Northwest projects fare well in Corps of Engineers FY2012 work plan

Today, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released its FY2012 work plan. The work plan was a requirement written in the U.S. House and Senate conferees' report, which accompanied the omnibus spending bill enacted into law on December 23, 2011. The conferees instructed the Corps to devise a plan to spend the "additional" pots of construction, investigations, and operations & maintenance funding that were included in the bill. Nor'wester readers will remember that these national pots of funding were provided to the Corps in lieu of additional individual project funding, which would have tripped the earmark rules.

Congress directed the Corps to use job creation, economic development benefits, and several other criteria in allocating these funds. In early January, PNWA solicited economic and job data from its members for every navigation project we support. This information was supplied to the Corps' Portland, Walla Walla, and Seattle Districts, Northwestern Division, and HQ, to assist these entities as they considered which projects best fit Congress' criteria.

Below are the PNWA supported projects which will receive additional funding in the work plan:

Swinomish Channel (Port of Skagit): $2,277,000

Columbia River at the Mouth: $2,372,040

Columbia & Lower Willamette below Vancouver and Portland: $3,069,990

Columbia River between Vancouver & The Dalles: $218,790

McNary Lock and Dam: $1,085,040

Bonneville Lock and Dam: $282,150

Coos Bay (Port of Coos Bay): $297,990

Lake Washington Ship Canal (Ballard Locks): $202,950

Humboldt Harbor & Bay (Port of Humboldt Bay): $450,450

Siuslaw River (Port of Siuslaw): $133,650

Umpqua River (Port of Umpqua): $721,710

Columbia River Fish Mitigation: $2,568,000

Lower Columbia River ecosystem restoration, OR/WA: $84,000

Columbia River Fish Mitigation: $2,568,000

Elliott Bay Seawall study: $100,000

Puyallup river flood damage reduction study: $450,000

PNWA is pleased so many of our supported projects were provided additional funding in the work plan and would like to thank the Corps of Engineers and Northwest Congressional delegation for their efforts to bring additional funding to our region. PNWA will continue to keep you informed as additional information regarding the work plan is released.

Oregon's newest Member of Congress: Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici

PNWA is excited to work with Oregon's new Member from the 1st Congressional District, Suzanne Bonamici. Congresswoman Bonamici won the special election on January 31st, and was sworn into the House of Representatives yesterday. PNWA looks forward to working with her and her staff and having her join us at this year's Mission to Washington!

Transportation reauthorization update

The current SAFETEA-LU extension expires March 31st. While there is movement at the committee level in both the House and the Senate, it is expected there will be another extension, as a new transportation reauthorization bill is unlikely to become law before the end of March. The transportation reauthorization bill is S.1813, MAP-21 in the Senate and H.R.7, American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2013 in the House.

Senate update

Early this week, the Senate Finance Committee will mark up legislation to pay for the two-year, $109 billion surface transportation bill, MAP-21.  Once Finance marks up its bill on Tuesday Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has said he wants to bring the full surface transportation bill to the floor later this week.  That will involve incorporating the Finance bill, the Banking Committee's transit bill (which was marked up last Thursday), and the Commerce Committee's bills related to highway and motor carrier safety and freight into the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee bill, MAP-21.  Once the full bill does reach the floor, expect it to take at least a week to be voted on as many amendments will be offered and the Senate has to have 60 votes to pass anything. 

House update

There were three mark ups of the House surface transportation bill last week.  Now, the House Rules Committee will meet later this week to announce its process for House floor consideration next week.  It's expected to be a relatively open process with the opportunity for members to offer amendments.

Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) - H.R.104/S.412 (RAMP Act)

At this point, H.R.104, the RAMP Act is in the House's version of the transportation reauthorization, though only as a Sense of Congress. Congress' ability to make a point of order if full funding for the HMTF is not included in the Budget was removed during committee mark-up. The Senate's version, S.412 is currently not part of the Senate's reauthorization. However, Senator Levin circulated a letter last week urging Chairman Boxer and Ranking Member Inhofe to include S.412 in the transportation reauthorization. PNWA urged the NW Senators who are co-sponsors of S.412 to sign Senator Levin's letter. We will continue to advocate for full spending of annual Harbor Maintenance Tax receipts.

