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Ann Mesnikoff

Opportunities & Challenges Ahead for the Great Lakes

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has always had bipartisan support, but this could be a turbulent year for federal programs

We are just a couple of weeks into the 119th Congress and a week into Trump’s second term – and already there is a head-spinning amount of chaos and news. However, protecting the Great Lakes remains vital to the states and beyond. We can’t let it get lost in the shuffle. This new Congress will need to step up in two BIG ways for the Great Lakes: First, they must reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), and second, ensure the GLRI and all the essential federal agencies and programs it builds on are funded.

Step 1: Legislation

One bright spot (at the moment) is progress on the first BIG action, reauthorizing the GLRI.  Representatives David Joyce (R-Ohio), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), and Bill Huizenga (R-MI) joined by 24 colleagues from across the Great Lakes states to get the ball rolling. They introduced H.R. 284, a bill to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) in the 119th Congress. As an Ohio Senator, JD Vance co-led the effort to reauthorize the GLRI program so he could be a Midwest voice of support as Vice President. We expect a bipartisan bill in the Senate soon.

As ELPC noted in our release welcoming the House bill, since 2010, GLRI has invested about $4 billion for wetlands restoration, beach protection, clean-ups of toxic waste sites, and invasive species management through thousands of projects administered by the U.S. EPA and other federal agency partners. You can learn more about GLRI here. The new bill would allow the program to continue between 2027 and 2031 with up to $500 million in annual funding.

We got very close to passing a bill reauthorizing GLRI in the last Congress. The Senate passed the bill, but it stalled in the House. So, we are back at it in the 119th – it is critical that we get it across the finish line this time.

However, having a program like GLRI authorized is one thing; ensuring the funds are appropriated to do the work is 100% necessary. The bipartisan support for the bill to reauthorize the GLRI is welcome but nowhere near the end of the story.

Step 2: Rollout

While Congress has not appropriated the full amount it could for the GLRI over the last few years, we have seen strong support with $368 million for FY2024. We should see that same level of support when Congress finally addresses funding for FY2025 (the current continuing resolution allowing federal spending into 2025 expires in March). You can check out ELPC’s testimony in support of fully funding GLRI in FY25 at $425 million here.

But, again, including substantial funding for GLRI in the annual appropriations bills is icing on the larger appropriations cake. In short, the GLRI is additive to programs run through other federal entities, including the US Environmental Protection Agency, the Army Corps of Engineers, and Fish & Wildlife Service NOAA. This 2024 policy priorities list from Healing Our Waters Coalition examines how many programs are needed to help protect the Great Lakes. So, it won’t be enough for members of Congress to sign up to support the reauthorization of the GLRI program. They must step up and ensure the funding is there to do the work.

So, reauthorizing the GLRI and ensuring the funds are there to do the work are two BIG things to pay attention to in this Congress. We need to hold members of Congress from across the Great Lakes accountable for winning on both, even if the pressure grows to make steep cuts to the federal government.

What’s next?

But maybe there’s a third BIG thing to pay attention to. Every 5 years, the EPA issues an Action Plan for the GLRI program – the latest plan (the fourth) will cover 2025-2029. This plan, developed with public input, updates goals for the program, including ensuring equity. We will be watching to hold the EPA accountable for following through with this Action Plan for the next 5 years.

Ann Mesnikoff,

Federal Legislative Director

Ann Mesnikoff is the federal legislative director at ELPC, working in Washington, D.C., with the Midwest Congressional Delegation and national coalitions to advance supportive clean energy, clean water and clean air, and transportation reform policies.

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