The Seventh District of Louisiana has great transportation needs, and I am glad to serve on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to help address those needs. Healthy transportation infrastructure—roads, airports, bridges, ports and rail—is essential to our region’s quality of life and economic vitality.
Highways and Transit
The 2005 transportation bill – which authorizes programs into 2009 - included $45 million for projects in the 7th District, and $15 billion in potential funding for I-49. I am proud to serve as the Co-Chair of the I-49 Caucus, and continue to work closely with my colleagues and congressional leadership to secure monies to complete this long overdue project.
Interstate 10 is also of great concern to me. The stretch between Lafayette and Lake Charles is severely degraded and is considered one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in the state. I will also work to ensure the replacement of the I-10 bridge in Lake Charles. The bridge is currently categorized as “structurally deficient” by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has already begun holding hearings in preparation for the next transportation bill. I remain actively involved in this process and will fight to ensure the priorities of my constituents and the local communities are addressed when the Committee begins working on reauthorization of the transportation bill this year.
Water Resources and Development
The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) became law in November 2007. The WRDA bill authorizes over $1.9 billion in funding for a number of coastal restoration and hurricane protection projects in the Louisiana Coastal Area (LCA), making it the largest coastal restoration project in American history.
As a Member of the House Transportation Committee with jurisdiction over WRDA, I worked hard to ensure the bill includes key initiatives for Southwest Louisiana. The bill includes a provision I authored to expedite completion of the Southwest Coastal Louisiana Hurricane Protection study and paves the way for accelerated implementation of the critical restoration projects identified in the study. I worked to get the study authorized in 2005 and the Corps of Engineers is currently conducting the feasibility portion of the study. WRDA also authorizes coastal restoration work in the Chenier Plain.
WRDA also contains the following provisions for Southwest Louisiana:
• The Calcasieu River Waterway Industrial Canal at Devil’s Elbow will be reclassified as a federal waterway, allowing federal money to be used for expansion and improvement of the Canal.
• The Calcasieu Ship Channel is authorized to receive $15 million over five years for bank stabilization and rocking work.
• $1.2 million authorized for Lafayette water and waste water improvements.
• $1 million authorized for Lake Charles water and waste water improvements.
• Authorize more than $131 million for deeper channel access to the Port of Iberia. This provision also allows for the potential use of dredged materials from the channel to be used to provide greater hurricane protection for Vermilion parish.
Passage of the WRDA bill clears the backlog of projects that had accumulated since 2000 – the last time Congress passed a WRDA bill. However, there is still much work that needs to be done in Southwest Louisiana. The Transportation Committee will likely begin work on a new WRDA bill this year to ensure that Congress begins the process of once again reauthorizing WRDA every two years. I look forward to continuing to work with the residents of the 7th District and our community leaders to make sure the priorities of Southwest Louisiana are represented when Congress begins work on the next WRDA reauthorization.
Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
The maritime industry is vital to Louisiana. After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, I worked to pass legislation to extend mariners licenses and credentials so that they would not be unfairly penalized by backlogs and delays in processing caused by the storms. I have also worked to help ensure mariners are not unduly burdened by implementation on the Transportation Workers Identification Cards (TWIC) program. I also passed legislation to require better reporting of foreign vessels operating in the Gulf of Mexico. Even if a foreign vessel does not reach U.S. soil, it is still critical to our national security that we know exactly who is operating in the Gulf around our oil and gas infrastructure. Last year, I also had language inserted into the Committee passed Coast Guard authorization bill to examine ways to address workforce development problems facing the industry. The maritime sector currently faces significant crewing shortages.
Aviation
Hurricane Rita caused significant damage to the Lake Charles Regional Airport terminal building. I continue to work with the FAA to ensure replacement of the terminal. I have also secured federal funding for much needed runway and facility improvements at the Lafayette Regional Airport. In addition, aviation safety in the Gulf of Mexico is a key priority of mine. In July 2007, I sent a letter to FAA Administrator Blakey to raise concerns regarding the agency’s transition to contractor operated Automated Flight Service Stations and its impact on helicopter operators in the area. Specifically, I asked that she consider declaring the Gulf of Mexico a unique area, much like Alaska, and to set aside a sector within the regional office specifically dedicated to safety in the Gulf.
Stafford Act
The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has jurisdiction over the Stafford Act. Last year, I worked with my colleagues on the Committee to pass the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Federal Match Relief Act of 2007 (H.R.1144) which improves the flow of funding to local governments in Louisiana. First, it waives the matching funds, required under the Stafford Act, that states and local governments typically must put up to receive disaster assistance associated with major disasters. Second, the proposal forgives the 2005 Community Disaster Loans (CDL) that parish and local governments received following Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. Provisions of H.R. 1144 were included in a larger emergency supplemental funding bill passed by Congress and are now law. I also worked to include language in H.R. 3247, the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Recovery Facilitation Act of 2007, to help ensure the CAJUNDOME in Lafayette is reimbursed for expenses incurred while housing hurricane evacuees.
I am always eager to hear from my constituents. If you would like to speak with my staff about transportation and infrastructure legislation, please contact Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-2031.
