AISI applauds waterways spending bill

The CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), Washington, has issued a statement approving of the passage in the United States Senate of legislation allocating funding to inland waterways shipping infrastructure.

AISI President and CEO Kevin Dempsey calls the final version of the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (WRDA 2024) a bipartisan bill that passed by a vote of 97-1 in the chamber.

The Senate version, says Dempsey, represents a final agreement negotiated throughout the year to reconcile the two different versions of the bill passed earlier this year by the Senate and the House.

“AISI applauds the passage of the water resources bill by the Senate today to fund critical U.S. Army Corps of Engineers water infrastructure projects — including the construction and maintenance of ports, inland waterways, locks and dams across the U.S.,” says Dempsey.

“These investments are essential to the competitiveness of the American steel industry for transporting raw materials to their plants and finished products to end users in the market,” he adds.

Steel for recycling is among the raw materials that travel in bulk in the Mississippi River and Ohio River networks and their tributaries. Disruptions in the inland waterways shipping of ferrous scrap in the U.S. can cause significant stress.

“In addition to authorizing 21 new water projects, the bill also updates the project cost share formula, which will facilitate the timely construction of important inland navigation projects that are critical to the steel industry and our customers,” says Dempsey.

Earlier this month, AISI sent a letter to members of the House urging passage of the bill and in mid-December reached out to Senate leaders to urge passage.

“We look forward to the president signing this measure to continue to ensure the stability of our nation’s marine transportation system,” concludes Dempsey.