Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced Tuesday “a wide range of investments that will benefit Oregon” in the fiscal year 2021 package of spending bills that passed the Senate late Monday and headed to the president, to be signed into law.
Taken together, the investments announced by the senators impact virtually all communities in every corner of the state, addressing some of Oregonians’ biggest challenges.
The provisions highlighted include only a fraction of those in the omnibus package that benefit Oregon, including health care, education, science and conservation, and more, the pair said in a news release, which continues below:
“These bills include key investments to create jobs in the woods and reduce wildfire risk. They support stakeholders working on collaborative water solutions so family farms have the irrigation water they need to make it to the next generation. They will create new housing where it’s desperately needed, help modernize infrastructure without burdening ratepayers, support port dredging on the coast, and keep small airports open for business,” dijo Merkley. “Government is supposed to be how all of us—We the People—come together to solve problems and build a better future, and I’m trying to make sure Oregonians’ voices and priorities are reflected in our investment decisions.”
“Oregonians in every nook and cranny of our state are hurting from the devastating blows delivered in 2020. I’ve heard their concerns throughout this challenging year over Zoom, virtual town halls and socially distant conversations, and I’m glad to report this bill will open doors for new jobs, housing, water solutions for small farms, and healthier and safer communities in our state—during a time when we need it most,” dijo Wyden. “Our efforts won’t stop here. The fight for a secure and healthy future for every Oregonian continues.”
Merkley es el único miembro del Congreso de Oregón de cualquier cámara desde el Senador Mark Hatfield hace una generación que se desempeñó en el Comité de Asignaciones, considerado uno de los más poderosos del Capitolio. Se unió al comité en 2013 para que Oregón tuviera una voz fuerte en las decisiones sobre las inversiones que nuestra nación debería hacer.
U.S. Department of Interior funding includes support for wildfire management, following another year of unprecedented blazes, as well as support for Land and Water Conservation Fund projects all across Oregon, through the Ley del Gran Aire Libre Americano:
- Gestión de incendios forestales: In anticipation of the next fire season, the bill includes $3.74 billion for fire suppression at the Forest Service and Department of the Interior. The U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management received significant increases of an additional $25 million and $25.9 million, respectively, for hazardous fuels reduction—which makes forests far more resilient to wildfires—bringing the total funding level to $689.9 million. Fiscal year 2020 was the first year that the bipartisan “fire borrowing fix” went into effect; this fiscal year, $2.35 billion of additional funds are available for fire suppression and other priorities within the Interior bill.
- Restauración y colaboración de la salud forestal: The bill provides $40 million for the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program (CFLRP). With the addition of the new CFLRP project in October, Oregon has three active CFLR projects: Northern Blues Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program, Southern Blues Restoration Coalition Collaborative Landscape Restoration Project, Deschutes Collaborative Forest Project, and Lakeview Collaborative Landscape Restoration Project.
- Conservación del agua y la vida silvestre de la cuenca de Klamath: In continued efforts toward a long-term solution in the Klamath Basin, the bill maintains the increase that Merkley secured last year, providing $6.5 million to support strategies to restore fish habitat and scale up ongoing efforts to restore healthy populations of shortnose and Lost River suckers. The bill also maintains the additional $5 million in funding that Merkley secured for habitat restoration in advance of the removal of Klamath River dams.
- Pago en Lugar de Impuestos (PILT): El proyecto de ley incluye $515 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. Estos fondos se destinan a los condados de Oregón que tienen grandes extensiones de tierra federal, que no pagan impuestos sobre la propiedad. La inversión aprobada por el Congreso es de $73 millones por encima del pedido del presidente.
