US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
Trump plan takes $437 million away from blue states and moves $258 million toward red states—overall, 64-33 percent red to blue split in Trump admin’s Army Corps work plan versus roughly 50-50 split in budget request, FY25 House and Senate appropriations bills
ICYMI: Senator Murray on Trump Defunding Blue State Army Corps Construction: “This is Some Corrupt B-S”
***WATCH HERE; DOWNLOAD HERE***
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, held a virtual press conference with Tacoma Public Utilities and the Covington Water District to speak out against President Trump’s outrageous decision to zero out and significantly cut Army Corps of Engineers construction projects in blue states such as Washington state—including the complete elimination of construction funding for Howard Hanson Dam.
The Howard Hanson Dam facility in Washington state was poised to receive $500 million this year in funding Senator Murray secured in the fiscal year 2025 appropriations bill she wrote as Chair and passed through committee in August 2024, as well as in House Republicans’ fiscal year 2025 bill. The funding was needed for the Army Corps to execute a construction contract option this year, allowing construction to begin in 2026 as scheduled. But instead of working with Democrats to pass full-year funding bills that would have directed that funding, Republicans in Congress passed a yearlong continuing resolution (CR) that enabled the administration to determine how to allocate the funding it did provide—a scenario Murray repeatedly warned about. The Army Corps’ work plans released Thursday—which lay out how the Army Corps will spend the funding provided by Congress under Republicans’ yearlong continuing resolution for fiscal year 2025—include zero funding for the project.
“President Trump’s Army Corps construction plan utterly tramples all of the careful, painstaking negotiations we did in Congress to reach a bipartisan understating about what projects need funding, and replaces it with his own partisan vision—a vision that rips away hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars from blue states like mine. There is just no getting around it: this plan is utterly partisan—and sets a truly egregious precedent. We should all be outraged,” said Senator Murray. “The balance of states Trump wants to give more funding to, and the states he wants to cut funding from—is completely lopsided—roughly two-thirds for red states, and one-third for blue states. For comparison, the budget request, our bipartisan Senate bill, and yes, even House Republicans’ bill, split funding between red and blue states about 50-50. We are talking about critical Army Corps projects to maintain and build foundational water infrastructure, from dredging for our ports, to protecting communities from flood waters, or maintaining major dams.”
“Back in Washington state, this plan cuts us out, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars,” continued Senator Murray. “It is completely outrageous. It is completely unacceptable…I will not let defunding Howard Hanson Dam stand in any future bipartisan spending bill. However, that could be a long ways away. So, I’ll be speaking with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and making clear to them we have to rein Trump in—or he is going to keep trampling the powers of Congress, and he is going to keep trampling the communities we all came here to fight for. It may not be your state today, but what happens when your governor disagrees with the President?”
Overall, the Army Corps’ plans released by the Trump administration would steer roughly $258 million dollars more in construction funding to red states while ripping away roughly $437 million dollars in construction funding for blue states, relative to the president’s fiscal year 2025 request—which, historically, has been fully funded and was fully funded in the draft fiscal year 2025 bills produced on a bipartisan basis in the Senate and by House Republicans in the House. This includes the complete elimination of Army Corps construction funding for states like California. Trump’s work plan steers two-thirds of all Army Corps construction funding to red states—the budget request and House and Senate bills would have split it roughly 50-50 to red and blue states.
“Tacoma Public Utilities (TPU) has made significant investments in the Howard A. Hanson Dam for decades. This project is one of the most significant steps toward ensuring long-term water reliability for over one million people across our broader region—not just for today, but for generations to come,” said Heather Pennington, TPU Water Superintendent.
“Without this key part of the project, the District may not have enough summertime supply to meet our current and future customer needs starting as early as the mid-2030s. That’s not very far from now folks. For the District, it feels like we purchased a 4 bedroom home, but having the builder tell us we can occupy 2 bedrooms. Not to mention, this action will further delay access for endangered salmon to over 100 miles of pristine spawning habitat above Howard Hansen Dam. It is just unfair on many levels,” said Thomas Keown, General Manager of the Covington Water District. “For instance, the decision is also unfair to the many local stakeholders who have invested time and money, hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars in infrastructure and watershed benefits in and along the Green River in preparation of the project coming online. This is now unfortunately shaping up as a waste of a perfectly good ‘shovel ready’ project that is likely to be mothballed for who knows how long.”
