Lawmakers step up their water infrastructure game

June 2018

Despite Congress’ chronic gridlock with the nation’s finances, funding for the kinds of water navigation infrastructure projects that American agribusiness wants to see is getting big doses of attention and dollars on Capitol Hill.

“We’re getting more money for maintenance and more money for construction,” said Jim Walker, director of navigation policy and legislation for the American Association of Port Authorities. “There are more projects underway than we’ve seen in a long time in terms of construction, and it’s bringing the money in the construction program back up to what it was . . . close to a decade ago,” he declared.

In Portland, Ore., Kristin Meira, executive director of the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (PNWA), lauds lawmakers: “They are putting their money where their mouth is, making sure the Corps is adequately funded.”