Business meeting to consider an original bill entitled

Good morning everyone. This is a good day in the EP EPW committee. It's a good day for me personally because today, even though she's no longer with me, my mother would be one hundred years old today.

Wow.

Uh, so, and and her name was Shelly. So, uh, we're happy birthday, Shelly. Um, so, I note the presence of a quorum and I will call this business business meeting to order. Uh for information of the committee, ranking member, White House and I will deliver our opening statements. And once we have sufficient attendance, we will immediately proceed to the consideration of the legislation. That would be ten members, I believe. Um after the vote, senators who wish to be recognized to speak on the legislation or the nomination, may do so. Before we get started on today's agenda, I would like to take a moment to remember our good friend and influential member of the EPW committee, That would be Senator Lindsey Graham. He was a fierce advocate for the people of South Carolina and used his position on this committee to advance critical issues for his state. On the water resources front, he tirelessly fought for improvements to the Port of Charleston, worked closely with the Corps on studies and projects to address coastal storm flooding and inland flooding in the city of Charleston and Charleston Peninsula, and partnered with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to ensure needs across South Carolina were met. He was also an advocate for nuclear energy and a champion for his state's nuclear energy uh industry. He will be greatly missed by this committee, as we know he will be by the full body. I would like to thank my colleagues for attending today's business meeting to consider S forty nine forty nine the Water Resources Development Act of twenty twenty six. S forty f nine forty nine is a bipartisan legislation that consists of two divisions. Division A is our biennial water resources legislation for the UA for the United States Corps of Engineers. And Division B reauthorizes water infrastructure programs and geographic programs under the purview of the EPA. I would like to take a moment to sincerely thank Ranking Member Whitehouse and his great staff for uh his efforts uh on this important legislation. We've we've worked very well together. In Division A we authorize critical r- water resources studies and projects for the Corps to carry out across the country. and provide additional authorities to the Secretary of Army when carrying out the civil works program. Since two thousand and fourteen, the EPW committee has kept to a biennial schedule of passing bipartisan water resources bills, and I'm pleased that we are continuing that track record today. From a national perspective, Division A enables the timely and efficient delivery of core studies and projects. It enhances the Corps' ability to identify and carry out solutions that are tailored to the needs of each community. and preserves the role of non-federal sponsors. As you have heard me say before, we received a significant number of requests from our colleagues on this legislation. Our staff has worked diligently over the past few months to address those results and those requests. As a result, the legislation includes wins for states across the country. I'm gonna take a few minutes to highlight some of the benefits for my home state of West Virginia. It authorizes two new feasibility studies so that the Corps can address fru- flood risk in the northern and southern part of our state. The bill provides support for future projects identified by the Corps' feasibility study for flood risk management in the upper Guyan Dot River Basin. It establishes new authorities for the Corps to help expedite the delivery of small but impactful water resource projects in our state and enhances existing authorities that support drinking and wastewater projects. The bill also directs the Corps to expedite the ongoing feasibility study for the Kanawha River Basin as well as projects in Milton and at the Bluestone Dam, and Hinton. I would like to briefly highlight some of the important provisions in division B, which is focused on the EPA's water infrastructure programs and geographic programs. The water programs that were last authorized in the IIJA will strengthen underserved c- community's ability to deliver water projects, reinforce the cooperative federalism principle embedded in our laws, and focus on outcomes that prioritize safe water and sound infrastructure. It is vital we continue to work across the aisle to provide solutions that ensure communities across the country have access to safe, real and reliable water and sanitation services. Improving my state's water infrastructure remains a p- a top priority for me. This bill will help address the state's significant needs while ensuring that we provide the right tools and flexibility to address the unique circumstances faced by rural and small communities in my state. Significantly, the bill increases the annual Authorized funding levels for the drinking water and clean water state revolving funds. Provides resources to address cyber security vulnerabilities in our water systems, and you'll recall we had a hearing on that issue, and supports the EPA's wa- water workforce development initiatives. The bill als- also reauthorizes the EPA's geographic programs, including the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Finally, I'd like to say a few words about the nominee, Kevin Lilley, who's nomination we will vote on at a later committee meeting. Mister Lilley was nominated to be Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife at the US Department of Interior. Mister Lilley brings decades of leadership experience gained from his time in the private sector, state government, the military, and most recently at the Department of Interior in the role of Assistant Secretary. In this role he will provide senior policy leadership for both US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service. agencies that play a pivotal role in our conservation efforts and bolstering recreation and tourism opportunities. Mister Lilley, in my opinion, is an excellent choice for this role. I look forward to supporting Mister Lilley's nomination at a later committee meeting, and I strongly encourage my colleagues to support our word or bill today. And with that, I'll turn to Ranking Member Whitehouse for his opening statement.

