Through the Highway Bill, which we have been following over the last few weeks and months, the House of Representatives is attempting to un-freeze funds from the Harbor Maintenance Fund. The Administration has frozen these funds, which have historically been managed by the Army Corps of Engineers and have been used to dredge larger ports.
Late last week, several Senators crafted a letter urging the Senate to include funding to dredge smaller, seldom-used ports and harbors that fall below the threshold of the Corps. This is an important issue.
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Washington) has also issued a press release on the letter. You can read both the letter and the press release below, in addition to the letter that the Marine Retailers Association of the Americas has written and sent to the Committee on Appropriations, Energy and Water Development Subcommittee.
Read MRAA’s letter supporting dredging