Senator Murray: “It’s great to see this critical funding go to infrastructure projects that will support military families at naval installations in Kitsap and Everett, and help improve quality of life for our servicemembers and their families.”
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee who serves on the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies subcommittee, announced federal awards totaling more than $15 million from U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) for infrastructure projects at Naval Base Kitsap and the Port of Everett. The funding comes via the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP), which funds projects benefiting local military installations, and provides support to service members, their families, and defense efforts.
“It’s great to see this critical funding go to infrastructure projects that will support military families at naval installations in Kitsap and Everett, and help improve quality of life for our servicemembers and their families. Servicemembers and their loved ones make tremendous sacrifices to keep us safe, and it’s on us to make sure that they are taken care of both during and after their service. That’s why I fought to fund programs like this one, and others that help provide quality, affordable child care, housing, and nutrition services to military families, and why I’m going to keep working to ensure that our servicemembers in Washington state and anywhere else have the support they need,” said Senator Murray.
The Port of Everett will receive $5,254,800 in DCIP funds to improve the port’s marina facilities in support of Naval Station Everett, and the Kitsap County Sewer Utility will receive $10,000,000 in support of Naval Base Kitsap. The investments come from the Defense Community Infrastructure Pilot Program, which funds projects benefiting local installations, and provides support to servicemembers, their families, and DoD missions. As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray has successfully pushed to increase funding to the newly created DCIP program to $50 million in FY20 and $60 million in FY21. Thanks to Senator Murray’s leadership, Washington state received 25% of the FY21 funding.
The daughter of a World War II veteran and also a senior member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Senator Murray has been a longtime advocate for veterans and military families. Earlier this year, Senator Murray introduced the Veteran Families Health Services Act of 2021 — comprehensive legislation that would, among other things, ensure that service members’ and veterans’ fertility treatments, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) and counseling, are included as part of the health benefits they’ve earned. In May, she helped introduce three bipartisan bills to support military families and help increase access to paid parental leave, better equip the Pentagon to help fix the 135 Military Child Development Centers (CDCs) operating in “poor” or “failing” condition, and support active duty military families experiencing food insecurity to ensure no one willing to serve this nation in uniform struggles to feed their family.
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