Boustany Leads Push to Maintain Harbor Maintenance Funding through FY17
Rep. Charles Boustany, R-La., is leading an effort alongside 121 of his House colleagues to urge the House Appropriations Committee to maintain the current funding level of $1.3 billion for the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) in its fiscal 2017 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. In a letter (here) to the leaders on the House Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee and House Appropriations Committee, the lawmakers say that the White House’s budget request estimates fiscal 2016 HMTF revenue at about $1.7 billion, which is $225 million less than anticipated.
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Meeting the Water Resources Reform and Development Act HMTF target of 71 percent allocated to harbor maintenance for fiscal 2017 means $1.14 billion would go to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), $122 million less than the fiscal 2016-appropriated amount. But because that lower allocation would be inconsistent with the nation’s needs and “Congress’ intent” in enacting the law, the lawmakers said annual HMTF funding should not dip until Congress achieves “full use” of HMTF annual revenue, at which point the annual revenue amount would determine increases or decreases in harbor maintenance funding. In addition to USACE’s portion of harbor maintenance, HMTF also funds the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. and CBP, through non-Energy and Water appropriations bills.
“Enough Harbor Maintenance Tax (HMT) revenue is collected each year to meet the nation’s annual authorized harbor maintenance needs for harbors of all sizes,” the letter states. “Unfortunately, harbors and navigation channels are getting narrower and shallower due to accumulating sediment, dredged material disposal area capacity is declining, and harbor structures such as breakwaters and jetties are deteriorating due to inadequate funding.” The letter claims that, as shallower channels continue to operate in the U.S., the chances of a vessel accident or environmental catastrophe increase, and the costs of U.S. imports and exports rise, making it tougher for U.S. businesses to compete globally.