Members of the Great Lakes Task Force announced the bipartisan Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2024. This act will extend the program an additional five years and increases annual funding from $475 million in 2026 to $500 million from 2027 through 2031. The proposed legislation seeks to expand to address emerging threats to the Great Lakes Watershed such as PFAS contamination, invasive species, and impacts of climate change.
In a press release, Laura Rubin, Director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition said, “We thank the Great Lakes Senators and Representatives who introduced and co-sponsored this bill for their bipartisan leadership and commitment to tackle the serious threats to the region’s drinking water, public health, jobs, and quality of life. Federal investments to restore the lakes have been producing results in communities across the region, but serious threats remain. This bill addresses the reality that if we scale back investments now, problems will only get worse and more expensive to solve. This bill sets the stage to accelerate progress in addressing challenges to our vital water resources. We look forward to working with the Great Lakes congressional delegation to pass this bipartisan bill that supports common sense solutions to protect our drinking water, public health, jobs and quality of life.”
New York Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and New York Representatives Tenney and Morelle among other members of the House and Senate are co-sponsoring the legislation. The proposed legislation has gained support among Great Lakes advocates, including Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, Great Lakes Commission, Alliance for the Great Lakes, League of Conservation Voters, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, The Nature Conservancy and many more.
To read more, visit Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition.