{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://boyle.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressmen-push-us-department-defense-increase-funding-water", "Congressmen Push U.S. Department of Defense to Increase Funding for Water Contamination Correction Efforts", "2016-09-22", "2016", "2016-09", "Democrat", "House", "PA", "Brendan Boyle", "B001296", "boyle.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Congressmen Brendan Boyle (D-PA), Patrick Meehan (R-PA.) and Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA) met today with the U.S. Department of Defense\u2019s (DOD) point-person for PFC water contamination, Maureen Sullivan, Director of Environmental Management for the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense Installations and Environment. \u00a0 Sullivan is overseeing the DOD\u2019s response to PFC contamination from firefighting foams nationwide. \u00a0The Congressmen discussed their recent requests made of the DOD regarding communities surrounding the former Naval Air Warfare Center Warminster, former Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove, and Horsham Air Guard Station in Pennsylvania.\u00a0\nThe congressional trio is pushing the Navy and the Air National Guard to provide additional funding governing the remediation effort. Specific issues addressed include costs for additional filtration systems on public and private wells as needed, infrastructure improvements required to deliver clean, safe drinking water from nearby water authorities, and funding to offset water rate increases experienced by local customers. Rate hikes are attributed directly to costs incurred to mitigate the contamination and provide clean drinking water to residents in affected areas. \u00a0All three congressmen feel it is the Navy\u2019s responsibility to shoulder that financial burden, not the water utilities or their customers.\nIn addition to costs of water purchases, the three Pennsylvania congressmen also demanded action by the Navy on recent requests they\u2019ve made regarding funding of blood tests, health studies. Recently, Congressmen Boyle, Meehan and Fitzpatrick and Senators Casey and Toomey asked the Navy to provide health screenings for Horsham and Warminster residents. \u00a0In response, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy Karnig Ohannessian explained that, after consultation with the CDC\u2019s ATSDR, blood testing was not advisable in these communities. The Congressmen also hosted an August health expert panel discussion in Horsham.\nDuring the meeting, the congressmen also requested an update on the DOD\u2019s plans for addressing firefighting foam contamination nationwide, as well as their legislation to clarify the DOD\u2019s authority to fund blood testing and health studies in impacted communities like the ones they represent.\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://boyle.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressmen-push-us-department-defense-increase-funding-water"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6216840595006943, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}