Congressman Cleaver Calls for House Leaders to Vote on House Water Infrastructure Bill

Press Release

Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, II (MO-05) calls on House leadership to move forward with protecting and securing homes and businesses from potential flooding by voting on the Water Resources Development Act, (WRDA) H.R. 5303. Congressman Cleaver, along with over 142 House Members, sent a letter to the Speaker Paul Ryan, and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, asking that they bring WRDA for a vote. The letter can be found here. The U.S. Senate today passed their version of the water infrastructure bill, which also includes funding to help the residents of Flint, Michigan.

"The Senate is currently considering their version of the bill on the floor this week. It is imperative that we in the House restore the practice of passing a Water Resources Development Act biennially to invest in our aging water infrastructure. We cannot afford to wait on these much needed changes," said Congressman Cleaver.

In a successful bi-partisan effort, Missouri Congressmen Emanuel Cleaver, II and Sam Graves advocated for the inclusion of several Kansas City projects in bill, which authorizes flood control and other water infrastructure projects conducted by the Army Corps of Engineers.

The target areas in Kansas City prone to major flooding would receive significant improvements;

Kansas City Levees -- These levees along the Missouri and Kansas Rivers provide critical flood project to the economic heart of Kansas City, protecting over 5,000 structures totaling over $20 billion in investments, plus serving as home to 24,000 people.

Turkey Creek Basin Flood Project -- Authorization for the final phases would widen the channel, relocate bridges, and include tunnel modifications to finish the project. Turkey Creek flows 15 miles through the Kansas City metro, and its frequent flooding poses serious risks to loss of life and residential and commercial areas.

Blue River Basin Project in the Dodson Industrial District -- Authorization for the final phase would complete this project and would include a 6,800 foot levee floodwall along the north bank of the Blue River, protecting over $380 million in property investment and the 1,500 people who work in the area.

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