The Senate Appropriations Committee has cleared an 11% increase in the Army Corps of Engineers' civil works program for fiscal 2020, countering the Trump administration's proposal for a substantial funding cut. The $7.75 billion total exceeds the $7.36 billion approved by the House.
The Texas Department of Transportation has commenced the design for widening a 6-mile stretch of the Grand Parkway, or State Highway 99. Funding has not been secured for the project, which would add a third lane in each direction on the road outside Houston.
The definition of which waterways are covered under the Clean Water Act has been narrowed under a rule formulated by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers that reverses regulations put in place in 2015 under President Barack Obama. AGC CEO Stephen Sandherr says the replacement rule provides "the kind of certainty and common sense that the earlier [measure] lacked while continuing to protect water quality."
A pipeline to deliver water to dozens of Navajo Nation communities in New Mexico is set to begin with Interior Department approval of a nearly $84 million contract. The work includes 280 miles of pipeline, water plants and storage.
The Los Angeles Department of Water & Power has agreed to purchase power from an 8minute Solar Energy battery and solar facility to be built in Kern County, Calif., pending City Council approval. The facility will cover a US-record 2,650 acres and will produce 400 megawatts of solar energy, with the ability to store as much as 1,200 megawatt-hours.
Denver International Airport CEO Kim Day says the budget for renovation of Jeppesen Terminal has increased by $120 million, to $770 million. Airport management is seeking a vendor after terminating Great Hall Partners.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is urging the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board to ensure that the Long Island Rail Road gets an equitable share of the funds from Manhattan's planned congestion pricing system in the MTA's five-year capital program. Cuomo also noted that the long-delayed East Side Access project should be prioritized.
Pennsylvania's Allegheny County Sanitary Authority plans to make its proposal to reduce stormwater overflow into area rivers public next week. Federal officials recently approved the $2 billion plan and granted the authority an extra decade -- until 2036 -- to meet compliance requirements.
Dutch environmental consulting group Deltares will review a $1.3 billion plan to add flood protections along a section of lower Manhattan's east side waterfront. The latest proposal would cover the East River Park with several feet of fill and exclude use of the park for about three years.
The Federal Highway Administration has designated $871 million in emergency relief funds to help 39 states, tribal governments and four territories repair infrastructure damaged by natural disasters. None of these funds are earmarked to cover damage related to Hurricane Dorian.
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