Kaptur Leads Congressional Call for Appointment of Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Administrator

Washington, D.C. – Today, Representative Marcy Kaptur (OH-09) – Co-Chair of the House Great Lakes Task Force – led a bipartisan letter to President Joe Biden alongside 40 Members of the House and Senate calling for the appointment of an Administrator to lead the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.

The Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (GLSLSDC) is responsible for operating and maintaining the U.S. portions of the St. Lawrence Seaway, a deep draft commercial waterway that links the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean and connects the region’s ports to world markets. The GLSLSDC Administrator role has been vacant since 2017.

“Approximately 40 million tons of cargo pass through the Seaway and its navigation locks each year, supporting more than 90,000 jobs in the binational Great Lakes region,” wrote Rep. Kaptur and her colleagues. “This commerce is critical to our manufacturers and agricultural exporters. . . We urge the White House to prioritize the appointment of a new Administrator for the agency, one that would the further economic development of the region, while working in partnership with communities and stakeholders within the Great Lakes basin.”

The full letter led by Rep. Kaptur can be found here.

Signing on to the letter were Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Gary Peters (D-MI), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Todd Young (R-IN); and Representatives Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Dave Joyce (R-OH), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Shontel Brown (D-OH), Sean Casten (D-IL), Danny Davis (D-IL), Bill Foster (D-IL), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Chris Jacobs (R-NY), Mike Kelly (R-PA), Robin Kelly (D-IL), Bob Latta (R-OH), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Andy Levin (D-MI), Lisa McClain (R-MI), Peter Meijer (R-MI), John Moolenaar (R-MI), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Joe Morelle (D-NY), Frank Mrvan (D-IN), Bobby Rush (D-IL), Tim Ryan (D-OH), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Thomas Tiffany (R-WI), Fred Upton (R-MI), Tim Walberg (R-MI), and Jackie Walorski (R-IN).

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For more information, contact Chris Dalton at chris.dalton@mail.house.gov or (202) 897-7438.