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Policy and Advocacy |
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Questions? |
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Comments or questions about the Commission's advocacy and policy work? Contact , Executive Director, at teder@glc.org
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Advocacy Activities in 2009
FY2010 Budget: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
President Obama’s proposed FY2010 budget includes a Great Lakes Restoration Initiative that will accelerate Great Lakes restoration by investing $475 million to confront some of the most serious threats to the region, including invasive species, nonpoint source pollution and toxic sediments. It represents a significant down payment on a multi-year effort to restore the Great Lakes and help revive the region’s struggling economy. The Great Lakes Commission applauds this effort and calls on Congress to support the inclusion of $475 million in the EPA FY2010 budget for the multiagency initiative.
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Website (GLRI)
USEPA GLRI Website
GLRI Action Plan FY2010 - FY 2014
GLRI Interagency Funding Guide
Current Funding Opportunities:
Materials from Congressional Staff Briefing (June 2, 2009):
Other Materials and Information:
Track the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative on GLIN
Asian Carp Prevention
The Great Lakes region remains under constant threat that Asian carp will migrate through the Illinois River system and past or around the electric dispersal barrier system in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) into Lake Michigan. Recent eDNA evidence of Asian carp has heightened the region's concern. The Commission recogonizes the efforts that have been undertaken to date; however, the threat of an invasion by this voracious feeder demands an even greater response and allocation of resources.
Track Asian carp prevention legislation on GLIN
Great Lakes Commission Legislative Priorities for FY 2010
On behalf of its eight member states, the Great Lakes Commission has developed a set of legislative priorities to protect and enhance the quality of our region’s environment and economy. These priorities are presented to Congress at Great Lakes Day 2009, held in Washington DC on February 25, 2009. The Commission’s priorities respond to and will advance the recommendations of the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy (www.glrc.us). The Commission endorses the recommendations of the Council of Great Lakes Governors to Congress; the recommendations herein complement the governors’ requests.
Economic Stimulus Package
The Great Lakes Commission urges Congress to include funding for critical Great Lakes infrastructure and environmental restoration needs in the economic stimulus package to be considered by Congress. The Great Lakes regional economy has been hard hit by the recent economic slowdown. Now, more than ever, we have an opportunity to create jobs, stimulate economic development and protect and restore fresh water resources in the eight-state Great Lakes region.
Great Lakes Legacy Act
The Great Lakes Commission calls on Congress to fully fund the Great Lakes Legacy Act at $54 million in FY2010 and increase its annual funding authorization to $150 million. The Legacy Act authorizes funding to remediate contaminated sediments in Great Lakes Areas of Concern designated under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. The Legacy Act program has been highly successful in implementing contaminated sediment cleanups and has become a cornerstone of restoration efforts for the Areas of Concern. The program enjoys strong support from the Great Lakes states, the business community, regional environmental organizations, and local Area of Concern advisory councils.
Great Lakes Commission Advocacy Activities in 2008
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