VIDEO/PHOTO: Ernst Tours Cedar Rapids Flood Control Progress, Meets with Local Leaders
As a national guard Soldier, Ernst responded to the Cedar Rapids flood; as a U.S. Senator, Ernst helped secure funding, updates for flood mitigation.
CEDAR RAPIDS – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, today joined representatives from the City of Cedar Rapids, Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, and local businesses for a tour of the flood wall under construction, and a discussion on flood protection and its impact on the community.
The roundtable discussion comes after the Ernst-supported Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) passed through the Senate in July. WRDA is a biannual package that authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to carry out water resource projects. This year’s bill includes a provision, led by Senators Ernst and Grassley, to update the Cedar Rapids’ flood risk management system.
Click HERE or the image above for photos and videos from her visit.
“As a former Iowa National Guardsman, I was on the ground to respond to the devastating flood in 2008. When Iowans first elected me to the U.S. Senate, I prioritized support for the Cedar Rapids community, in particular the flood mitigation system. After years of hard work, and with the help of so many folks in Cedar Rapids, in 2018 we were able to secure funding for the flood protection and risk mitigation systems,” said Senator Ernst. “Since then, these important systems have helped to bring economic opportunity and a better quality of life for the community, but we know there’s more work to be done. That’s why in this year’s water resources bill, Senator Grassley and I worked to secure support for updates to the flood management system. With our support, this bipartisan bill has passed the Senate, and we hope to see it pass the House and be on the president’s desk very soon.”
Following years of relentless efforts, in 2018 Ernst helped secure $117 million in federal funding for the Cedar Rapids flood mitigation project. This funding came more than 10 years after record-breaking flooding in the city caused approximately $5.4 billion in damages. In 2019, Ernst joined Cedar Rapids officials and others for the groundbreaking of the Cedar Rapids flood mitigation project.
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