Thank you, um, Madam Chair. This is the first, uh, gathering of this committee. since the death of Senator Graham. And I wanna join, uh, the Chairman in a brief reflection about Lindsay. For many of us, he was a genuine personal friend. People sometimes think that that's crazy, because they see our political disagreements. But Lindsay never allowed our political disagreements, even vast ones, to interfere at all. in our friendship. He never even put any pressure on me to diminish our areas of vast disagreement. We just enjoyed each other and particularly enjoyed what I think was one of Lindsay's signal characteristics, which was his enterprising and curious willingness to try to expand the political zone of what is possible in the senate he was not constrained by his party's political boundaries and he hoped that i would not be constrained by my party's political boundaries that kind of enterprise is kind of a gem uh around here plus he was just an unforgettably funny um affectionate um, cheerful and intelligent friend. The Senate is both a dumber and a grimmer place without Lindsey Graham. So, uh, on to the topic of this business meeting, where we show that sometimes the Senate can still work like it used to, and like it's supposed to. I wanna thank you, Madam Chair, particularly for your leadership, your staff director, Adam, and his team for working with us to produce a truly strong bipartisan water infrastructure package. I would also like to thank Mayley Boyce, Ed Higgins, Pam Collins, and Kara Allen on my staff for their tireless efforts to produce this bill. We were joking beforehand that Shelley and I were able to overcome the disability of our terrible staffs to pull this together,

Yeah.

because we're so individually wonderful.

Yeah.

