By Scott Aiken - The U.S. House approved legislation this week that would ensure funding for maintenance dredging to keep harbors on the Great Lakes in operation. A provision included with a short-term highway bill guarantees the use of all funding going into the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund is used as intended. The fund, supported by a tax imposed on commercial shippers, is used to maintain harbors and has always been adequate to keep open deep-draft ports and waterways. But only about half of... Read more

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) hailed this week’s House passage of legislation that would ensure future funding for vital harbor maintenance, keeping harbors throughout southwest Michigan and the Great Lakes open for business. The commonsense provision, which was part of the short-term highway bill (H.R. 4348), guarantees that all funding in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) be fully used for its intended purpose of harbor maintenance. These revenues are already co... Read more

Andrew Green Reporting: The US House this week approved a short term highway funding bill that includes a provision which guarantees that all money in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund actually goes towards paying for things like harbor dredging. Congressman Fred Upton hailed the move on the House floor Thursday, saying that in places like Saint Joseph, Great Lakes shipping is vital to the economy. Upton's been trying to get more Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund money released for dredging projects... Read more

Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) today praised provisions of H.R. 4348 – a short-term extension of federal surface transportation programs – that provide a path forward for approval of the Keystone XL pipeline project as well as ensure future funding for vital harbor maintenance in southwest Michigan. Specifically, the extension would give the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) 30 days to approve the Keystone pipeline and would guarantee that all revenues collected through the Harb... Read more

Representative Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) made the following statement in response to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ announcement that it has approved $693,000 in funding for dredging and maintenance of the St. Joseph harbor for Fiscal Year 2012. This funding includes the $100,000 that was allocated this past December for emergency dredging. Upton worked closely with the Army Corps, area dock owners, and community leaders to obtain that emergency funding to dredge the St. Joseph harbor, which ... Read more

Yesterday, President Obama signed into law H.R. 2845, the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act. Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) issued the following statement after President Obama signed the bill into law: “As chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, I pledged to make pipeline safety a priority for the 112th Congress. I am proud of our bipartisan work to deliver on that promise. This new law will provide a strong framework to keep pipelines safe now and into t... Read more

Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) this afternoon joined the United States Army of Corps of Engineers in announcing $100,000 in emergency funding to dredge the St. Joseph harbor. Over the past weeks, Upton has worked closely with local dock owners, Berrien County officials, and the Corps to reach a solution. The harbor, which is essential to jobs and economic activity in southwest Michigan, has become inaccessible to commercial traffic on account of severe shoaling. One instance of a commerci... Read more

Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, applauded this evening’s passage of bipartisan legislation to ensure vital updates and improvements are made in U.S. pipeline safety. As Chairman, Upton has remained committed to ensuring vital updates and improvements are made in U.S. pipeline safety. The Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011 (H.R. 2845) passed the House by voice vote and now awaits immediate action in the S... Read more

Congressman Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, today announced that a bipartisan and bicameral agreement has been reached on pipeline safety legislation. As Chairman, Upton has remained committed to ensuring vital updates and improvements are made in U.S. pipeline safety. Along with his Michigan colleague and former Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman John D. Dingell (D-Dearborn), Upton is the author of the Pipeline Infrastructure and Community Pro... Read more

U.S. Reps. John Dingell and Fred Upton - With the many challenges facing our nation, Americans are looking for bipartisan leadership in Washington. That is especially true here in Michigan, where unemployment has hovered above 10 percent for nearly three years and the recent economic downturn has further magnified problems for our state's manufacturers and small businesses. Being from Michigan and as the current and former chairmen of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, we have both worked ... Read more