MURPHY VOTES TO AUTHORIZE CEPP, CALLS ON SENATE TO ACT BEFORE ADJOURNING

WASHINGTON, D.C. – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy (FL-18) voted in support of the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, which included language authorizing the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) to send more clean water south. The WIIN Act combines portions of the House and Senate versions of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) that both chambers previously passed.

The bill now goes to the Senate and if passed, to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The WIIN Act becoming law would result in Congressional authorization of CEPP, allowing the project to receive federal funding and construction to begin – a major step forward for Everglades restoration efforts that Murphy has prioritized throughout his two terms.

“The continued Congressional support for CEPP authorization is a testament to the dedication and advocacy of our state’s delegation and our entire community as to the importance of restoring the Everglades to send more clean water south,”said Murphy. “While I am disappointed to see partisan riders included in the WIIN Act instead of a bipartisan WRDA conference bill, Floridians should not have to wait another year for this project to be authorized. Our communities and waterways have suffered long enough, which is why I am calling on my colleagues in the Senate to act on this authorization before the 114th Congress adjourns. It’s beyond time to get this done.”

The Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) is a $2 billion series of engineering projects intended to collect and channel water around Lake Okeechobee south into the center of the Everglades, thereby reducing harmful discharges into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries and improving the health of the entire ecosystem. Since his first days in office, Murphy has been a vocal advocate for CEPP and other critical Everglades restoration projects to help restore the natural southward flow of the system and address the ongoing crisis in Florida’s waterways. Before the 2016 Water Resources Development Act was introduced, he led the Florida delegation in successfully calling on Congressional leaders to include CEPP authorization in the bill as well as introducing H.R. 230, a bipartisan bill to authorize CEPP after the Army Corps finalized its Chief’s Report for the project in December of 2014.

Source: U.S. Representative Patrick E. Murphy