Biden seeks more money for Everglades restoration in 2023 budget
President Joe Biden on Monday proposed spending an additional $407 million for Everglades restoration next fiscal year on top of the more than $1 billion the federal government will spend on the crucial Florida ecosystem during the current year.
“This iconic American landscape provides drinking water supply for more than 8 million Floridians, supports the State’s $90 billion tourism economy, and is home to dozens of endangered or threatened species,” Biden’s newly released budget document states regarding the importance of Everglades restoration.
The proposed funding is part of Biden’s $5.8 trillion budget request for the 2023 fiscal year, which begins in October. It comes after Congress has already approved significant funding for the current fiscal year.
“President Biden’s budget request builds on his historic support for Everglades restoration with another all-time high funding appeal of $407 million,” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a South Florida Democrat, told the Herald in a statement Monday.
Everglades restoration projects are set to receive $1.1 billion from Biden’s infrastructure law and an additional $350 million through the budget bill Congress passed this month, which will fund the federal government through September.
Officials from the Army Corps of Engineers confirmed Monday afternoon that a “substantial amount” of the proposed funding for next fiscal year would go toward the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir Project.
The massive structure, which did not get funding under the infrastructure law, would hold and treat tens of thousands of gallons of polluted Lake Okeechobee water, preventing toxic spills on the coast and providing more water for the thirsty southern glades. The reservoir is a favorite of both Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and some environmental advocates, while others question if it would work as well as advertised.
Michael Connor, assistant secretary of the Army for civil works, said that more than $300 million of the $407 million was earmarked for the reservoir.
Lt. Gen. Scott Spellmon said that money would cover the design and partial construction of the reservoir’s embankment and foundation.
“We look forward to investing in this long-overdue project,” he said.
The announcement from the Army Corps helps address GOP criticism of the spending announced in recent months. While the federal funding announced under the infrastructure law was a record amount for the Everglades, Republicans had complained that it was insufficient because it did not include funding for the reservoir project.
DeSantis and Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, last month both called on Biden to spend $725 million on Everglades restoration in his 2023 budget, more than $300 million above Biden’s request, to ensure the EAA Reservoir Project was funded.
The governor’s office did not immediately respond to inquiries about the funding. Rubio’s office said in an email that Biden’s proposed funding is “significantly less than what the Senator asked for.”
Rubio voted against both the infrastructure law and this month’s budget bill, which included Everglades funding.
Congress ultimately will decide what level of funding the Everglades restoration will receive, which could be above or below Biden’s request, depending on the preferences of lawmakers.
Wasserman Schultz touted Biden’s support for the ecosystem since taking office.
“Paired with the $1.1 billion already on our way from the infrastructure law, this level of commitment is unparalleled, and I’m eager to work with my Appropriations colleagues to make more Everglades funding history with President Biden clearly at our side,” she said.
Everglades Foundation Chief Executive Officer Eric Eikenberg said he wants to see the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir fully funded and built. He called the funding the result of lobbying by both Republican and Democratic Florida representatives.
“The water has to flow south and the money has to flow south. We’re seeing it come from D.C., we’re seeing it from Tallahassee,” he said. “This is how it should work.”
This story was originally published March 28, 2022 at 12:31 PM.
