{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://garretgraves.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/house-passes-comprehensive-water-resources-bill", "House Passes Comprehensive Water Resources Bill", "2016-12-08", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "LA", "Garret Graves", "G000577", "garretgraves.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DC \u2013 Today in the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Garret Graves (R \u2013 South Louisiana) boosted House passage of S.612 - the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, which included Graves\u2019 provisions to reverse the US Corps of Engineers\u2019 culture of delay, expedite completion of critical flood protection projects in areas like Livingston, Ascension and East Baton Rouge Parishes, and accelerate funding toward the completion of the Comite and Amite River flood protection projects.\nS. 612 is the legislative vehicle for the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA 2016).\n\u00a0\u201cThe Corps of Engineers\u2019 is\u00a0one of the most ineffective government agencies out there,\u201d said Graves. \u201cFlood protection projects dating back decades - some of which would have lessened the severity of the devastating, flood event that ravaged Louisiana in August \u2013 don\u2019t look much different today than they did decades ago. It\u2019s inexcusable.\u201d\nGraves\u2019 amendments included in the legislation direct the Corps to accelerate $150 million in flood protection projects in Livingston, East Baton Rouge, Ascension and other parishes.\n\u201cPutting the burden of the Corps\u2019 failure on residents in these areas is unacceptable \u2013 which is essentially the case as home and business owners are stuck with the bill trying to rebuild their lives after the flooding,\u201d he added. \u201cInstead, we need to get these projects finished to lower the base flood elevation of these communities. Our amendment helps accomplish that and will provide a path forward for homeowners to get back in their homes and on the road to full recovery.\u201d\nGraves worked to hold the Corps accountable resulting in strict deadlines and reporting requirements for projects designed to mitigate coastal land loss and make our communities safer and more resilient.\n\u201cIn the state of Louisiana, we\u2019ve lost 1900 square miles of our coast,\u201d Graves continued. \u201cWe\u2019ve been waiting decades for the Corps to build projects designed to fix it, but all we get is lip service about how it\u2019s \u2018still being considered.\u2019 Meanwhile, the coast continues to disappear and our communities become increasingly vulnerable. The Corps should not take years upon years to make decisions so vital to our state.\u201d \nGraves, a leader on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, played a significant role in shaping WRDA 2016 dating back to the start of the 114th Congress and successfully fought for multiple improvements to policies impacting how the Corps delivers water resources projects.\nHighlights of Graves\u2019 impacts on WRDA 2016 include:\n Expediting the process for flood protection and coastal restoration projects.\n\tImproving local input and control of projects.\n\tDirecting the Corps to accelerate $150 million in flood protection projects across south Louisiana. \n\tExpediting wetlands mitigation.\n\tProviding the opportunity to jumpstart coastal restoration by creating new Environmental Banks in Louisiana.\n\tReducing state cost share of deepening the Mississippi River to 25%.\n\tAllowing ports to be reimbursed for dredging costs.\n\tMoving the West Shore Hurricane Protection project forward. \n Other provisions included in the bill will have significant impact in Louisiana. Things like:\u00a0\n Advancing recovery efforts for oyster banks in the Gulf.\n\tExpediting Comite and Amite flood control projects.\n\tAuthorizing the Southwest Coastal Louisiana project.\n\tAdvancing dredge plans consistent with water quality plans.\n WRDA 2016 builds on reform efforts and requires a transparent process for congressional review of proposed Corps of Engineers water resources development activities. Following the oversight and review process created in the 2014 law, WRDA 2016 authorizes infrastructure improvements that have been proposed at the local level, reviewed by the Corps according to strict congressionally established criteria, and submitted to Congress for consideration. \u00a0\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://garretgraves.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/house-passes-comprehensive-water-resources-bill"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8465209975838661, "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"}