Spring in Washington, D.C. means two things:
cherry blossoms and appropriations season. The NEMW Congressional Coalition again joined forces, as in years past, to support regionally-significant programs. As part of this process, Congressional members send letters to the relevant Appropriations Subcommittee, supporting specific programs that benefit the region, state, and district. These letters inform the Appropriations Committee and Subcommittees as they make decisions on funding, based on the number of signatures and whether or not the letter is bipartisan. Many of the programs important to the NEMW Region, such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, have faced severe proposed cuts, but broad bipartisan support in Congress restored significant dollars to the programs. Most of the letters contain specific funding levels as part of the requests, which has not been common since the earmark ban went into effect in 2011, and is now a sign of especially serious signatory commitment.
Below is a summary of each letter with a link to the final, signed copy. The NEMWI has put together a
list of regionally-significant programs and funding levels from FY2012-14 and the FY2015 Request, as well as a
list of programs significant to the Great Lakes region.
Senate* Great Lakes Task Force
House* Great Lakes Task Force Letters (by Appropriations Subcommittee): ask for general program support without a specific funding level
o
Interior and Environment: State Revolving Funds, Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, Asian carp and other invasive species efforts, and other programs
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Energy and Water: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers programs, including operation and maintenance for navigation, habitat restoration, and stream modeling
For more information, please contact
Danielle Chesky, Director, Great Lakes Washington Program, at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
