Bush Vetoes Water Resources Development Act of 2007
November 6, 2007On November 2, President Bush vetoed the 2007 Water Resources Development Act (HR 1495).
“This bill lacks fiscal discipline. I fully support funding for water resources projects that will yield high economic and environmental returns to the Nation and each year my budget has proposed reasonable and responsible funding, including $4.9 billion for 2008, to support the Army Corps of Engineers’ (Corps) main missions,” said President Bush.
“However, this authorization bill makes promises to local communities that the Congress does not have a track record of keeping. The House of Representatives took a $15 billion bill into negotiations with a $14 billion bill from the Senate and instead of splitting the difference, emerged with a Washington compromise that costs over $23 billion,” he continued. “This is not fiscally responsible, particularly when local communities have been waiting for funding for projects already in the pipeline. The bill’s excessive authorization for over 900 projects and programs exacerbates the massive backlog of ongoing Corps construction projects, which will require an additional $38 billion in future appropriations to complete.”
In response, America’s seaports and related port industries—which are challenged with handling unprecedented cargo volume growth and demands from increasingly larger ships—are planning a “full-court press” on Congress to lock-in the first veto override of the Bush Administration.
“This bill is as much about ensuring jobs and income growth for the nation as it is about water projects,” said Kurt Nagle, American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) president and CEO. “America’s seaports have been the backbone of trade growth and economic prosperity since our country was founded. The port industry has invested billions in new infrastructure to accommodate increasing trade volumes. Yet, there hasn’t been any new federal navigation improvement projects authorized in a Water Resources Development Act since 2000.”
Mr. Nagle emphasized that by overriding the President’s veto, Congress can address the 7-year backlog of water infrastructure projects and policy changes “that are sorely needed to keep our marine highways and trade gateways open and functioning.”
AAPA is urging its 86 member ports in the United States to act quickly to ensure that members of Congress understand the importance of voting to override the President’s veto. The bill received overwhelming support from both houses of Congress prior to its trip to the President’s desk, receiving votes of 81–12 in the Senate and 381–40 in the House.
The American Association of Port Authorities was founded in 1912 and today represents 160 of the leading public port authorities in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean.