- Infraestructura de agua: Programas de préstamo de infraestructura crítica de agua bajo el Ley de la Autoridad de Innovación para el Financiamiento de la Infraestructura del Agua (WIFIA) received $65 million to leverage billions of dollars in investments, such as the new projects in Hillsboro and Portland. Merkley authored the WIFIA program in 2012, working to ensure public drinking water and wastewater infrastructure are well-maintained—critical for public health and safety, strong local businesses, population growth, and clean rivers and aquifers. WIFIA was passed into law as part of the 2014 Ley de Desarrollo de Recursos Hídricos.
- Programas tribales: The Indian Health Service, which provides health care to thousands of Oregon Tribal members, received $6.3 billion, $189 million more than fiscal year 2020. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Bureau of Indian Education received $3.4 billion, an increase of $174 million to the fiscal year 2020 level. The BIA funding includes $1.5 million for Columbia River Treaty sites, advancing the ongoing effort to improve tribal housing at the site.
- Fondo de Conservación de Tierras y Aguas (LWCF): El proyecto de ley prevé $900 millones, como exige la Ley del Gran Aire Libre Americano, which Merkley and Wyden helped pass into law this summer. For Oregon, that means projects will be funded at an estimated: $2.5 million for the Spence Mountain Forest Legacy project in Southern Oregon; $3.3 million for the Wasson Forest project in Siuslaw National Forest in Western Oregon; $2.18 million Crooked River Gorge in Ochoco National Forest in Central Oregon; and $1.1 million for the Elk Creek project in Wallowa Whitman National Forest in Eastern Oregon. For over 50 years the program has been the main source of funding for federal land and water acquisitions. Acquiring and protecting public lands not only provides environmental and recreational benefits, but also creates jobs in the tourism, recreation, timber, fishing, and other natural resource sectors.
- Preparación para terremotos: The bill includes $85 million for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to support regional earthquake initiatives, including $25.7 million for the West Coast ShakeAlert early warning project. The bill also encourages the USGS to continue the development of a system for Cascadia that will help prepare for and mitigate the negative human and economic impacts of a major seismic event.
The Energy and Water bill includes vital funding for Oregon’s small ports on the coast and irrigators across the state:
- Pequeños Puertos y Navegación de Cuerpos de Ejército: The program, which is vital to help Oregon ports pay for dredging and other necessary infrastructure projects, received $580 million for deep-draft harbor and channel improvements, $60 million for inland waterways, $41 million for navigation maintenance, and $65 million for small ports, which supports the small ports that are the lifeblood of Oregon’s coastal economy.
- Conservación del agua y restauración del hábitat: The WaterSmart program received a $21million increase, to $55 million, to fund projects that will help irrigation districts comply with the Endangered Species Act. The WaterSmart program has supported the collaborative process that is underway within Central Oregon to conserve water, improve habitat for endangered steelhead and the spotted frog, and keep Central Oregon family farms in business.
- Expansión de las energías renovables: The bill includes $110 million—a $10 million increase—for wind energy and $10 million for distributed wind. The bill also includes $150 million for water power research, which will support ongoing research at OSU, and $273.5 million for solar power programs.
The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development bill includes support for affordable housing and homelessness services—which are of particular importance as the state grapples with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic:
- Subvenciones en bloque para el desarrollo comunitario: The bill includes $3.5 billion for the Community Development Block Grant Program. This program funds vital housing rehabilitation, supportive services, public improvements and economic development projects in communities across Oregon and the nation while encouraging local investment.
- Vivienda asequible: As rural and urban communities across Oregon continue to experience housing crises, the bill includes additional funding for affordable housing programs for some of Oregon’s most vulnerable people—low-income families, seniors, and people with disabilities. Merkley led 37 of his colleagues, including Wyden, in a successful effort to provide an additional $895 million to support continuing rental assistance for 1.2 million low-income households. Funding for housing programs that benefit the elderly and people with disabilities were also preserved.
