Senate Hearing on 2016 Budget for Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation

• •The President's 2016 budget proposal for the Army Corps of Engineers is $751 million (14%) lower than the previous year's spending level.
• •The proposed budget exceeds the spending caps established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 by approximately $74 billion.
• •The Chickamauga Lock in Tennessee is currently experiencing concrete degradation and was closed for emergency repairs in October 2014.
• •The Chickamauga Lock is ranked fourth on the priority list for inland waterway projects.
• •Failure of the Chickamauga Lock could force 150,000 trucks onto Interstate 75 and increase shipping costs for regional manufacturers and laboratories.
• •The Bureau of Reclamation provides water to one in five Western farmers, irrigating 10 million acres of land.
• •Congress recently enacted a user fee increase for commercial barge owners to fund lock and dam replacements.
• •The subcommittee hearing format allows witnesses 5 minutes for testimony and Senators 5 minutes for questioning.

The hearing initiates the legislative process for funding critical national infrastructure, including inland waterways, flood management, and irrigation systems that support agricultural and industrial shipping operations.

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.