Jobs and Our Economy
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Here in Southwest Washington, the need to grow our economy and create jobs is as great as any other region in the country. From the Gifford Pinchot Forest to Long Beach, our region has a reputation for our tremendous resources – but the greatest resource of all is our people. Congress needs to maintain employment and the economy as its number one focus. Small business and private enterprise act as America’s engine for job creation, but right now these job creators are struggling to survive. Here are samples of job-creating efforts I’ve led since serving as your representative in Congress:
Below are the community project funding requests for 2021. Recipient: Battle Ground Healthcare Address: 11117 NE 189th Street, Suite 216, Battle Ground WA 98604 Requested Amount: $320,000 Project Description: Battle Ground Healthcare’s free clinic expansion project is a valuable use of taxpayer funding because it will allow Battle Ground Healthcare to expand its services to its clients who are uninsured, underinsured, have chronic conditions, and are at or below three-hundred percent of the federal poverty level. Federal funding will support renovations and upgrades to equipment to support much needed expansion of services. BGHC is experiencing increased demands for the free medical, dental, physical rehabilitation services we offer, driven by the pandemic and high unemployment with the loss of health insurance by many families. BGHC will be expanding its facility by fifty-eight percent to meet the CDC guidelines for social distancing while providing free services. Member Certification Form Recipient: Northwest Division United States Army Corps Address: 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd Ste 400 Portland, OR 97232 Requested Amount: $148,000 Project Description: Lake River is recognized as navigable waters of the Columbia River system. A survey of the Lake River between Ridgefield and the Columbia River was conducted in 2014. The survey indicated the channel depth mouth of Lake River needs immediate attention. It has been 35 years since the river was last dredged. Dredging is not an annual project or need, but one that does require periodic maintenance. The mouth of Lake River, where it enters the Columbia approximately two (2) miles northwest of Ridgefield Washington, is unsafe. Sand moving along the Columbia is narrowing and shallowing the navigation channel of Lake River. Flood control measures on the Columbia no longer allow spring run-off to regularly flush the channel at the mouth of Lake River. As a result, access from the Columbia into Lake River by commercial and recreational boating is becoming increasingly difficult and will eventually be lost. Water quality, fish and wildlife habitat are also negatively impacted. Funding would be used for dredging to ensure all season access would be preserved for marine traffic entering or exiting Lake River from the Columbia River. Member Certification Form Recipient: Camp Mariposa Address: 1601 East Fourth Plain Blvd, Building 17, Ste. A212 Vancouver, WA 98661 Requested Amount: $49,870 Project Description: Camp Mariposa-Southwest Washington (CM-SW) is a year-round camping and mentoring experience for children impacted by the substance use disorder of a loved one. The project would be a valuable use of taxpayer funding because it benefits the community by preventing substance use disorders in children exposed to them in their home environments. Community Project Funding will help 40 kids ages 9-12 attend this innovative program proven to break the intergenerational cycle of addiction. CM-SW is a research-based national model developed by Eluna Network and staffed by trained mentors and behavioral health professionals. Funding for this project will assist children by preventing substance use disorder, responding to adverse childhood experiences, and breaking intergenerational cycles of addiction. Member Certification Form Recipient: Northwest Division United States Army Corps Address: 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd Ste 400 Portland, OR 97232 Requested Amount: $410,000 Project Description: Cowlitz County communities have had to live with the aftermath of the 1980 Mt. St. Helens eruption for over 40 years. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is mandated by Congress to manage flood risk associated with the continued flow of sediment through the Cowlitz and Toutle Rivers from Mt. St. Helens, and to establish safe flood protection levels for the cities of Castle Rock, Lexington, Kelso and Longview. A key element of the Corps’ protection efforts is to collect data on an annual basis through bathymetric surveys, a LIDAR survey and USGS water level gauges and sediment transport monitoring. Funding for these critical data points has been inconsistent and in recent years have required aggressive advocacy by stakeholders and officials at all levels of government on an annual basis. The data is used to ensure that the Corps is meeting federally mandated flood protection levels when dredging may be required and when the crest of the Sediment Retention Structure needs to be raised. Leaving years between these vital monitoring activities creates glaring omissions in the data and increases the risk of a devastating flood. Fiscal year 2022 funding would be used for managing the flood risk to downstream communities. Member Certification Form Recipient: Northwest Division United States Army Corps Address: 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd Ste 400 Portland, OR 97232 Requested Amount: $1,100,000 Project Description: The Columbia River Pilots have identified several channel-depth turning basins that are needed to continue to efficiently move and maneuver deep-draft vessels while maintaining a margin of safety, and that are logistically the most favorable and most cost-effective areas for the Corps to maintain. When water levels are low in the late summer to early fall, multiple deep draft vessels are awaiting a “window” to depart, and locations on the river system to anchor while they do so are difficult to find. Establishing turning basins are critical to meet this logistical challenge as they provide the second to last place on a vessel’s outbound transit where there is room to turn and wait before they commit to exiting the Columbia River. This funding would be used to study the Columbia River Turning Basin in the Corps’ Investigations account. This study would also benefit the Port of Kalama that is seeking authorization to construct a new turning basin, where the Port of Longview is seeking to have its basin deepened and widened. The study will put them both on the path to having these projects authorized. Member Certification Form Recipient: City of Vancouver Address: 415 West 6th Street Vancouver, WA 98660 Requested Amount: $1,500,000 Project Description: The City of Vancouver plans to equip the Vancouver Police Department with cameras to enhance safety and transparency. Funding will be used to purchase 250 body-worn cameras for police officer use and equip 100 police patrol vehicles with in-car cameras. Member Certification Form Recipient: Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife Address: Natural Resources Building, 1111 Washington Street SE, Olympia, WA Amount Requested: $892,000 Project Description: Requesting funding equipment and capital needs to implement the Marine Mammal Protection Act Section 120(f) permit authorizing the intentional taking on the waters of the Columbia River and its tributaries of California Sea Lions and Steller Sea Lions. Member Certification Form Recipient: City of Ilwaco Address: 120 1st Ave N Ilwaco, WA 98624 Amount Requested: $816,000 Project Description: City of Ilwaco, Washington intends to acquire the land and timber rights within the Indian Creek watershed for the purpose of protecting the drinking water source. In accordance with the established Forest Stewardship Plan, the city plans to manage the forest with the goal of supporting water quality. |