- Vivienda Rural: El Programa de Oportunidades de Autoayuda para la Propiedad de Vivienda (SHOP) y el Programa de Creación de Capacidad Rural recibieron $10 millones y $5 millones, respectivamente. SHOP proporciona fondos para constructores de viviendas sin fines de lucro, como Habitat for Humanity, para cubrir la compra de terrenos y los costos de infraestructura. Los fondos de Capacidad Rural están destinados a desarrollar la capacidad de las organizaciones sin fines de lucro de viviendas rurales de bajos ingresos al proporcionar capacitación, información, asistencia técnica y financiamiento.
- Subsidios de asistencia para personas sin hogar: The bill includes $3 billion for Homeless Assistance Grants, a $179 million increase that will benefit organizations across Oregon. Within that appropriation, rapid rehousing programs for victims of domestic violence received $52 million; homeless youth programs received $82 million; and Emergency Solutions Grants—particularly important to the Portland metro area—received $290 million to support street outreach, emergency shelter, homelessness prevention, rapid re-housing assistance.
- Programa de sociedades de inversión HOME: The bill includes $1.35 billion for the program to provide states and localities with flexible resources to respond to their affordable housing challenges, including rental housing and paths to homeownership for low-income families.
- HUD-Vivienda de Apoyo para Asuntos de Veteranos: The program received $40 million to provide new rental assistance vouchers for homeless veterans, along with case management and clinical services. These vouchers have been critical to reducing veterans’ homelessness by 49 percent since 2010.
- Programa de subvenciones de inversión de capital: The bill includes nearly $2 billion for the program, which provides funding for major transit investments that support sustainable transportation and reduced congestion in cities like Portland, Eugene and Salem.
- Subvenciones CONSTRUIR: Formerly known as TIGER, the program received a $1 billion investment for 2021. This critical transportation grants program has helped fund projects across Oregon such as the Hood River-White Salmon Interstate Bridge replacement project.
- Servicio Aéreo Esencial y Torres Contract: The bill includes $142 million for the Essential Air Service. The Essential Air Service program supports flights between the City of Pendleton and Portland International Airport, a vital connection to support economic development across Eastern Oregon. Additionally, the bill increases funding for FAA Contract Towers to $172.8 million. There are six contract towers across Oregon, and this funding ensures their continued operation.
Additionally, the omnibus package includes renewable energy and conservation provisions that the senators fought for:
- Marine Energy Research and Development Act: The package includes Wyden and Merkley’s bill, which reauthorizes marine renewable energy programs at the Department of Energy (DOE). Those programs include the national marine renewable energy research, development and demonstration centers found around the country, including one operated by Oregon State University. The legislation also directs the DOE to research ways to build a stable marine energy supply chain in the United States, as well as ways to ensure marine energy development does not interfere with ocean navigation, fisheries and critical infrastructure such as undersea cables.
- Water for Conservation and Farming Act: The package also includes key elements of Wyden and Merkley’s bill, including provisions to:
- Create opportunities, through the Community Watershed Management Program, for disadvantaged communities, primarily in rural areas, to work with the Department of the Interior to plan conservation projects that improve drinking water quality and supply;
- Establish an aquatic ecosystem restoration program at the Department of the Interior at $15 million annually for 5 years that will help fund projects to improve the health of fisheries, wildlife or aquatic habitat; and
- Increase funding for the WaterSMART program by $150 million, and allow non-profit organizations—in addition to farmers and ranchers—to access this additional money.
Earlier, the two lawmakers announced the details of a Senate-passed fiscal year 2021 agriculture spending bill they said will benefit Oregon’s farms and families.
That news release continues in full below:
“In every corner of our state, I’ve heard about the need for investments in our farms and rural industries, affordable housing, and good-paying jobs—especially as the coronavirus crisis’ toll on our health and economy continues to deepen,” said Merkley, who who serves as the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture and rural development and co-authored the agriculture appropriations bill.
“Luché arduamente para garantizar que esos conocimientos, y las ideas y prioridades específicas que los habitantes de Oregón compartieron conmigo, se incluyan en este proyecto de ley, para que podamos fortalecer la vitalidad de nuestras comunidades y seguir entregando los productos agrícolas de clase mundial que se conoce a Oregón. para."
