Rounds leads GOP colleagues in press for Missouri River flood monitoring

U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) led several Republican colleagues in urging the conferees of the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2019 to fund a snowpack and soil moisture monitoring system to mitigate future flooding along the Missouri River.

The lawmakers seek to have a provision included in the final conference report for S. 2975 that clarifies federal funds in a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) account could be used to implement the monitoring system, according to an Aug. 9 statement from Sen. Rounds’ office.

“Prompted by the devastating flooding along the Missouri River in 2011, the Government Accountability Office released a report in September 2014 that concluded that the [Corp’s] flood prevention mission would likely benefit from the development and implementation of forecasting techniques,” the members wrote last week in a bicameral letter sent to budget leaders.

“Congress has taken action to facilitate USACE’s adoption of this program. Therefore, we respectfully request that you incorporate this report language into the final conference report,” wrote Sen. Rounds, who was joined by U.S. Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and John Hoeven (R-ND) and U.S. Reps. Kristi Noem (R-SD), and Sam Graves (R-MO), among others, in signing the letter.

Sen. Rounds, chairman of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Management and Regulatory Oversight, which oversees the Army Corps of Engineers, previously has called on the Corps to implement the snowpack monitoring system and related language was included in Senate Report 115-258 at his request.

Specifically, the report informs the Army Corps of Engineers that the previously authorized soil moisture and snowpack monitoring program is eligible for funding from the Corp’s Operation and Maintenance account.

“The Corps is also encouraged to provide sufficient funding in future budget submissions for this program,” according to the Senate report.

“Prompted by the devastating flooding along the Missouri River in 2011, the Government Accountability Office released a report in September 2014 that concluded that the USACE’s flood prevention mission would likely benefit from the development and implementation of forecasting techniques,” the lawmakers wrote.