By Matthew Daly
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama signed a bill last Friday authorizing water projects across the country, including $170 million to address lead in the drinking water in Flint, Michigan, and $558 million to provide relief to drought-stricken California.
Obama said the bill advances vital projects across the country to restore watersheds, improve flood control and rebuild water infrastructure - including pipes in Flint, where residents have struggled with lead-tainted water for more than two years.
The bill also approves a series of projects in California that Obama said "will help assure that California is more resilient in the face of growing water demands and drought-based uncertainty."
Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., hailed the Flint measure but called it long overdue. The measure authorizes projects for Flint and other communities, but funding is included in a separate, short-term spending bill approved last week.
"The people of Flint have waited far too long throughout this terrible crisis for their water system to be fixed. It is also past time for the state of Michigan to do everything in its power to meet its responsibilities to help the city recover from the water crisis," Stabenow said.
Published: Tue, Dec 20, 2016