Supporting the Howard Hanson Dam has been a longtime priority for Senator Murray, and she has pressed the Army Corps to prioritize funding for the Dam for years. Under the last administration, Senator Murray was able to secure critical funding boosts for Howard Hanson Dam, including $220 million in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $50 million to begin construction of the Fish Passage facility in the funding bills for fiscal year 2024 that Murray wrote as then-Chair of the Appropriations Committee. Back in 2010, Murray secured $44 million in badly needed emergency funds for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to repair the Howard Hanson Dam. In the draft fiscal year 2025 appropriations bill she cleared unanimously out of Committee last year, Senator Murray secured $500 million for the construction of a fish passage facility, which would also address flood risk and water supply issues for cities like Tacoma and Covington. $500 million was also included in the House’s draft fiscal year 2025 appropriations bill. The funding is needed to execute a construction option on the contract for the project, which would have allowed construction to begin in 2026 as scheduled.
Congress typically provides specific, detailed instructions in its annual appropriations bills on how the Army Corps (and so many other agencies) must spend funding provided by Congress. Annual appropriations bills note exactly what Army Corps projects must be funded and at what levels. But instead of working with Democrats to pass full-year appropriations bills that deliver for communities across America, Republicans in Congress put forth a yearlong continuing resolution (CR) that failed to include hundreds of specific directives on how funding must be spent. For months, Senator Murray warned of the dangers of passing Republicans’ slush fund CR, noting, for example, that it would allow the administration to zero out funding for Army Corps projects.
Senator Murray’s full remarks, as delivered, are available below and HERE:
“Yesterday, the Trump Administration released a plan to blatantly rob blue states and completely politicize federal funding for crucial projects. We are talking historically blatant thuggery from the White House here.
“President Trump’s Army Corps construction plan utterly tramples all the careful, painstaking negotiations we did in Congress to reach a bipartisan understating about what projects need funding and replaces it with his own partisan vision—a vision that rips away hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars from blue states like mine.
“There is just no getting around it: this plan is utterly partisan—and sets a truly egregious precedent. We should all be outraged.
“The balance of states Trump wants to give more funding, and the states he wants to cut out off—is completely lopsided—roughly two-thirds for red states, and one-third for blue states.
“For comparison, the budget request, our bipartisan Senate bill, and yes, even House Republicans’ bill, split funding between red and blue states about 50-50.
“We are talking about critical Army Corps projects to maintain and build foundational water infrastructure, from dredging for our ports, to protecting communities from flood waters, or maintaining major dams.
“Back in Washington state, this plan cuts us out, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.
“We are losing some funding for our waterways and fish mitigation, funding for our ports, and we are completely losing funding for the Howard Hanson Dam, which—before Trump meddled with these funds—was set to receive $500 million to execute a necessary construction contract this year.
“This is a crucial project, years in the making, that is important to safeguard our water supply, protect our communities from dangerous flooding, and save our salmon. I have pounded the pavement getting support for this project. This funding had bipartisan support—our Committee cleared a bill for this unanimously.
“Howard Hanson was even fully funded in the House Appropriations bill drafted by Republicans—every cent! But now, thanks to this administration, it’s dust. Trump is completely defunding Howard Hanson Dam.
“They are not giving us even a hint of a real explanation why—but the motivation here is obvious and it is alarming. Especially when Trump’s budget completely zeros out Army Corps Construction in California. That’s right—he just completely cut the most populous state in the country out of Army Corp construction funding.
“It is completely outrageous. It is completely unacceptable. And it is exactly why I voted against Republicans’ partisan CR.
“I warned, repeatedly, that we should not give Trump new flexibility to move Army Corps funding around and hang this threat over everyone. That’s a reckless amount of power to give any President—and certainly not this one, who shows us every minute of every day that he will abuse it.
“This has never been a President we can expect to operate in good faith. This has never been a President we can expect to follow precedent, decency, or even basic common sense. But Republicans’ slush fund CR passed and gave Trump dangerous authority, and it should be no surprise to anyone—he is using it.
“I am speaking out today: I will not let defunding Howard Hanson Dam stand in any future bipartisan spending bill.
“However, that could be a long ways away. So, I’ll be speaking with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and making clear to them we have to rein Trump in—or he is going to keep trampling the powers of Congress, and he is going to keep trampling the communities we all came here to fight for.
“It may not be your state today, but what happens when your governor disagrees with the President? What happens you vote against him and your state loses out on funding? What happens when there is a new President and this is just how things work now?
“We have to push back now—today. That’s exactly what I am doing. I will fight tooth and nail to prevent this completely partisan vision from becoming a reality.
“And I have with me some people who can speak more to just how crucial this Army Corps funding is—and why we are not going to stop fighting.”
