Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced Thursday the Senate Appropriations Committee, on which Merkley sits, passed an Interior Appropriations bill including key provisions to keep Oregon communities safe with clean drinking water and to prepare for the possibility of a large-scale Cascadia earthquake.
“This legislation will help fund water infrastructure projects so our schools and homes have clean water, and also make sure that Oregon is well prepared in the event of a Cascadia earthquake,” said Merkley. “We’ve seen over and over the price we pay by shortchanging our investments in our future. This bill makes important down-payments on our communities’ long-term safety.”
“Safeguarding clean water statewide and ensuring that all Oregonians are properly prepared for a Cascadia quake both rank as top priorities for public health and safety,” Wyden said. “This bill takes significant steps toward achieving those objectives that are so essential to our state’s well-being.”
Key elements of the legislation that passed the Senate Thursday that will impact Oregon include:
Clean Water Programs: $30 million for the Water Infrastructure Financing and Innovation Authority (WIFIA) that Senator Merkley has championed to help local communities finance safe drinking and wastewater infrastructure projects. This funding will help leverage $300 million in loans for water infrastructure.
In almost every town hall meeting that Senators Merkley and Wyden hold, in every corner of Oregon, they hear about the challenges that local communities are having finding funding to replace or upgrade aging water infrastructure.
Clean drinking water and modern wastewater treatment systems are critical for public health and safety, strong local businesses, population growth, and clean rivers and aquifers. Incidents like the recent crisis in Flint, Michigan or the news of what is happening in Portland schools, underscore the dangers that can result when the safety of our drinking water and state of our water infrastructure are not made a priority.
The bill also includes an increase of $113 million for the State Revolving Fund programs for water infrastructure.
Preparación para terremotos: The senators were able to secure $8.2 million for the earthquake early warning system and $500,000 for seismic stations. They were also able to insert language that calls for more research and preparation in the event of a major Cascadia earthquake.
The senators said the bill also includes key provisions that will help Oregon’s rural communities. These include funding for the Klamath basin, wildfire prevention, sage grouse habitat improvements and the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program.
“From implementing the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement, to preventing devastating wildfires across our state, to moving forward with the sage grouse collaborative effort, this legislation dramatically helps Oregon’s rural communities that are working together for a common good,” said Merkley. “This legislation will create jobs in rural Oregon, while also making key investments in collaborative efforts that improve our environment, help wildlife and strengthen the economy of rural communities.”
“This bill moves forward on multiple fronts so that Oregon can continue building toward a healthy economy and environment in every corner of our state,” Wyden said. “Putting in place the Klamath Basin agreement, taking a smarter approach to fighting wildfires, supporting the ground-breaking sage grouse collaboration and funding the PILT program add up to a comprehensive strategy of generating both jobs and income for rural Oregon.”
Key elements of the legislation that passed the Senate panel Thursday that will impact Oregon include:
Conservación del agua y la vida silvestre de la cuenca de Klamath: Se incluyen $4.5 millones para actividades para apoyar el progreso continuo hacia la resolución de disputas por el agua de la cuenca Klamath, incluidas actividades de restauración ecológica y apoyo para negociaciones de acuerdos e implementación relacionada con derechos de agua tribales y pesquerías de confianza tribales en la cuenca Klamath.
Prevención de incendios forestales: Un aumento de $15 millones y $10 millones en reducción de combustibles peligrosos con respecto al año pasado para el Servicio Forestal de EE. UU. y la Oficina de Administración de Tierras, respectivamente. Esta financiación ayudará a reducir los combustibles peligrosos en los bosques federales y evitará los incendios forestales.
Gestión de incendios forestales: El Senador Merkley también logró que se agregara una enmienda al proyecto de ley que se basa en una disposición por la que trabajó el Senador Wyden, agregando $661 millones para extinción de incendios de emergencia para que el Servicio Forestal de EE. UU. y el Departamento del Interior no tengan que pedir prestado dinero de los fondos para incendios. prevención y otros programas de gestión forestal para pagar la lucha contra incendios forestales durante esta temporada de incendios.
urogallo de las artemisas: $45 millones para actividades en el terreno para mejorar el hábitat del urogallo. Esto ayudará al esfuerzo de colaboración en el este de Oregón para continuar abordando la pérdida del hábitat del urogallo.
Pago en Lugar de Impuestos (PILT): $480 millones para el programa PILT para financiar servicios vitales para las comunidades rurales, incluida la seguridad pública, los servicios sociales, el transporte y la vivienda. Esta financiación se destina a los condados de Oregón que tienen grandes extensiones de tierra BLM, que no pagan impuestos sobre la propiedad.
Colaboración de Tierras Federales: La legislación incluye un lenguaje que alienta al Departamento del Interior y al Servicio Forestal de los EE. UU. a trabajar con los gobiernos estatales y locales, los grupos conservacionistas y otras partes interesadas para identificar formas adicionales de mejorar los programas de colaboración en tierras federales.
The bill was voted out of the Appropriations Committee Thursday. The next steps would be for the bill to be sent to the Senate floor for a full Senate vote, and eventually to be merged with a counterpart bill from the U.S. House of Representatives in order to be passed by both houses and signed into law.
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