Díaz-Balart Secures Additional Everglades Funding in the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill
November 3, 2023
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-26), a senior member of the House Committee on Appropriations, issued the following statement after the passage of H.R. 4821, the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2024.
“Continued restoration of the Everglades is critical to our ecosystem and local economy. I applaud Chairwoman Granger and Subcommittee Chairman Simpson for reining in the out-of-control spending and woke policies of the Biden Administration while securing American taxpayer dollars for the restoration of U.S. energy security, public safety, and Everglades preservation in Florida."
This bill reins in spending and secures conservative wins by:
- Prohibiting funds to promote or advance Critical Race Theory.
- Prohibiting funds for the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
- Preventing the EPA from imposing burdensome regulations on farmers who must use rodenticides to prevent disease and crop loss.
- Expanding access to critical minerals.
- Requiring the Secretary of the Interior to conduct quarterly onshore oil and gas lease sales.
- Requiring oil and gas lease sales in both the Central and Western Gulf of Mexico Planning Areas and the Alaska region;
- Providing funds for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Education, and the Indian Health Service.
- Supporting the "Payment in Lieu of Taxes" program, of which Collier County is the largest Florida recipient.
Díaz-Balart, founder and co-chair of the Congressional Everglades Caucus, was successful in including the following items in this legislation:
- $11.6 million for the Everglades Restoration Project through the National Park Service.
- $10 million for the Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge Conservation Area through the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).
- $1.465 million for Big Cypress National Preserve through the LWCF.
- $41 million for the National Estuary Program.
- $72.6 million for the State and Tribal Wildlife Grant Program for the development and implementation of programs benefiting wildlife and their habitats.
- $8.5 million for the South Florida Geographic Program to ensure clean water flows through the Everglades National Park.
- $16 million to address water quality by providing funding for critical harmful algal bloom research.
- $1 million in direct funding for South Florida to expand water quality and ecosystem health monitoring and prediction network.
"Floridians can take pride in these critical investments to preserve and restore our Everglades and safeguard our coastal areas.
Restoration is crucial to protect our state's ecosystem, and it also safeguards Florida's drinking water supply. Furthermore, restoration and operations funding boost our state's economy. I look forward to continue working with my colleagues to ensure that the Everglades flourishes for many years to come."
Díaz-Balart was also successful in securing funding for the Everglades in the FY24 Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, which passed the House last week and included items that are specific to South Florida:
- $425 million for Everglades restoration; and
- $6.3 million for the Corp of Engineers Operation and Maintenance Regional Sediment Management will help increase coastal resilience in Florida and nationally.