Lake Erie funding safe — for now
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump may not think cleaning up the Great Lakes is important, but those who control the federal purse strings apparently do.
The government spending deal that the House and Senate struck late Sunday includes $300 million for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, Ohio Sens. Sherrod Brown and Rob Portman said Monday.
Before Lake Erie supporters sigh in relief, though, they must remember the agreement spends money only through the end of September, when the current fiscal year ends. Trump’s fiscal 2018 budget — which would eliminate funding for the program altogether — still hasn’t been considered. The Trump administration had suggested only $50 million in cuts for the Great Lakes program this fiscal year.
But the fact that Congress agreed to restore the funding this year, the senators argue, is a sign that the program still has plenty of support in Congress.
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, launched in 2010, aims to clean up the Great Lakes, reduce the nutrient runoff that contributes to the growth of algal blooms and help control the spread of invasive species.
Democrat Brown said the investment will mean “investing in local jobs and ensuring clean drinking water for Ohio,” and he emphasized that Democrats and Republicans alike supported the program.
Republican Portman said, “The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has been an effective public- private program protecting the lake from threats like harmful algae and invasive species like Asian carp.
“When the Obama administration tried to cut funding for this program, I fought that proposal at every turn until we fully funded it each year and then we extended the program for five years. I will continue to work with my bipartisan colleagues to protect this program in the future.”
The spending agreement also includes a slight increase for the Appalachian Regional Commission, going from $ 146 million to $ 152 million, according to budget documents. That money includes $ 70 million in base funding, an additional $ 50 million to help distressed coal communities diversify their economic base and $ 10 million for high-speed broadband deployment.
Trump’s budget for next year would zero out money for the commission, a 1960s-era program to help the economy in Appalachia, which includes numerous counties in eastern and southern Ohio.
The spending bill also will include more than $ 160 million in federal dollars to fight the opioid crisis. The money includes $10 million for statewide anti- heroin task forces as well as funding for treatment and prevention.
Congress will vote on the $ 1 trillion spending bill — which pays for the government to remain open through September — later this week.