (SOS) 2.0 Act in a potential final FY 2022 Appropriations package. 

The SOS 2.0 Act, which was enacted into law in 2020, reauthorized and built upon the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Marine Debris Program, which provides grants to tribes, local governments, and non-profit organizations for plastic debris removal in the Great Lakes and oceans. 

The letter was led by Great Lakes Task Force (GLTF) member Rep. Chris Jacobs (R-NY) and included the signatures of 24 additional bipartisan and bicameral members. Other GLTF members on the letter included Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Gwen Moore (D-WI), and Joe Morelle (D-NY). A copy of the letter can be viewed here. 
Northeast Midwest Region To Benefit
If Pending Earmarks Are Approved

Congressional earmarks are back after over 20 years of prohibition. For the first time in over two decades, Senators and Congressmen have an opportunity to request funds for projects in their respective states and districts. The Northeast-Midwest Institute is tracking earmark submissions from the 18 northeast midwest member states and is planning a report on the overall earmark picture early in 2022.

To date there are several trends in these Congressional earmarks that are evident from the data collected in relation to the northeast midwest region. Three noteworthy trends include: (1) the absolute dollar amount requested by state favors larger states such as New York and Illinois; (2) the per capita dollar amount requested by state favors smaller states such as Connecticut and Delaware; and (3) earmark requests are proving to be highly partisan, with the overwhelming majority of funding requests being submitted by Democratic Members of Congress. 

These trends are indicative of the expected pattern of distributed funds if they ultimately are approved, however they do not reflect the finalized funds to be designated to the region. Earmarks must survive several rounds of voting during the appropriation process in order to be authorized, so it is anticipated that final approval of the amount or type of funds allocated to the region will not be known until early 2022. 

The Northeast-Midwest Institute will continue to monitor earmarked funds for the next several months.
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This Week in Washington
In the House:

Friday, December 17th |9:00 AM | 1310 Longworth HOB Host: Committee on House Administration | Subcommittee on Elections

In the Senate:

Wednesday, December 15th, | 10:00 AM – SR-253 | Host: Commerce, Science, and Transportation

Wednesday, December 15th, | 10:00 AM – SR-418 | Host: Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights
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Notheast-Midwest Institute | nemw.org