TIGER IV Guidelines Released

As previously reported, the timeline for the fourth round of the TIGER discretionary grant funding has been accelerated significantly. The USDOT pre-application system at www.dot.gov/tiger will open by February 13, 2012, and pre-applications must be submitted by February 20, 2012.  The grants.gov "apply" function will open on February 22 with final applications due by March 19, 2012.  TIGER IV requirements and criteria are identical to TIGER III.

Due to the accelerated schedule, grant awards will be limited to submissions that demonstrate project readiness before September 30, 2013. Eligible applicants must contact USDOT directly to have questions answered. It is also highly recommended that you contact USDOT representative Howard Hill via e-mail at TigerGrants@dot.gov or at 202-366-0301 to discuss the best way to prepare your application. PNWA will continue to keep you updated as more information about TIGER IV is released.

Interstate 5 Columbia River Crossing Project: Data sought on navigation clearance needs under Interstate 5 bridges of Columbia River and Oregon Slough of the Columbia River (North Portland Harbor)

The Interstate 5 Columbia River Crossing Project is collecting marine navigation user data for the Columbia River and Oregon Slough (or North Portland Harbor). This information will be provided to the U.S. Coast Guard as part of an application to receive a bridge permit. Individuals interested in answering questions related to needed clearances and frequencies of trips should email feedback@columbiarivercrossing.org or telephone 866-396-2726 by February 21, 2012.  Reference "navigation user data collection" when you email or telephone.

Washington TTY: 1-800-833-6384

Oregon TTY: 1-800-735-2900

For more information about the Columbia River Crossing Project: www.columbiarivercrossing.org 

Title VI Statement to Public

WSDOT and ODOT ensure full compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by prohibiting discrimination against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin or sex in the provision of benefits and services resulting from its federally assisted programs and activities. For questions regarding WSDOT's Title VI Program, you may contact the Department's Title VI Coordinator at (360) 705-7098. For questions regarding ODOT's Title VI Program, you may contact the Department's Civil Rights Office at (503) 986-4350.

Register for PNWA's upcoming events - Register by Friday, February 10th to save! 

PNWA Mission to Washington, DC 

This year's annual gathering will take place at the Madison Hotel, and will feature extremely valuable general sessions with national industry leaders and federal agency staff. PNWA is also the only organization to schedule convenient, coordinated meetings with our entire Northwest Congressional delegation. It is a truly unique lobbying effort with every Member of Congress from our region - make your plans to participate today!  

For an example of PNWA's Mission to Washington, click here to take a look at the tremendous program that was presented in 2011! 

2012 Mission to Washington, DC

March 4-8, 2012

http://www.madisonhoteldc.com/

Online registration is also available for our three regional meetings in February 2012. These meetings will help prepare our priority issues for our annual Mission to Washington, DC, and are also a great opportunity to give and receive updates on individuation projects and regional issues. A PNWA staff report will include information on FY13 appropriations, navigation policy and projects, energy issues, environmental and regulatory issues, and the PNWA Mission to Washington. Please note that you do not need to register for the Mission to Washington to attend the Regional Meetings - these are free meetings for all members, and provide great value.

Puget Sound Regional Meeting - February 15, 2012
Moffatt & Nichol, 600 University Street, Suite 610, Seattle, WA, 11:30-2pm

Eastern Washington/Northern Idaho Regional Meeting - February 17, 2012
Port of Pasco, 1110 Osprey Point Blvd, Pasco, WA, 11:30-2pm

Lower Columbia River/OR & SW WA Coast Regional Meeting - February 21, 2012
Port of Portland, 7200 NE Airport Way, Portland, OR 12-3pm

For more information on our 2012 events, log onto our website or contact Heather Stebbings at heather.stebbings@pnwa.net.