Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise now to discuss my amendment with Senators Inhofe, Wicker, and Duckworth. This amendment makes several changes to the appropriations section of the substitute in the section that funds the Army Corps of Engineers. In WRDA 2020, Senator Barrasso and I heard multiple times about the struggles of small, rural, and economically disadvantaged communities in meeting project cost shares. These projects range from aquatic ecosystem restorations to flood control and new levees. Yet because the Corps is required to cost share the work, these small, rural, and poor communities never get the assistance they need. Last year, Senator Barrasso and I created a cap authority that allows the Corps to pay for full expense of these projects to help these disadvantaged communities finance the infrastructure the community needs. This amendment also makes clarifying changes to the inland waterways funding. In addition to a technical correction, it makes clear that the funding provided in this act must be prioritized for projects on the Capital Investment Strategy Report, the guiding document for the Corps inland waterways projects. Finally, this amendment makes sure that inland flooding projects are prioritized for economically disadvantaged communities and life-safety- related projects. This supports equity for disadvantaged communities while prioritizing projects with the highest need. This is a good bill. It is a good amendment, and these small tweaks make it stronger.…”