Following Hurricane Milton’s catastrophic landfall, Governor Ron DeSantis has requested an Expedited Major Disaster Declaration to support Florida's response and recovery efforts. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), U.S. Representative Vern Buchanan (R-FL), and members...
Following Hurricane Milton’s catastrophic landfall in Florida, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined the U.S. Coast Guard to survey impacted areas across the State. Photos are courtesy of Senator Rubio’s office. Senator Rubio joins the U.S. Coast Guard for a flyover...
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host in-person Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of Senator Rubio’s...
Major Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall in Florida, bringing with it devastating storm surge, winds, and inland flooding. The Seminole Tribe of Florida should have access to the federal resources required for emergency response and recovery preparations on...
Major Hurricane Milton is forecasted to potentially hinder or obstruct the Port of Tampa Bay, which receives more than 40 percent of Florida’s petroleum products. It’s crucial for the federal government to expedite all requested measures to protect Florida’s economy...
Major Hurricane Milton is forecasted to impact Florida with devastating storm surge, winds, and inland flooding. After just being hit by Hurricane Helene, it’s crucial for the State of Florida to have the support of the federal government. U.S. Senators Marco Rubio...
Washington, D.C. — Today, on the one year anniversary of the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Storage Reservoir project being authorized by Congress, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and U.S. Representative Brian Mast (R-FL-18) urged the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to address “significant and ongoing concerns” that the Army Corps has failed to comply with a key deadline specified in the law. In the letter to Army Corps leadership, Rubio and Mast call the delay “simply unacceptable” and “a blatant disregard for congressional directives and intent.”
“The Corps bureaucracy has become an impediment to both the Jacksonville District’s relationship with nonfederal sponsors and the administration’s implementation of national policies. The South Florida Water Management District and the State of Florida have accelerated completion of their responsibilities surrounding the planning and design of this critical project with little support from their federal partner,” Rubio and Mast wrote. “The Corps’ apparent disregard for directives issued by Congress and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works also directly undermines President Trump’s efforts to expedite critical infrastructure projects and reduce red tape.”
Rubio and Mast secured language authorizing the EAA Storage Reservoir project, which was signed into law on October 23, 2018. The authorization required the Army Corps to complete a final report on the project no later than 90 days after the date of enactment. Federal design and construction of the project cannot begin until the report is completed. A year later, that report is still outstanding with no clear timetable for completion. A full list of Rubio’s efforts to improve water quality in Florida can be found here.
El texto de la carta en inglés está aquí. .
Dear Lieutenant General Semonite:
We strongly urge your immediate attention to significant and ongoing concerns with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ failure to comply with the law authorizing the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Storage Reservoir. It has been conveyed by numerous sources that the Corps does not anticipate completion of the final feasibility report necessary to begin design and construction of the project until May 2020 at the earliest. This delay is simply unacceptable and represents a blatant disregard for congressional directives and intent.
As you are aware, the EAA Storage Reservoir project was authorized as part of the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) Post Authorization Change Report (PACR) in Sec. 1308 of the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-270). The congressional authorization directed the Army Corps to expedite a report on the project, and to have it completed “not later than 90 days after the date of enactment.” Today marks one year since the law’s enactment, and as of today, the Corps is nine months late in addressing the concerns, recommendations, and conditions necessary to inform a final feasibility report from the Secretary.
The Corps bureaucracy has become an impediment to both the Jacksonville District’s relationship with nonfederal sponsors and the administration’s implementation of national policies. The South Florida Water Management District and the State of Florida have accelerated completion of their responsibilities surrounding the planning and design of this critical project with little support from their federal partner, as also occurred during the development of the Section 203 CEPP PACR report. Moreover, in a December 14, 2018 response to our original inquiry into this matter, Secretary James committed to us that his office would work with your agency “to identify ways to expedite the required tasks.” However, despite his efforts, it is not clear that the Corps has implemented any efficiencies to assist the expedited completion of the report.
The Corps’ apparent disregard for directives issued by Congress and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works also directly undermines President Trump’s efforts to expedite critical infrastructure projects and reduce red tape. Given the administration’s significant investment in Everglades restoration through the president’s updated $200 million FY20 budget request, it is imperative that the design and construction of the EAA Storage Reservoir not be delayed any further as a result of bureaucratic mismanagement.
We are confident that the federal-state partnership to restore the Everglades can succeed with sustained commitments from all partners. We request an updated timeline for completion of the final report, including a description of outstanding issues remaining to be resolved, to be provided to our offices and presented at next week’s South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force meeting in Washington, D.C.
Atentamente,