News from Northeast-Midwest Institute

W E E K L Y U P D A T E September 27, 2016

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Congress Looks to Finish Up Remaining Business Before Recessing for the Election

House to Take Up WRDA Bill

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Congress Looks to Finish Up Remaining Business Before Recessing for the Election

This week Congress's main priority will be to pass a continuing resolution (CR) that will keep the government funded after September 30th. The Senate is scheduled today to vote on whether to move forward with a CR that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell revealed last week keeping the government funded through December 9th. The proposed CR also provides an additional $1.1 billion to fight the spread of Zika in the United States and another $500 million for the recent flood damages in Louisiana, West Virginia and Maryland. Senate Democrats have said that the CR also needs to include federal aid for Flint, Michigan, to help with the current drinking water crisis that the city is facing due to a lead contamination in the water supply. The House will also take up a Water Resource Development Act (WRDA) today under a closed rule.

For more information, contact Matthew McKenna , Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program or Jared Mott , Senior Policy Analyst for the Mississippi River at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

House to Take Up WRDA Bill

Today, the House is scheduled to begin debate on H.R. 5303, the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), a bill that authorizes Army Corps of Engineers' activities and infrastructure projects. The Senate bill (S. 2848), which passed earlier this month by a vote 95-3, included additional provisions ranging from a safe drinking water title to regional restoration efforts such as the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. While over one hundred amendments were submitted to the Rules Committee for consideration, only twenty five were made in order. The following eight amendments that were introduced by Northeast-Midwest regional Members will be considered:

Rep. Rod Blum (IA) - Expedites the Cedar River project for flood risk management authorized in the Water Resources Development Act of 2014.
Rep. Mike Boost (IL) - Authorizes the Corps to consider other potential benefits that may accrue due to rehabilitation of a nonfederal levee;
Rep. Robert Dold (IL) - Allows projects funded under section 506(c) of the Water Resources Development Act of 2000 to include compatible recreation features, not to exceed 10 percent of the ecosystem restoration costs of the project;
Rep. Elizabeth Esty (CT) - Directs the Secretary to submit a report within one year of enactment on implementation of corrosion prevention activities under section 1033 of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 2350);
Rep. Elizabeth Esty (CT) - Amends section 4009(a) of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-121; 128 Stat. 1316) to direct the Secretary to conduct a comprehensive assessment and management plan to restore aquatic ecosystems within the coastal waters of the Northeastern United States from the State of Virginia to the State of Maine, including associated bays, estuaries, and critical riverine areas;
Rep. Brenda Lawerence (MI) - Includes gross negligence as an additional reason for obtaining funding following an emergency at a water resources development project;
Rep. Bill Shuster (PA) - Makes technical and clarifying revisions to H.R. 5303. Includes additional Chief's Reports and Post Authorization Change Reports submitted by the Army Corps of Engineers since May 25, 2016; and
Rep. David Young (IA) - Establishes policy for Corps levees that affect community-owned levees.

For more information, contact Matthew McKenna , Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program or Jared Mott , Senior Policy Analyst for the Mississippi River at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

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