As Congress Readies New Waterway Projects, Ernst Urges Iowa Priorities Be Included, Transparency About Costs
The Iowa senator questioned top officials with the Army Corps of Engineers on the upcoming Waters Resources Development Act (WRDA).
WASHINGTON—As Congress begins developing the next major water resources package, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) with primary jurisdiction over the bill, called for key Iowa priorities to be included in the measure along with her proposal to require transparency about the costs of the taxpayer-funded projects.
At yesterday’s EPW hearing, Ernst questioned top officials with the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) about the upcoming Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) and asked them to prioritize the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program in their work plan to “maintain a strong and efficient inland waterways navigation system.” Ernst explained that “Iowa has approximately 85,000 farms—95 percent of which are family owned,” stressing the importance of making American farm exports more abundant around the world.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch.
Ernst, who has long called out and fought to cut government waste, also called on the next WRDA package to include key transparency measures such as requiring the Corps to submit a report to Congress listing all projects that are either $100 million over budget or five years behind schedule.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch.
###
