House Water Resources Development Act Bill Includes Language for Secure Lock and Dam Operations and Protects IFPTE Members’ Work
The House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee marked up their version of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) with a version of IFPTE-requested language that protects lock and dam operations and hydroelectric operations from being performed and controlled through remote offsite operations.
WRDA is a two-year authorization bill for Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Civil Works projects that establishes policies, prioritizes projects, and sets funding levels and cost-sharing formulas – though it does not appropriate funds for USACE.
Over the last two years, IFPTE local leaders, led by Local 561 steward Michael Arendt, talked to members of Congress from both sides of the aisle to explain how IFPTE-represented lock and dam operators provide safe transit of commercial and recreational vessels, ensure these critical infrastructure sites are functional and secure, and support interstate commerce and critical supply chains. IFPTE members also discussed the cybersecurity risks, the potential danger to infrastructure and public safety, and the uncertain costs associated with remote offsite operation of locks and dams and hydroelectric dams. The language, in section 136 of the House bill, has bipartisan support.
In past WRDA bills, IFPTE has successfully added language to protect the work IFPTE members do. In 2018 WRDA bill, IFPTE was able to include bill text that designates USACE lock and dam operations and hydroelectric operations as inherently governmental activities that are protected from privatization.
While the House bill still has a long way to go before being enacted and the Senate version of the WRDA bill is focused on providing adequate funding for USACE Civil Works projects and does not include policy provisions like the IFPTE-requested language, IFPTE continues to engage with lawmakers, and work with other labor unions and the Waterways Council, which IFPTE is a member of, to make sure Congress passes a final bill that includes both funding for critical infrastructure projects and language to safeguard USACE lock and dam and hydroelectric dam operations.
Read IFPTE’s issue brief on “Ensuring Secure On-Site Operations for Army Corps of Engineers Hydroelectric Dams and Navigational Locks and Dams.”