“Building the strongest possible quality of life throughout Oregon requires robust investment to support signature job-creating state industries such as agriculture and fishing, while also ensuring rural residents have housing they can afford,” Wyden said. “I’m glad this bill helps to achieve all those goals that Oregonians have shared with me on Zoom calls, virtual town halls and socially distanced conversations during this most challenging year.”
Merkley es el único miembro del Congreso de Oregón de cualquier cámara desde el Senador Mark Hatfield hace una generación que se desempeñó en el Comité de Asignaciones, considerado uno de los más poderosos del Capitolio. Se unió al comité en 2013 para que Oregón tuviera una voz fuerte en las decisiones sobre las inversiones que nuestra nación debería hacer.
Los elementos clave para beneficiar a los habitantes de Oregón en el proyecto de ley de gastos son:
Investigación sobre la exposición al humo de la uva de vino: La temporada de incendios forestales sin precedentes de este año cubrió gran parte del estado de Oregón con un humo denso y peligroso, que ha tenido un impacto significativo en la cosecha de uvas para vino de Oregón. Para comprender mejor los desafíos que enfrentan los viticultores de Oregón, el proyecto de ley incluye $3.5 millones para la investigación de uvas afectadas por el humo en la Universidad Estatal de Oregón (OSU) y otras universidades de la costa oeste, sobre la base de $2 millones asegurados en el ciclo de asignaciones anterior.
Vivienda Rural: El proyecto de ley incluye $1.41 mil millones para asistencia de alquiler y $40 millones para vales de servicio de vivienda rural, que ayudarán a abordar la crisis de vivienda urgente que enfrentan las comunidades rurales de Oregón.
Desarrollo Rural: El proyecto de ley protege la financiación de una serie de programas de desarrollo rural del USDA, incluidos los programas de desarrollo empresarial y vivienda rural que el presidente Trump propuso eliminar. Estos programas generan miles de millones de dólares en inversiones en las zonas rurales de Estados Unidos cada año.
Área Escénica Nacional: El proyecto de ley incluye $2 millones para ayudar a las comunidades rurales de Oregón a promover el desarrollo económico a través de las Juntas de Inversiones de Oregón y Washington, completando un compromiso de $10 millones que se autorizó cuando se creó el Área Escénica Nacional Columbia River Gorge.
Salud del suelo: El proyecto de ley incluye $1.5 millones para el establecimiento de un Centro de Investigación de Carbono del Suelo en OSU enfocado en la investigación de las prácticas actuales y futuras de producción de tierras secas para aumentar la rentabilidad y el rendimiento, conservar el suelo, mejorar el almacenamiento de agua del suelo y promover el secuestro de carbono para la salud del suelo. .
Conservación del agua y restauración del hábitat: The bill includes a $30 million for the Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations in Oregon. Funding is included for irrigation districts that need to improve water efficiency and conservation or otherwise improve fish and wildlife habitat. This program is providing critical funding for the collaborative processes underway across the state working to conserve water and keep Oregon’s family farms in business while improving the habitats of endangered species. Construction has begun on several key projects to address water resource interests in Central Oregon, including in the Tumalo Irrigation District and Central Oregon Irrigation District, and funding announced today will allow further expansion across the state, such as the East Fork Irrigation District project that has broken ground in Hood River.
Mariscos del Pacífico: El proyecto de ley incluye $3.5 millones de fondos federales para investigación de vanguardia para mejorar la productividad, la sostenibilidad y la salud del sistema agrícola de mariscos del Pacífico. Esta investigación es fundamental para los esfuerzos por mitigar los impactos del caos climático en la salud y las economías de las comunidades costeras de Oregón.