And of course, the fact of the matter, when we're not teasing, is that senators depend enormously on the quality of their staffs. And it was a lot of staff work on both sides of the aisle that have made this bill a success. The chairs and ranking members of the water and infrastructure subcommittees are also owed our gratitude and indeed all members of the committee engage constructively towards this success. Our package consists of two parts, one that will authorize water projects by the Army Corps of Engineers and the other that will reauthorize water programs at the Environmental Protection Agency. Congress is not known for completing tasks on a regular schedule, yet for over a decade Congress has authorized Army Corps projects on a biennial cycle. I'm proud that our committee is taking an important step to continue this long-standing streak. Similarly, we've worked to carry forward the momentum of five years ago, when we authorized many important programs for water infrastructure at EPA. I strongly encourage all members to support this water package. Like any bipartisan bill, it doesn't contain everything Democrats would want or everything Republicans would want but even still it contains substantial wins. It contains reforms from my Elevate Flood-prone Communities Act to protect communities that benefit from the Corps' work on non-structural projects, like structure elevation and flood proofing. These reforms will provide for voluntary buyouts, temporary relocation assistance for structure elevation projects, and a pilot program to expand the scope of eligible costs for certain structure elevation projects, including the Rhode Island coastline and Pawkatuck River projects. While the phrase cooperative federalism is often misused these days, EPA's clean and drinking water state revolving funds embody that concept. The SRFs have proven to be one of the most effective programs at generating a return on federal investment. Agency estimates put every dollar spent through these programs as producing three dollars in investment, uh, directly in our communities. It's no wonder they receive such strong bipartisan Much work remains to be done on replacing lead service lines and addressing emergency contaminants such as PFAS uh but our bill increases the authorizations for both the clean and drinking water state revolving funds, to help us continue with those efforts. Our bill also creates a pilot program to put point of use filtration systems in homes at the other end of the pipeline from uh the plant to help further mitigate pfast and lead exposure. I look forward to seeing the result to that pilot program and hope it provides a basis for expansion in future years. Alongside the SRFs, our bill authorizes nearly seven billion dollars in EPA programs to address a number of pressing issues facing our country. These programs will improve the digitization and the cyber security of our water utilities, provide targeted assistance to small and disadvantaged communities, and support environmental restoration efforts to combat pollution in our waterways. Some of our nation's greatest waterways will benefit from the geographic programs we reauthorize, including the Southeast New England program, which has long received appropriations thanks to the work of my colleague Senator Jack Reed. Personally, I'm glad to have secured reauthorizations for micro-plastic remediation grants, from Save RC's two point O, and would recognize Senator Merkley for his diligent efforts on micro- plastics. Uh, I thank Senator Sullivan for his lead, uh, on Save Our Seas two point O. And we have also, uh, enhanced the National Estuaries program. The bill also will authorize core assistants to address a number of long-standing water resources challenges in Rhode Island, including hydrilla infestations on our freshwater lakes, breachway erosion, fish passage on the lower blackstone river pilings removal in the providence river and long-term comprehensive flood and coastal storm risk management solutions for the city of providence and surrounding areas many members have similar lists of achievements that they have uh managed in this bill so there's a lot of good to be accomplished because of this bill i look forward to supporting its passage through our committee today i also look to the appropriators on the committee notably our chair and encourage them to see these substantial authorizations as a clear signal from this committee that Congress wants to see more funding for Army Corps and EPA water infrastructure programs and projects, not less. Thank you very much again, Madam Chair. It has been a pleasure working with you on this effort.

Thank you, uh, Senator Whitehouse, and thanks for your, uh, statement, and I would like to, before we, uh, move to the more business to recognize my staff, Director Adam Tomlinson, But also Libby Calloway, um Murphy Barrett, Matty Blaylock, Jack Klein, Andy Zok, and Jay, I'm, uh, uh, yeah, yeah. Ah yeah. Which is, it is his birthday today.

Thank you.

He's half my mother's age. So, uh, happy birthday, Jay.

Oh boy.

Um, and then, uh, Dan, Kara, Meli, Ed, uh, from your great staff as well. So, thank you for that. So, we are, I will now call up, uh, S forty nine forty nine, the Water Resources Development Act of twenty twenty six. Next I will call up the Capito White House Substitute Amendment number one, which consists of a manager's package of amendments that have been agreed upon by the ranking member and me. The substitute includes the following amendments, also Brooks one as modified, Husted one, Merkley one, Merkley three as modified, Merkley four, Merkley nine as modified, Ricketts two as modified, Sullivan one, and Wicker one. Is there a discussion on the substitute amendment? If not, I move that the committee adopt the substitute amendment. Is there a second?

Second.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye. Aye. Aye.

All opposed no. Depending the cheer of the ayes have it, the ayes do have it. The substitute amendment is adopted. We do have a quorum, so in the interest of time uh I know other uh I know Senator Curtis and probably others have uh comments that they wanna make. Um but I would uh I would ask senators who would like to offer additional amendments to hold off on speaking until after final passage if that's suitable. So does any Senator wish to be recognized to offer an additional amendment? I now move that the yes s sorry Senator Blunt Rochester. Sorry, I hit the bell.

