Good news from Washington DC, as more projects that will improve life in Southern Minnesota and the nation are given the green light.
Washington, D.C.-Today, Rep. Tim Walz announced that the House Appropriations Committee approved his funding requests for both the Minnesota State University - Mankato Center for Renewable Energy and the Army Corp of Engineers Project at the Rapidan Dam site as part of the FY08 Energy and Water Appropriations bill.
"These projects took another major step today," Walz said. "Though they still have to clear several more hurdles, I am optimistic that both the House and Senate will see the need to invest in sensible projects like
repairing the Rapidan Dam and fostering growth in the renewable fuels industry.""Southern Minnesota is leading the way when it comes to renewable fuels, and it is vital to our economy, to our environment and to future generations that we continue this important research," said Walz. "Equally important is the need to ensure that the Army Corps of Engineers has the funding it needs
to review the structure and impact of the Rapidan Dam." The Rapidan Dam is deteriorating and in order to provide policymakers with the best information about how to address its condition, the Army Corps of Engineers must study whether rehabilitation or removal of the dam is the best option. Walz said that this funding will allow the Army Corps to move forward with that study.These requests will now proceed to the House floor for final passage. The Senate is expected to complete its version of the bill in the coming months, and then the House and Senate will negotiate on a final conference report which both houses of Congress must pass. Then Congress sends the final version to the President, who will choose whether to sign it into law or veto it.
The Appropriations Committee approved the following projects as part of the Energy and Water Appropriations bill:
$22,300,000 for Lewis and Clark Rural Water Project
* The lack of water availability has a serious impact on economic development in rural Minnesota: businesses are reluctant expand their operations without reliable water supplies and some communities in southern Minnesota cannot permit new homes to be built because there is not enough water to support them.The Lewis and Clark Rural Water System is a unique water project that, when completed, will carry water from the Missouri River to over 300,000 residents of a 5,000 square mile area in Minnesota, South
Dakota and Iowa.$500,000 for the Center for Renewable Energy at Minnesota State University, Mankato
* This funding will support research into cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel and other renewable forms of energy at MSU-Mankato's Center for Renewable Energy.The research at the Center will create public-private partnerships with regional businesses which will promote economic growth in southern Minnesota while helping move the Midwest toward sustainable energy use.
$100,000 for the Army Corps of Engineers to evaluate options for the Rapidan Dam in Mankato
* The Rapidan Dam is an aging, deteriorating concrete dam with a potentially unstable foundation. In order to provide policymakers with the best information about how to address the dam, it is necessary for the Army Corps of Engineers to study whether rehabilitation or removal of the dam is necessary. This funding will be used to conduct that study.The Appropriations Committee approved the following projects as part of the Commerce, Justice and Science bills:
$550,000 for the National Child Protection Training Center at Winona State University
* The Center is a nationally-recognized leader in addressing the problem of child abuse. The center provides training, technical assistance and publications to 15,000 child protection professionals around the
country, such as social workers, teachers, and health care professionals.$100,000 for Sheriffs Youth Program in Rochester
* Sheriffs Youth Program operates a number of programs in southern Minnesota focusing on at-risk youth. This funding will improve their operations by allowing SYP to provide a modern security and surveillance system at all of their facilities, improving their treatment of the youth they serve.
Congressman Walz had campaigned on making the appropriations process more transparent, so that each representative would put his or her name on projects in their districts for which money was being requested.
From a separate news release about the Winona State project:
(Washington, D.C.)-Today, Rep. Tim Walz announced that his funding request for the National Child Protection Training Center at Winona State University was included in the FY08 Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations bill passed last week by the House Appropriations Committee.
"The National Child Protection Training Center has cleared a major hurdle," Walz said. "Though it still has a long way to go, this project serves a vital national need, and I am very optimistic that it will survive the
remaining legislative challenges."
"The National Child Protection Training Center is another example of national leadership from southern Minnesota. The center has helped train over 15,000 child protection professionals all across the country to
identify and report the signs of child abuse. I'm proud the Center is located in southern Minnesota and I'm proud to support their efforts."
The allocation will help the NCPTC to continue to operate in southern Minnesota. In addition to providing training and technical assistance to child protection professionals, the funding will help the Center expand the undergraduate curriculum it has developed.
Final passage in the House of Representatives is the next step for these requests, before they head to the Senate. After final passage in the Senate, the appropriations bills will head through a House-Senate conference committee before landing on the President's desk for signature. Walz has requests in five additional appropriations bills, which have yet to be released by the Appropriations Committee.
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