Press Releases

Yesterday, the House passed the bipartisan Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), which authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to carry out water infrastructure activities for our Nation. Rep Jack Bergman issued the following statement:

"This legislation focuses on key concerns affecting the navigability as well as the preservation of our Great Lakes. From addressing the maintenance backlogs along our Great Lakes waterways to taking the next steps to stop Asian carp, this year’s WRDA bill is good news for the First District of Michigan and our entire Nation," said Rep. Bergman.

The WRDA bill included key legislation and priorities advocated for by Rep. Jack Bergman, including:

- Securing an increased amount of Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund resources for the Great Lakes Navigation System, a waterway spanning the Great Lakes consisting hundreds of channels, breakwaters, jetties, harbors as well as the MacArthur and Poe locks;
- Authorizing the Brandon Road Lock and Dam project to stop the advancement of Asian Carp;
- Approval of the Great Lakes Coastal Resiliency Study; and
- Expanding the study of ways to mitigate shoreline erosion and high water. 

In May, Rep. Bergman wrote a letter to Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves requesting "the inclusion of legislation to modify the existing Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) funding allocation for the Great Lakes Navigation System (GLNS)."

Rep. Bergman additionally noted, "The GLNS has unfunded backlogs of $320 million for maintenance of navigation structures (such as jetties and breakwaters) and $150 million for maintenance dredging. This requested legislative change is needed to ensure that these GLNS backlogs are reduced, not increased, as future HMTF resources are allocated."

You can read the full letter and press release here