Ganadería de pastizales occidentales: El proyecto de ley incluye $3 millones para el establecimiento de un centro de ganadería de precisión de pastizales occidentales para desarrollar estrategias de nutrición basadas en precisión para el ganado basado en pastizales, así como estrategias de gestión de ganado y pastizales basadas en tecnología para optimizar la salud y la productividad de los pastizales occidentales. la ganadería y el ecosistema de los pastizales. Esta financiación se dividirá entre las universidades de concesión de tierras en Oregón, Montana y Wisconsin.
Investigación Agrícola: El Servicio de Investigación Agrícola recibió un aumento de $77 millones en fondos para investigación de vanguardia para mejorar la productividad, la sostenibilidad y la salud de los sistemas agrícolas de la nación. Además, Merkley pudo obtener fondos para programas clave de investigación agrícola de Oregón, incluidos fondos para la investigación del patógeno Muerte súbita del roble que azota la costa sur. Otras victorias en la financiación de la investigación incluyen la investigación de la alfalfa, la cebada, los árboles frutales, la pera, el trigo, el lúpulo, el cáñamo, la manzana, los mariscos, las frutas pequeñas, las algas, la floricultura, los viveros y la ecología de los pastizales.
Productos de madera en masa: El programa de productos de madera avanzados del USDA recibió $3,5 millones para trabajar en productos de madera en masa que mejorarían la investigación de vanguardia de la Universidad Estatal de Oregón.
EBT de verano: El proyecto de ley continúa financiando el programa Summer EBT en $42 millones. Este programa ha proporcionado la nutrición que tanto necesitan las familias de Oregón durante los meses de verano cuando las escuelas no están en sesión.
Cuerpo de alimentos: El proyecto de ley proporciona un aumento de $1 millones para el aprendizaje del servicio de alimentos y agricultura. Este programa ayuda a mejorar los recursos educativos para una alimentación saludable, especialmente entre los niños.
Cáñamo: El proyecto de ley proporciona $16.5 millones para implementar las disposiciones de la Ley Agrícola de 2018 que permiten el cultivo de cáñamo comercial, que se puede usar para hacer de todo, desde telas y cuerdas hasta aceite y jabón. El cáñamo ya se ha convertido rápidamente en uno de los principales cultivos comerciales de Oregón, y muchos creen que tiene el potencial de generar más de $1 mil millones en ventas a Oregón en los próximos años, pero solo con un marco regulatorio justo y razonable.
Además, la declaración explicativa destaca varias inquietudes planteadas por los productores de cáñamo de Oregón sobre las normas de prueba y muestreo propuestas por el USDA, y ordena al USDA que se asegure de que la regla final para el Programa de cáñamo doméstico se base en la ciencia y garantice una regulación justa y razonable. marco para los productores comerciales de cáñamo. El proyecto de ley también:
· Extends the 2014 hemp pilot program until January 1, 2022, providing hundreds of Oregon farmers clear operating guidelines as the USDA smooths out regulatory challenges;
· Encourages the USDA to study the usage and impact of energy and water in hemp cultivation and to make recommendations on best practices and standards;
· Directs the agency to establish and maintain a hemp germplasm repository for hemp breeding purposes;
· Provides $2 million for the agency to conduct regionally-driven research, development, and stakeholder engagement to improve understanding of how to effectively integrate hemp into existing agricultural cropping, processing, and marketing systems; and
· Directs the USDA to work with institutions under its jurisdiction to provide access to guaranteed loans for hemp producers and businesses.
Administración de Alimentos y Medicamentos (FDA): El proyecto de ley proporciona $3.2 mil millones en fondos discrecionales para la FDA. Dado que la FDA sigue estando al frente de la lucha contra el COVID-19, el proyecto de ley garantiza que la agencia siga teniendo los fondos adecuados para responder a esta necesidad urgente. El proyecto de ley también incluye $5 millones adicionales para que la FDA continúe trabajando en una vía regulatoria para el CBD, un producto derivado del cáñamo.
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