AAPA Says Budget Bill Targets Port Infrastructure Enhancements
The omnibus spending bill released by Congress on Dec. 16 would provide “significant funds” to enhance infrastructure at U.S. ports, with the largest proposed increases being for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Navigation Program and the Environmental Protection Agency’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grants program, the American Association of Port Authorities said (here). “AAPA welcomes the significant increase in the Corps navigation program—the House-Senate conference agreement Hits the Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) Target of $1.22 billion, increases navigation construction funding, includes new study and construction starts and $25 million for the Donor and Energy Transfer Port program that was established in the Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) of 2014 to provide more HMT equity,” AAPA President Kurt Nagle said in a statement. “Additionally, we were pleased to see that the conference agreement approved up to seven new navigation planning studies and six new navigation construction starts for America’s 21st century maritime infrastructure."
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The budget agreement includes $2.6 billion for Corps coastal navigation projects and studies, and seeks to increase DERA grants from roughly $17 million to $50 million, while discretionary grants for the Transportation Infrastructure Generating Economic Recovery program and DHS port security guards will stay the same as current levels, at $500 million and $100 million, respectively.