Uh thank you uh Chairman Capito, I'd like to offer and ultimately withdraw amendment Blunt Rochester, Pedia one. While I support this legislation wholeheartedly, I think there is an area where it falls short, and that is meeting our country's growing affordability crisis. Americans are seeing higher costs everywhere, from the gas pump to housing, and they shouldn't have to choose between their groceries and utility bills. This is why Senator Padilla and I with the support of utilities and community organizations, have been working on the water affordability program, modeled after the highly successful LIHEAP program. Water affordability has been a mounting crisis for years, and it's only getting worse. From aging infrastructure to higher operational cost, water rates are skyrocketing and Americans are struggling to pay their bills. This water affordability program would provide much needed relief to families and give our water utilities the reliable revenue stream they need for regular maintenance. There's no question that clean, safe, reliable and affordable water is a basic right and is essential to public health. Chairman Capito, I hope that you will continue to work with me and Senator Padilla on this very important effort, and I yield the remaining of my time to um my colleague and partner in this very, very important work on behalf of the American people, Senator Padilla.

Thank you, Senator Blunt-Rochester. Thank you, Madam Chair. And I will try to be brief. Um, look, water affordability is a critical issue. It's not a red state, blue state thing. This is for working families across the country. Um, some, as Senator Blunt-Rochester said, so many families across the country, struggling to get by, to pay the bills, and afford basic goods, and that includes water and wastewater utility bills. Lot of focus on gas and healthcare costs and housing, et cetera, but water and wastewater utility rates have been growing at twice the rate of inflation for twenty-five years. And we know that there's programs that can work because we did it during the pandemic. We offered support for families that didn't just help them pay their water bills, it helped prevent water shutoffs, it helped folks who had been in arrears reinstate their services one point four million households across forty nine states were helped but that program has come to an end we're trying to reinstate it and improve upon it uh also uh remind us all that when we don't help everybody else pays the price because the the past due bills that go unpaid are then covered by the rest of rate payers in that utility or district's uh service area so the bill that we have proposed and offered as an amendment uh is inclusive of working with not just repair advocates and local governments but water utilities and others and we crafted a bill that everybody agrees would be helpful so i understand that uh either there wasn't time or capacity to move it in this particular bill but madam chair we do appeal to you to keep working with us uh in good faith to find a way forward for a water affordability proposal. Thank you.

Thank you. I'd like to thank both Senators, uh Blount Rochester and Padilla, uh for offering the amendment and and withdrawing it, and I I understand the concern, we all hear this from our constituents, uh the impact of water costs. I would note that by passing this bill, I do believe with the modernization of systems, uh I can speak for my own in state of an independent study that did that said fifty per percent of the water doesn't even make it to the end because of the aging infrastructure, that adds to the costs as well. So we will continue, I I pledge to continue to work with you all on this bill. So thank you. Did you want to say something?

Yeah, I'd love to uh express support for uh Senator Blunt Rochester and Senator Padilla's uh effort here. Um, states like mine and Senator Blunt Rochester's are facing sea level rise and rain burst activity that causes both coastal and uh riverside flooding. Um, in one of my municipalities, the town of Warren, they're having to relocate the entire wastewater cleaning plant because of its risk of being flooded. Those expenditures to meet the risk of sea level rise and of the rain burst flooding require investments by the water utilities and the clean water utilities that have to raise rates. And that's only gonna get worse as the climate upheaval uh continues. In western states, like Senator Padilla's and Senator Kelly's, uh they have the opposite problem, which is drought and evaporation, uh destroying long-standing water supplies and creating very significant conflicts over water use. Um, but obviously with less water to go around, the costs

Anybody else have additional amendments?

Mm-hmm.

Alright, I can now move the Committee Report of the Bill as amended, favorably. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you. The Clerk, the Clerk will call the roll.

Miss Altsabrooks.

Aye.

Miss Blount-Rochester.

Aye.

Mister Bozeman.

Aye.

Mister Kramer.

Aye.

Mister Curtis.

Aye.

Mister Houston.

Aye.

Mister Kelly.

Aye.

Miss Lummis.

