NSPS has joined scores of organizations calling on the U.S. Senate to promptly pass a Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), authorizing projects and programs of the civil works branch of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The April 19th letter NSPS cosigned calls on the Senate to move forward on S. 601, reauthorizing WRDA, as soon as practical.
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works passed a WRDA reauthorization bill on March 20. The next step is consideration of the bill by the full Senate. S. 601, the "Water Resources Development Act" would reform and authorize U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil works programs and policies related to navigation, flood risk management, recreation, infrastructure and environmental stewardship, creating a significant demand for surveying and mapping.
Presently, the Corps of Engineers has a backlog of more than 1,000 authorized studies and construction projects. Due to funding shortages and current programmatic directives, critical new investments along the inland waterways and in marine ports are being delayed.
Furthermore, those projects that do receive funds move slowly as severely limited resources are splintered across multiple priorities. America’s inland waterways and marine ports are the backbone of the American marine transportation infrastructure system and are vital to American competitiveness and economic growth.
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