Washington Waves for July 29, 2024
Washington, D.C.—The House overwhelmingly approved its version of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2024 that authorizes 161 new feasibility studies for locally proposed projects and 12 projects that have been thoroughly reviewed by the Corps and have culminated in a final report to Congress. Passed by a vote of 359 to 13, H.R. 8812 now goes to the Senate, which has yet to vote on its version of the bill.
“WRDA delivers critical water resource infrastructure improvements for communities across America—from ports to levees to navigation channels and more,” said Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.), the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and sponsor of the bill. “The bill also makes policy and programmatic reforms to streamline processes, reduce cumbersome red tape and get projects done faster.”
Graves singled out the bill’s language that “charts a new path forward for systemic flood control on the Upper Mississippi River, takes significant steps toward ensuring flood control and navigation are the top priorities on the Missouri River, helps shore up the PL 84-99 program to better help states and local communities after floods and provides long-overdue reforms to move rural projects forward.”
Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.), the committee’s ranking member and co-sponsor of the bill, noted it is the sixth consecutive WRDA since 2014 and builds on a proud tradition of bipartisan, bicameral support for ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of ports, harbors, inland waterways and the resiliency of communities and the protection of natural resources.
In an unexpected move, the House adjourned until September 9 without holding a floor vote on the Energy and Water Development spending bill for fiscal year 2025. H.R. 8997 would provide $9.96 billion for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, $180.2 million below the enacted program level for the current fiscal year.
No one expected the House measure to ever be signed into law as written by the Republican majority. It drew strong opposition from the White House, which had issued a Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) that included a veto threat.
Still, a floor vote on the bill was expected before the traditional August break, and getting the bill, along with other spending measures, out of the House is an important step in the annual appropriations process. When lawmakers return after Labor Day, a major priority for Congress will be to pass a stopgap measure to avoid a government shutdown on October 1.
Levee Comments
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced it has extended the comment period on the draft first edition of the National Levee Safety Guidelines and on the companion document “Best Practices for Vegetation Management on Levees.” Comments now must be postmarked or received no later than August 31. They may be emailed to hq-leveesafety@usace.army.mil, submitted through the Federal Register under Docket No. COE-2021-0007 or mailed to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg District; ATTN: Levee Safety Center—Room 221; 4155 East Clay St., Vicksburg, MS 39183.
Released April 1, the guidelines were developed with stakeholder input under the National Levee Safety Program. The companion document provides detailed information about vegetation management on or near levees. Both documents are available for download at: https://www.leveesafety.org/pages/nlsg. Recordings also are available on topic-specific webinars on the guidelines held in April and May. For additional information, contact Tammy Conforti at 202-365-6586 or hq-leveesafety@usace.army.mil or visit www.leveesafety.org
Advisory Committee Vacancy
The Coast Guard is accepting applications to fill one vacancy on the National Offshore Safety Advisory Committee that advises the secretary of Homeland Security via the commandant of the Coast Guard on matters relating to the exploration of offshore mineral and energy resources within the Coast Guard’s jurisdiction.
Applications must reach the Coast Guard by September 20 and should be submitted via email with subject line ‘‘NOSAC Vacancy Application’’ to Justin.P.Goff@uscg.mil. In this solicitation, the Coast Guard said it will consider applications for one member representing entities engaged in the support of offshore operations. For additional information, contact Lt. Justin Goff at 571-610-0130 or Justin.P.Goff@uscg.mil.