Aye.

mister markey

aye bye proxy

mister merkeley

aye

mister padilla

aye

mister ricketts

aye

mister sanders

aye bye proxy

mister schiff

aye bye proxy

mister sullivan

aye

mister whitehouse

aye

mister wicker

gone

madam chairman

aye

madam chairman the yays are eighteen and the nays are zero

Well, I would note, uh, Senator Whitehouse, We must have a win. we have a unanimous, uh, uh, result here. So thank all the members, staff, and everyone. Very good. This is no small feat. Um, I will note that the roll call vote on presidential nom- uh, number Oh, well, I should say, with that the legislation as amendment is favorably reported. The roll call vote on presidential nominee, uh, number eight O six dash five, Kevin Lilley of Texas to be Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife will be held at a later committee meeting. So now I would like to recognize members who uh would like to speak. I know Senator Curtis, I'll go to you first, since you mentioned to me first.

Thank you.

And OK.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll be very brief. I just would like to echo some of the remarks made by you and the ranking member. Uh, as as uh the ranking member uh alluded to, Utah is in a record drought. Um, everywhere I go it's water, water, water, water, and I think in many cases it's many pressing problems we as we have as a country and a state uh water still rises to the top so i'm very pleased particularly for the communities of efrem and centerville who um who will benefit from this in their ability to bring clean water to their residents in and otherwise would not be able to do it without this bill so i'd like to thank um the committee the staff the ranking member and yourself uh for making this possible i'd also like to point out uh the great uh salt lake and the impending needs there and i look forward to to further discussions with this committee and um and and and other members to see how we can um save a very very important asset in the west uh it's an environmental issue it's a it's a uh standard of living issue it's on on many many levels this is important and uh a very important role and what i'm pleased with with the great salt lake is it's not my state's not just waiting for the federal government i have philanthropic help i local community help i have state government help everybody is leaning into this and i'm i'm grateful the federal government's willing to lean in as well and with that i yield thank you

ah thank you madam chair and i wanna join in the reminiscences about our our colleague uh senator graham and the the flowers at his uh seat symbolizing uh his passing and uh on the budget committee as he said as chair and i as ranking member we had vociferously different viewpoints on some of the issues that have come through this uh chamber over the last year and a half um and after we got through thoroughly advocating for our viewpoints we would be laughing and and joking about many other things and it kind of emphasizes the point that my colleagues were making about the ability to argue over policy but uh share uh a a connection that this chamber needs so much more of and uh he will be very very much missed and thank you madam chair and and ranking member for the work when you look at the details in this bill it is so much every state affected by dozens of of factors and a few of them that will be well noticed in in oregon include the aquatic structures for the lower columbia river when you dredge a river which is portland oregon is the furthest inland deep water port in the world which means you have to do a lot of dredging to keep the ships coming up the river the ships get bigger and bigger uh it is also means you have to have a place to put those those those dredges so that's very uh important and the change of the cost share in this bill uh is much appreciated um we'll continue to pursue that question right on through the the conference the step channel in the tillamook bay enhancing navigation the prioritization of the coal rivers hatchery so this hatchery it's where on the rogue river one of the most wildest um credible rivers in the world but when it comes to the william just dam that wild river ends and you can see where the fish swim in to concrete pools and they can find no other passage up the river and when that dam was built there was a commitment of this nation to the hatchery process cause we are talking about fall chinook spring chinook coho salmon uh spring and summer or summer and winter steelhead and they don't do it just for the rogue river they produce it for other rivers uh as well so the the clean water for this hatchery because that's become an issue and the power and the filtration system are just all essential not just for the runs on the rogue but but others as uh well so uh uh i appreciate bipartisan support for this commitment that was made when these dams were were built to keep these all the hatcheries operating but this this one plays an incredible role uh the uh the challenge of uh algae ross island uh the um uh columbia river basin geographic program which helps reduce toxics in in the in the basin and as mentioned by my colleague uh the work and study to identify capture and remove micro and nano plastics figuring out how we can manage that health threat we get more and more studies now about how those uh plastics are entering our bodies you know first it was a a litter and trash problem and then it was an aquatic ecosystem problem and you would see pictures of the various uh fish and and uh marine mammals with their stomachs full of plastic now it's a human health problem as well so much to be done in in that area the list goes on and on actually uh factors so i'll stop uh with well i'll almost stop with that Uh, the um, I think there was one other. Well, I don't need, no, that's plenty. Okay. Uh, thank you. Uh, thank you for this diligent uh work.

