Durbin, Blunt, Grassley, Bustos, Hinson Lead Bipartisan, Bicameral Effort To Fund Modernization Of Upper Mississippi & Illinois Rivers' Locks And Dams
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (R-MO) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), along with U.S. Representatives Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17) and Ashley Hinson (R-IA-01), led a bicameral, bipartisan letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prioritize the funding for construction of the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP) on the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) with the $2.5 billion for inland waterways provided in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
Originally authorized in Title VIII of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007, NESP would modernize and expand seven outdated locks at the most congested lock locations along the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers as well as fund more than $1 billion in ecosystem restoration. NESP will create almost 50 million person-hours of living wage construction jobs. A 2019 study released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that rebuilding NESP locks would inject $72 billion additional dollars into the nation’s GDP.
“The regional and national economic benefits of NESP are significant, which is why the project was included in the December 2020 Inland and Intracoastal Waterways Twenty-Year Capital Investment Strategy (CIS) developed by the Corps and the Inland Waterways User Board (IWUB),” the lawmakers wrote. “Following the 2020 CIS including NESP construction will bring immediate financial and environmental benefits throughout the system that will reverberate through the economy.”
In the Senate, the letter was cosigned by U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tina Smith (D-MN), Joni Ernst (R-IA), John Kennedy (R-LA), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Roger Marshall (R-KS). In the House, the letter was cosigned by U.S. Representatives Cindy Axne (D-IA-03), Mike Bost (R-IL-12), Sean Casten (D-IL-06), Emanuel Cleaver, III (D-MO-05), James Comer (R-KY-01), Jim Cooper (D-TN-05), Angie Craig (D-MN-02), Rodney Davis (R-IL-13), Tom Emmer (R-MN-06), Michelle Fischbach (R-MN-07), Bill Foster (D-IL-11), Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08), Jesús G. "Chuy" García (D-IL-04), Sam Graves (R-MO-06), Jim Hagedorn (R-MN-01), Vicky Hartzler (R-MO-40), Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), Ron Kind (D-WI-03), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL-16), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-08), Darin LaHood (R-IL-18), Billy Long (R-MO-07), Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-03), Betty McCollum (D-MN-04), Mary E. Miller (R-IL-15), Mariannette Miller-Meeks, M.D. (R-IA-02), Marie Newman (D-IL-03), Dean Phillips (D-MN-03), Mark Pocan (D-WI-02), Mike Quigley (D-IL-05), John Rose (R-TN-06), Bobby L. Rush (D-IL-01), Bradley Schneider (D-IL-10), Jason Smith (R-MO-08), Pete Stauber (R-MN-08), Bryan Steil (R-WI-01), Tom Tiffany (D-WI-07), Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14), and Steve Cohen (R-TN-09).
Full text of today’s letter is available here and below:
December 9, 2021
Dear Assistant Secretary Pinkman:
As the Administration begins the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), we write to urge the prioritization of funding for construction of the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP) on the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) using the $2.5 billion provided in the IIJA for inland waterways infrastructure projects.
The regional and national economic benefits of NESP are significant, which is why the project was included in the December 2020 Inland and Intracoastal Waterways Twenty-Year Capital Investment Strategy (CIS) developed by the Corps and the Inland Waterways User Board (IWUB). The IIJA specifically recommends that funding priority shall be given to projects included in the CIS. The CIS recommends that Tiers A and B construction projects should be funded to completion, including NESP’s Lock and Dam 25 and LaGrange Lock (Tier A) and Lock and Dam 24 (Tier B). These projects have been vetted through a collaborative process between the Corps and the navigation industry, and there is strong support among both the navigation and agriculture industries for their construction. In fact, a number of farmer organizations have recently offered $1 million of their own funds to get NESP started, and the navigation industry voluntarily sought and achieved a 45 percent increase in their commercial diesel user fee several years ago in part to help advance NESP construction.
NESP addresses the needs of both navigation infrastructure improvements and ecosystem restoration into an integrated, multi-purpose program. NESP’s ecosystem restoration would benefit riverine and riparian habitats throughout the UMRS. Specifically, NESP will modify dam operations to restore natural river level variability, backwater and island habitat, and side-channel reconnections, among other projects. Collectively, these restoration activities will help ensure that birds, fish, and other wildlife continue to thrive in their natural habitats in and along the UMRS.
Construction of 1,200-foot lock chambers at seven strategic locations on the UMRS will create almost 50 million person-hours of living wage construction jobs. A 2019 study released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that rebuilding NESP locks would inject $72 billion additional dollars into the nation’s GDP.
Following the 2020 CIS including NESP construction will bring immediate financial and environmental benefits throughout the system that will reverberate through the economy. Therefore, we strongly urge your adherence to the CIS developed by the Corps and the IWUB by funding Lock and Dam 25, LaGrange, and Lock and Dam 24 to completion in the upcoming IIJA spend plan.
Sincerely,
-30-