Issue Position: Protecting Our Ports

Issue Position

The Port of Lake Charles is the single most significant economic entity in the 3rd District. It represents 49000 jobs and 6.7 Billion in statewide revenue. It is a massive benefit to our economy… and it's future growth is in peril because of the federal government.

The Port depends upon a 68 mile man made channel constructed almost a hundred years ago. This channel is mandated by the Army Corp of Engineers to be consistently dredged of silt deposits whereby the draft will be 400 feet wide and 40 feet deep. The federal government is supposed to maintain this dredge parameter but it does not. The annual dredging would cost about 40 million each year, an amount easily handled by the Ronald Reagan era import tax of 1/4 of one percent on every item imported to our nation via sea port. This tax, called the Port Maintenance Act, collected billions of dollars over the years… all of which has been stolen by the thieves in suits who run DC. The well envisioned Port Maintenance Act tax fund is billions of dollars worth of IOUs. Every one of which is worth less than the character of the career politicians who stole the money.

Currently at risk are 81.5 BILLION dollars worth of planned projects in the 3rd district which rely directly on the Port of Lake Charles. If the channel is not maintained, these private endeavor projects could choose to do business elsewhere.

The 68 mile Calcasieu Ship Channel must be rightfully restored to its intended depth…and then regularly maintained… by the Army Corp of Engineers. Further, the collected silt would be put to sound use ecologically by piping the dredged mud into depleted coastal areas which surround the Lake Charles Port. This would be righteous expenditure of the people's treasure while at the same time providing positive ecological impact for south Louisiana. The expense of this endeavor pales in comparison to the federal tax revenue produced by the operations of the Lake Charles Port, which equals about 400 million each year. Also, the projected, currently planned GROWTH of L.C. Port productions will provide federal tax revenue which greatly outweighs the price tag of annual dredging. Not only is federally funded dredging righteous and deserved, it makes sense in every way. Federal tax revenue growth from L.C. Port productions is projected at over one hundred million each year for the next 20 years if the 81.5 billion dollars worth of currently planned projects move forward.

The very fact that we have to beg our imperialist federal government for one tenth of our own money back in order to maintain a shipping channel which had its maintenance funding stolen by that very federal government is sickening to me. As the 3rd District Congressman, I intend to be a very, very loud proponent for the Port of Lake Charles.

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