Thank you. Uh, Senator Sullivan.

Thank you Madam Chair, and I wanna thank you, actually my good friends, Senator Capito, Chairman Capito and Senator Whitehouse on your leadership. It's uh not surprising, but it's not always typical, you get a uh unanimous outcome on a bill of this size and importance so i wanna thank both of you for your leadership we are kinda not kind of we're still very much in mourning we these flowers are representing my good friend all of our good friends senator lindsey graham who we are still in shock and have tremendous heartache over the loss of him and i think it's uh appropriate as we get this bill over the goal line in a huge bipartisan way that we have a reminder of our good friend, Senator Graham, with these, uh, beautiful flowers. I wanna thank, uh, the committee staff, my team who's worked really hard on this. Um, you know, I, this committee hears it a lot. My state has a lot of unique challenges. Uh, we are resource rich but infrastructure poor. Uh, Alaska has less road miles than Connecticut, and we are almost a hundred and twenty times bigger than Connecticut. So with vast distances and limited roads, the word of bill, the highway bill are absolutely critical to my state, and I appreciated the bipartisan support for many of the big initiatives that we are able to deliver for the great state of Alaska. Certainly building infrastructure is an important way, a critical way in my state to bring down the cost of living. when you have over two hundred thirty communities in alaska that are not a connected by roads and most states can't even comprehend that that there's no communities that are not connected by roads in the lower forty eight and we have over two hundred thirty so costs are very high and infrastructure is a critical way to keep down the cost so i wanna thank everybody we're cutting right through the red tape to fast track a permanent engineering solution for Juneau, Alaska, which is currently preparing for yet another devastating glacial eh lake outburst flood. We are keeping our foot on the gas in this bill to build America's very first Arctic deep-water port in Nome. And we are focusing the Corps' attention on building resilience along western Alaska's coasts, which has faced increasingly severe storms and erosion over the last several years. We are also making the Alaska district for the Corps of Engineers, um, to have the permitting resources that it actually needs to handle our unique challenges in ensuring our local harbors aren't penalized by unfair cost-benefit metrics that ignore massive economic, uh, advantages to our communities, even when they have small populations. But this bill doesn't stop there. We are reauthorizing critical EPA water and sewer funding, including two hundred forty million dollars through twenty-thirty for the Alaska Native Village sanitation program. This is one step closer to achieving the goal that we all have in Alaska, which is putting the honey bucket in a museum and making it a relic pass i have over thirty communities in my state some of the most patriotic communities in america because alaska natives serve at higher rates in the military than any other ethnic group in the country over thirty communities that don't have water and sewer and flush toilets imagine that the richest country in the world and people use honey buckets to uh take out their sewage that's just unacceptable in america and we're trying to get that done and i really appreciate the focus of this committee to doing that, and that's a big, big, big advancement, and it's exciting and needed uh in my state. And finally, uh, Senator Whitehouse is here. We are keeping up the momentum on our Save Our Seas two point O, the most comprehensive ocean debris cleanup legislation ever passed in the history of the country, signed into law a couple years ago, and we are continuing that critical effort. So again, I wanna thank the leadership on this committee. All my colleagues, this is a important day for everybody. Every state has big wins in this bill, and I'm very excited about the wins for Alaska. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Uh, Senator Olser-Brooks.

