[Excerpts from July 16 Senator Dorgan Presss Release]
Water projects throughout North Dakota received a big boost today, as U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) restored funding in a Senate appropriations bill for a series of projects substantially underfunded by President Bush’s fiscal year 2004 budget. The Energy and Water Appropriations bill was approved by the subcommittee, on which Dorgan sits, today and will be considered by the full Appropriations Committee tomorrow morning. In total, the Subcommittee approved $72.686 million in funding for North Dakota water projects, among them:

- Grand Forks Flood Control, $40,000,000 Funding will be used to continue construction of the Grand Forks flood control project, which is slated to be built over several years.

- Garrison Diversion Project (NAWS), $28,386,000 This funding will allow construction of the Northwest Area Water Supply project to move forward. The funding will also cover the continued development of municipal, rural and industrial (MR&I) systems in communities and Indian reservations across the state.

- Wahpeton Flood Control Project, $1,000,000 This bill provides $1 million to the Army Corps of Engineers to continue flood control work in Wahpeton, North Dakota and another $2 million to continue the flood control construction project across the river in Breckenridge, Minnesota.

- Grafton Flood Control Project, $1,000,000 This funding will be used to begin the construction of a diversion channel and a series of levees to protect the city of Grafton from Red River flooding.

Full Release

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