Ranking Member Kaptur Remarks at US Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Program Oversight Hearing

Washington, DC — Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Ranking Member of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, delivered the following remarks at the subcommittee's oversight hearing on the US Army Corps of Engineers' Civil Works Program:

- As Prepared For Delivery -

Let me join you in welcoming the US Army Corps of Engineers' civil works program. Thank you to our dedicated civil works commanding officer for joining us today. The American people thank you for your service to our Nation in building America forward in every region of our nation. The Corps has been making America great for over two centuries.

And I thank my friend and colleague Chair Fleischmann for holding this hearing. While Congress has still not finished our jobs for the fiscal year 2025 bill, I know that if we were left to our own, we could find bipartisan compromise. I hope those ultimately in charge will soon find a bipartisan solution to keep the government open next month and for the remainder of fiscal year 2025.

The Corps of Engineers plays a critical role in developing the resources of our land and generating enough power for 11 million homes every year. The Corps builds America for generations to come, strengthening our economy, sustaining life on our corner of the Earth, and ensuring public safety against the now constant onslaught of both natural and human-caused disasters across our country.

In 2024, there were 27 confirmed major weather and climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 Billion each. These included drought, flooding, severe storms, and wildfire. The cost totaled over $182 Billion, the fourth-costliest year on record. We can all see our property insurance bills rising, and the Corps knows why. 

I can attest that in 2023 in the Great Lakes region adjoining the Canadian border when I arrived home, I experienced the smokey fallout from the wildfires burning up in Canada that my garden was covered with a brownish-black soot. Just thinking about addressing the outcomes of the Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles overwhelms a casual observer.

It is undeniable that we are witnessing growing weather events stemming from climate change occurring in real time before our very eyes. The US Army Corps of Engineers is needed now more than ever to devise modern approaches to changing freshwater cycles, whether it’s down the Mississippi, in the Great Lakes, or the arid West. With an increasingly volatile climate, the Corps must plan and implement solutions to make our communities more resilient. 

Investments in the critical water infrastructure of our Nation allow the Corps to focus on their significant missions across our country: keeping commerce safely flowing on our waterways; managing flood risks through dams, levees, and shoreline protection; restoring ecosystems; and building local water clean and drinking water infrastructure.

There is no doubt that every Member of Congress is impacted by the work of the Corps of Engineers. And there is bipartisan support in Congress for your work.

However, the Corps has faced numerous challenges in engineering and design, schedule delays, cost overruns, and contractor performance that correlate with massive weather events, workforce shortage, and supply backups.

In the Great Lakes region, projects like the Soo Locks are a prime example of investments that will turbocharge our economy and assure the resiliency and efficiency of our maritime transportation system. But the project has experienced time delays and cost escalations. Enlightening our subcommittee on why this is occurring will be appreciated.

Similarly, the Brandon Road project is aimed at arresting the economic and environmental damage unleashed by invasive carp species that will exterminate the $7 Billion native fishery. However, this project is another example of one burdened with cost increases and delays. 

The Corps is fully aware it must address project execution challenges because our constituents depend on the successful completion of these projects, and the additional costs are ultimately paid by taxpayers and consumers. 

I thank the witnesses for being here to discuss how the Corps is learning lessons from these challenges and trying to implement solutions across the country.

With that, I’ll close my remarks, and I look forward to the discussion.

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