Thank you. I wanna thank uh Chair Capito and Ranking Member Whitehouse and their staff for leading the bipartisan process to develop this important piece of legislation. I was really proud to join them as ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, along with Chair Cramer. Water infrastructure has long been an area where Congress can find common ground and solve real problems for communities. And this committee's track record to that effect is one of the reasons that I wanted to join. Every family, every business, every school, and every community depends on safe, abundant, reliable water and on the partnerships that cross municipal lines and unite rural and urban communities to manage flood risk and harness the economic opportunities afforded to us by our waterways. In Maryland, whether you're from Eastern Shore or Mountain Maryland, Baltimore, or the suburbs, we're s- all connected by the same rivers, the same streams, and the Chesapeake Bay. This legislation builds on the historic investments Congress made through the bipartisan infrastructure law by reauthorizing and strengthening our nation's core drinking water and wastewater programs. It ensures states and local communities continue to have the tools they need to modernize aging infrastructure, improve resilience, and protect public health. I'm especially proud, our bill includes provisions that deliver real results for Maryland, from moving the Cumberland Flood Risk Management Project one step closer to completion, to addressing an Assateague Island and authorizing funding increase for the Chesapeake Bay oyster recovery program. We're working together to modernize our infrastructure, protect our environment, strengthen our economy, and ensure that communities across the country in Maryland are safe. And so I look forward to advancing this legislation, uh, and and continuing to work with my colleagues to to get it signed into law. Thank you.

Thank you, Senator Altsa-Brooks, for all of your help in getting this as far as we are today. Uh, Senator, who's next?

Uh, thank you, Chair Capito, and to the ranking member, the and the members of the committee. Uh, very much appreciate the inclusion of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative in this legislation. Uh, I wanna say thanks to, uh, my partner in this, uh, Senator Gary Peters from Michigan. Uh, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is an example of success. i since its inception we've seen the great lakes improve in terms of their water quality uh address uh emerging threats uh so many people uh i know i'm the only member of the committee that that represents a great lake state so many people rely on their water from the great lakes uh and i know in ohio we've had initiatives like h two ohio which are designed to improve the the the relationship between the lake and the agricultural community by creating more buffer zones like uh through through uh wetlands and other things that have improved water quality but the great lakes restoration initiative is an essential part of protecting the largest source of fresh water uh in the western hemisphere and uh we're um grateful i'm grateful to the committee members for supporting this it's very important to my state and to the entire country thank you.

Thank you very much. I know how important the Great Lakes are, so I appreciate your initiatives there. And Senator Padilla.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Uh, first let me join the chorus in thanking you and uh Senator Whitehouse and your staffs for all the work that it's taken to get this uh bill uh to a successful point and an agreement uh and appreciate your uh words and commitment earlier on the water affordability concern that several of us in the committee uh have shared. wanted to take an opportunity to highlight one other uh issue of importance and that's continuing the critical flood protection work for the cities of temecula and murrieta who have experienced devastating floods with loss of life just last week the uh uh army corps of engineers completed a general re-evaluation study that provides finally a certified cost estimate for the project so as we're to move forward i'd ask that the committee use the corps completed study to increase the project's cost ceiling uh which is so critical for the planet protection work and for it to be able to continue and i also wanna highlight the problem of delays in approving loan applications under wiffia in my state uh multiple applicants including the city of hayward and valley water have been literally waiting for a year or even longer for omb and the epa to approve their fully completed loan applications to approve them uh these are important projects that should be reviewed in a timely manner as you know time is money but also the longer we wait the more we risk further damage and devastation uh increasing transparency of administrative reviews is always helpful as well so appreciate the uh today's bill includes a provision tracking the average amount of time it takes to process these loans not just for the benefit of these projects and my state but for everybody Thank you, Madam Chair.

All right. Well, I wanna thank all the members uh for being here. Thanks for the success. Thanks to Senator Whitehouse and all of you for being here. So with that, this business meeting is adjourned.