Sangamon Sun

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On June 20, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13) joined U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (R-IL-16), Eric Sorensen (D-IL-17), Sam Graves (R-MO-06)and Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-03) in applauding the inclusion of $75 million in the Fiscal Year 2024 House Energy and Water Appropriations bill to upgrade locks and dams along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. The lawmakers submitted a request for the funding through the Community Project Funding process.

“Family farmers in Central and Southern Illinois rely on the Mississippi River to transport their commodities to the global market. But the locks and dams they depend on are nearly a century old,” said Congresswoman Budzinski. “By modernizing our inland waterway infrastructure, we can help our family farmers get their corn and soybeans to market more quickly and ensure that these critical transportation routes are sound for years to come. I’m proud to have worked on a bipartisan basis with Representatives LaHood, Sorensen, Graves and Luetkemeyer to secure $75 million to upgrade our locks and dams, and I look forward to continuing to work to bring our waterways into the 21st century.” 

Upgrading locks and dams on the Mississippi River will reduce traffic delays along waterways and increase shipping capacity by constructing new 1,200-foot locks — improving safety, efficiency and getting agricultural goods to the global market more quickly.

If passed by the full House and Senate, this funding will support the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program (NESP), a long-term program of navigation improvements and ecosystem restoration for the Upper Mississippi River System.  

This funding was requested as part of the Community Project Funding process, which allows members of Congress to designate funding for critical initiatives through the appropriations process. NESP funding is included in the House Appropriations Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies bill, one of twelve appropriations bills passed each year by Congress. The funding will go to the full Appropriations Committee for approval, then to the House floor for a final vote. 

Original source can be found here.