House Appropriations Bill Draws $1 Billion from Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund
The House Appropriations Committee proposed a $1 billion draw from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund in the committee’s bill funding energy, water and related agencies for Fiscal Year 2013, released June 17. The fund withdrawal will be used to “help…
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increase commerce through the nation’s ports and other waterways,” the Committee said in a statement (here). The entire bill allocates $32.1 billion, which is more than $965 million below President Obama’s budget request. The American Association of Port Authorities praised the harbor maintenance funding in the bill, even though annual revenue collected from the MHT for maintenance dredging is around $1.6 billion. The House bill amount is $110 million more than the Obama administration requested, and -- if approved -- would be the largest regular annual appropriation for navigation maintenance, AAPA said in a statement (here). “While still less than the need for full use of the Harbor Maintenance Tax, this funding amount in a tightly constrained budget is a positive step toward ensuring that the HMT is fully utilized to maintain our nation’s federal navigation channels at their constructed dimensions,” AAPA President Kurt Nagle said.