Issue Position: Understanding Our Challenges

Issue Position

Understanding our challenges starts with bolstering our infrastructure to make our city stronger and more resilient by keeping us safe from more frequent and more extreme weather events and partnering with our local agencies to make smart investments to keep us moving forward.

Our community needs a representative who will fight for our infrastructure--especially flood mitigation and the expansion of public transit--and advocate for our needs in Washington. In Congress, I will:

*Act, not simply react when disaster strikes. We must work together to make smart investments now to prepare our community for catastrophic events, mitigating potential damage and preparing for effective response. Fiscally responsible investment now through federal revitalization programs will provide high-risk communities like ours with the resources we need to be ready for future disasters and reduce the costs of recovery. Every dollar invested in disaster mitigation saves six dollars in the long run.
*Create a comprehensive plan to prepare for future flooding. We create a multi-faceted plan to address the many threats we face that prioritizes improving existing structures, identifying additional detention areas, revising the floodplain maps, and devising and installing a system for coastal surge protection.
*Break the backlog at federal level to expedite funding to improve existing structures, including the Addicks and Barker reservoirs, ensure completion of Project Brays as quickly as possible, and study and begin new projects.
*Dedicate one staff position to addressing flooding and infrastructure matters, which will streamline communications with key agency partners, including the City of Houston, Harris County, Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), the Army Corps of Engineers, and district residents.
*Improve communication across the district during natural disasters. Work with local partners to develop a notification system to advise residents about how to get safety during a disaster, and develop contingency plans for elderly and vulnerable populations who may not be reachable.
*Reauthorize permanently and improve our National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Congress has deferred making improvements to this program by providing seven short-term extensions rather than making meaningful bipartisan improvements to the program so our community is secure and prepared for the next storm.
*Partner with METRO and bring federal funding that expands our transit system and keeps our workforce and economy moving forward, bringing federal resources to support the forthcoming regional transit plan from the Houston-Galveston Area Council.
*Pass a federal infrastructure investment plan that puts money into much-needed infrastructure improvements while creating jobs and protecting public health.
*Protect tax deductions that spur investment. The tax code contains many key provisions that incentivize private investment in communities. These range from the historical tax credit, which encourages developers to revitalize old buildings, to private activity bonds, which attract private financing to state and local projects. These provisions have helped transform cities and towns across the country, and can help move us forward.

Source