House committee approves FY2012 Energy & Water Appropriations bill

Yesterday, the House Appropriations Committee held a markup to approve the funding bill for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, and Department of Energy for fiscal year 2012, which begins on October 1, 2011.  The next step for the bill is a vote on the House floor.

As we previously reported, the House proposes overall funding for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers of $4.768B, an $88M reduction from FY2011 enacted levels, but a $195M increase over the Administration's FY2012 budget. Corps funding appears to be on a downward trend; $5.4B was appropriated for the Corps by Congress for FY2010.

PNWA's project funding

All of PNWA's supported navigation projects that were included in the President's budget are retained in the House bill.  Most reflect the slight funding reduction that has been applied to nearly every project in the nation, though a few were kept whole.  To view our updated FY2012 supported Corps projects with all House numbers reflected, please click here.  PNWA's document will continue to be updated when the Senate creates its bill, as well as any changes provided by regional Corps officials regarding navigation capabilities at projects our members support.

Earmarks vs. "Additional funding"

The bill that was approved by the Committee yesterday was accompanied by report language and tables, which provide details regarding proposed funding levels for projects that had been included in the President's budget.  In a typical year, the House would have the opportunity to add funding to projects outlined in the President's budget, and add projects that were left out of the budget.  With the earmark ban in place, this is not possible. 

Instead, House appropriators directed funding only to projects included in the President's budget, most of which were given a "haircut" by the Committee.  The savings from this across-the-board haircut enabled appropriators to set up general pots of additional money in the General Investigations (studies), Construction, and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) accounts.  The Committee has included criteria the Corps must follow in determining which projects to fund out of these general pots of money.  After the bill is enacted into law, the Corps would have 45 days to submit their final spending plan back to the Committee, including project rankings based on the criteria.  It remains to be seen if the Senate will take a similar approach.  This is comparable to the "work plan" exercise recently completed by the Corps for FY2011.  Following are the general pots of funding that are proposed by the House:

Additional investigations: $3,650,000

Additional navigation construction: $118,400,000

Additional O&M: $123,313,000

Small waterways

When referencing the "Additional O&M" funding that is proposed, the Committee included language recognizing the importance of small harbors and waterways to regional and local economies. The report noted that "while federal activities must be focused on the greatest national benefits, especially in this tight budgetary climate, the Corps should give consideration to the needs of these smaller projects, particularly those with national defense or public health and safety importance, in order to develop a reasonable and equitable allocation under this account."  PNWA has been working with the Northwest Senate delegation to advocate for inclusion of similar language in support of these smaller, "low use" ports.  It is conceivable that some PNWA-supported small waterway projects that were unfunded in the President's budget could be funded through the "Additional O&M" pot, provided the Senate takes the same approach.

Continuing Authorities Program (CAP)

No new funding has been provided for the Continuing Authorities Program, accompanied by strong language directing the Corps to execute carryover funds from previous fiscal years.

Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF)

The Committee noted that the HMTF will have an estimated balance of more than $6.1 billion at the beginning of fiscal year 2012. The report also noted the Administration's suggestion in the budget that other activities could be funded out of the HMTF.  We were pleased to see "the Committee strongly opposes any attempt to divert this revenue from the purposes for which it was collected, namely maintenance dredging."  View PNWA's fact sheet on the HMTF here .

We look forward to another successful year of partnership with the Northwest Congressional delegation, Corps Headquarters, the Northwestern Division and the Portland, Seattle and Walla Walla Districts in working to achieve the highest funding levels possible for Northwest water projects.  Please contact us with any questions you may have.

Floodplain mapping & levee certification

The Committee acknowledged that communities around the nation have been concerned with FEMA's recent floodplain mapping efforts and their effects on levee certification.  To address these concerns, the Committee "supports a concerted effort by the Corps to provide proactive information on levees within its jurisdiction and to be an active partner with communities around the nation as they seek to certify their levees by producing an inventory of all levees, both federal and non-federal, within the next year."  The Committee also encourages the Corps to develop a proposal to address any issues preventing their ability to provide communities with levee certification assistance. 

PNWA staff contact: Kristin Meira