U.S. Rep. Ben Ray LujánCONGRESSIONAL News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. ― The House of Representatives approved an amendment authored by U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and co-sponsored by Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham that would require the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prioritize the reimbursement of local communities for environmental infrastructure projects constructed jointly with the Army Corps of Engineers.
A number of local governments in New Mexico and other parts of the country have financed joint construction projects with the Corps, but have not been fully paid back for work completed.
The amendment would particularly affect three communities in New Mexico – the City of Rio Rancho, the County of Bernalillo, and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District. In total, New Mexico communities are still owed about $8 million. In recent years, the New Mexico delegation has worked to secure report language to create a path for reimbursement, but the Army Corps has not devoted sufficient resources toward this effort in the past.
“For too long, local governments in our state have been left holding IOUs from the federal government when doing work with the Army Corps of Engineers. For example, the City of Rio Rancho completed construction of an arsenic treatment facility, but had to wait years before it received a dollar from the Corps,” Luján said. “Our amendment will require the Army Corps to make repayment a higher priority and devote more resources to reimbursing local communities. This will help local communities keep their budgets in the black, will get these liabilities off the books of the Army Corps and allow other projects to move forward.”