Senate EPW Committee Advances GLRI Reauthorization

During a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee markup session on May 1, members advanced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act (2024) with a voice vote. The GLRI Act would reauthorize the eponymous program for an additional five years, from 2027-31, and increase its authorized funding level to $500 million per year. The bill was introduced by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and J.D. Vance (R-OH), Co-Chairs of the Great Lakes Task Force, and has 14 sponsors in the Senate.

In his opening statement, Committee Chair Tom Carper (D-DE) noted: “Since its inception in 2010, this successful bipartisan program has protected or enhanced hundreds of thousands of acres of wildlife habitat and accelerated the cleanup of polluted sites in the Great Lakes region. Extending the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative will continue to ensure restoring and protecting Great Lakes ecosystems.” Ranking Member Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) concurred, saying, “This initiative supports important activities to address environmental challenges facing the Great Lakes in coordination with non-federal partners. I’m pleased to support this legislation.”

Senator Stabenow, a member of the Committee and the original sponsor, submitted remarks after the vote thanking the Committee and Senator Vance for his partnership. “GLRI has spurred a five-fold increase in successful cleanup and delisting of Areas of Concern, kept over two million pounds of phosphorus runoff from reaching our Great Lakes...This is why the program shares such strong bipartisan support – it works,” she said. “But there is still a lot more left to do. That’s why today’s bill is so important. It ensures that the program will continue to restore and protect our Great Lakes for years to come.”

Learn more about the GLRI Act of 2024 and other Great Lakes legislation at our Great Lakes Legislative Tracker here.