Tiffany Revelle
Record-Bee staff
LAKE COUNTY ? A multi-billion dollar water bill that includes an Army Corps of Engineers project to restore 1,200 acres of wetlands and 500 acres of floodplain in Upper Lake passed with flying colors through the House of Representatives Wednesday night, according to Congressman Mike Thompson”s office.
Usually passed every other year, the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) authorizes the Army Corps of Engineers” public works projects. It includes the Middle Creek Flood Damage Reduction and Ecosystem Restoration Project. Controversy over what should continue to be the responsibility of the Corps has kept the bill from passing over the past five years.
The House and Senate each passed separate versions earlier this year, and the unified version jumped its first hurdle Wednesday in the House.
“It”s a lot farther along than it”s been before, but I”m not going to get overly excited till the president has signed it,” said county Assistant Public Works Director Bob Lossius Thursday. He said he”s cautiously optimistic, because even with a presidential signature the bill would still have to go through several years of appropriations.
Lossius estimated $46 million of that would go to the Middle Creek project. Approximately $15 million of that is non-federal funding, which the county must procure.
The next stop for the water bill is the Senate floor, which spokesperson Anne Warden said would happen within the week. She expects WRDA to be on President George W. Bush”s desk by the weekend.
