UMRBA WRDA 2024 Letters and Supporting Materials

UMRBA submits to Congress its priorities for the 2024 Water Resources Development Act.  In particular, UMRBA calls for Congress to:

• Create a more equitable and reasonable approach to USACE non-federal cost-share project partnership agreements
• Direct USACE to follow state law for implementing water resource projects (i.e., apply for state permits)
• Authorize a study to develop long term, integrated approaches to improving flood conveyance and storage in the Upper Mississippi River System floodplain, systemically and locally
• Modify the Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) program's authority to:
  • Increase the annual authorized appropriation of UMRR’s long term resource monitoring to $25 million
  • Allow for financial support to UMRBA and the states of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin to directly participate in the program, expanding the capacity for cooperative planning and technical expertise
  • Allow for memorandums of agreement (MOAs) to govern partnership agreements with states for projects located on General Plan lands (as opposed to project partnership agreements)
• Authorize full federal funding for the remaining costs for all inland waterways construction and major rehabilitation projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) - e.g., construction of the second, 1,200-foot chamber at L&D 25