NEMWI Briefing: Federal Support for Effective Workforce and Economic Development Practices at Every Stage of the   

Business Life Cycle,  

February 25      

The NEMWI and the National Call to Action, a national multi-sector coalition formed in 2010 to promote a collaborative approach to economic stabilization and recovery, will co-host an informational briefing on February 25, 2015 from 10:30am-noon. NEMW Congressional Coalition Co-Chairs Congressman Mike Kelly and Congressman Jim McGovern are honorary co-sponsors. This informational briefing will describe proven, cost-effective uses of federal resources and assistance for workforce and economic development at every stage of the business life cycle - startup, expansion, maintenance, and decline. Participants will learn about sources of federal support for, and success stories of, high-impact practices in the Northeast-Midwest region and integrated workforce and economic development responses to economic change. The panel will also describe new opportunities in light of the implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and other bi-partisan efforts. Confirmed panelists are Tom Croft from the Steel Valley Authority and Jack Mills from the National Network of Sector Partners. The briefing is open to the public and will take place in the Capitol Visitor Center, Senate Side, SVC 215.

For more information and to RSVP, contact Colleen Cain, Sr. Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. 

 NEMWI Briefing: USGS Report on Nationwide Groundwater Quality, March 6     

The NEMWI and  Water Environment Federation will sponsor a briefing on the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program on March 6, 2015 at 10am in the Capitol Visitor Center Congressional Meeting Room North. NAWQA Program staff will present findings from its ongoing evaluation of water quality in the principal aquifers of the United States.    

The USGS Office of Groundwater has identified 62 principal aquifers in the U.S. (see this NAWQA web site for further background). About one-third of those principal aquifers have been the historical focus of water-quality assessments at a regional scale by NAWQA. On January 21, NAWQA released, "Water Quality in Principal Aquifers of the United States," a compendium summarizing groundwater quality trends based upon regional- and national-scale assessments conducted in principal aquifers between 1991 and 2010. The briefing will highlight findings from that comprehensive report. 

Speakers for this briefing include:

• Introductions: Michael Goff, President, Northeast-Midwest Institute
• Moderator: Patrick Leahy, Executive Director, American Geological Institute
• Barbara Mahler, Ph.D., Scientist for the NAWQA Program 

Following Dr. Mahler's presentation, time will be provided for questions from and discussion with the audience.

The briefing is free and open to the public. Please RSVP to cbarbour@usgs.gov if you are planning to attend. 

For more information, please contact Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

Great Lakes policy decision-makers and advocates convened last week on Capitol Hill at the NEMWI's Great Lakes Environmental Summit 2015. In-coming Great Lakes Task Force co-chair Rep. Marcy Kaptur (OH-09) gave remarks with an emphasis on the need to identify federal leadership for efforts to prevent harmful algal blooms affecting public health. Great Lakes Task Force members Reps. Dan Benishek (MI-01) and Dan Kildee (MI-05) stressed the need for continued economic and environmental restoration, and the nation-wide benefits the region provides. Summit participants also heard from a series of panels of Congressional Committee staff about legislative opportunities in the 2015 Congress of interest to the Great Lakes region. Staff representing various Appropriations subcommittees, Agriculture, Energy and Commerce, and the Commerce, Science, and Transportation committees gave brief remarks and answered participant questions. Presenters indicated budget review hearings would begin in early February, and Member appropriation request letters (known as "Dear Colleagues") would be due at the end of March (House). Within the Commerce Committees, there will be a focus on natural resource movement within the U.S. and foreign exports; further, the ballast water discharge legislation was reintroduced into the Senate. Staff members of the lead cosponsors of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act discussed the bills and indicated that movement forward of the legislation, including increasing bipartisan co-sponsorship and support within the delegation, would be a top priority for the offices. 

 

For more information, contact Danielle Chesky, Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.   

Congress is off to a running start, with legislation, appropriations, and a new budget. This edition of the Great Lakes Hill Happenings features:

• Announcements of new Great Lakes Task Force leadership;
• Letters noting bipartisan support for the Great Lakes Navigation System;
• Reintroduced legislation on the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative program, harmful algal blooms, and ballast water;
• And a new design!