Bill to Boost Ports Passes House, Now Goes to Senate
The House overwhelmingly passed a long-awaited water reauthorization bill May 20 that will allow dredging at several ports around the country to accommodate the large cargo ships expected with the widening of the Panama Canal.
The bipartisan Water Resources Reform Development Act passed on a 412-4 vote, and now goes to the Senate, where the measure could become the first water transportation reauthorization bill Congress has passed since 2007.
“This is legislation that’s good for the economy, good for jobs, and good for America,” House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) said in a statement after the vote.
“This bipartisan jobs bill will revitalize our inland waterway system so that bulk commodities such as West Virginia coal can be transported more efficiently,” said the committee’s ranking member, Nick Rahall (D-W. Va.).
U.S. Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), ranking member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, where the WRRDA bill originated, predicted passage in that chamber later this week.
“It’s easily one of the most important bills we’ll pass this year, and we’re finally on the home stretch,” Vitter said in a statement after the House vote.
The overwhelming House vote was a “great sign” of the bipartisan support expected in the Senate, Vitter said.
The House and Senate passed water bills last fall, and after that spent months ironing out their differences before coming up with a final draft last week.
