(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced critical federal funding for Grays Harbor County and Pacific County priorities in the fiscal year 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill.
Due to the threat of Presidential vetoes of America’s domestic spending priorities, Congress combined several appropriations bills into one large “Omnibus bill,” which should pass both houses this week. The Omnibus package contains critical funding for national needs like transportation, homeland security, education, labor and health.
"This federal support is the seed money that helps our communities grow," said Senator Murray. "I am proud to have helped steer this funding to community-supported projects here at home. I work everyday to ensure that even though our state’s residents are 2,500 miles from D.C., their needs are up-front and center. At a time when domestic and local needs are too often being neglected, these worthy projects are getting the support they deserve."
This spending bill is expected to be cleared by the U.S. House of Representatives tonight and sent to the Senate tomorrow.
Below are the projects included for Grays Harbor and Pacific Counties. They are separated by project type:
Transportation Projects
Grays Harbor Transit Vehicle Replacement — $102,900
Funding for the Grays Harbor Transit Vehicle Replacement project will enable the replacement of 2 aged minibuses. This project will help Grays Harbor Transit to continue providing general public service seven days a week with service to local small cities and rural areas. Grays Harbor Transit provides four-intercity routes, paratransit services seven days a week and intermodal connections with six neighboring county transit systems and Amtrak and Greyhound lines. In 2005, Grays Harbor Transit provided over 1.15 million passenger trips. This funding will fully fund the purchase of two minibuses that are programmed for replacement in 2008.
Pacific Transit Vehicle Replacement — $34,300
This funding will be used to purchase a minibus to replace an aged vehicle. Replacement of this vehicle is critical for Pacific Transit to continue intercity services to Raymond, Aberdeen, South Bend, Naselle, Ilwaco and the Long Beach Peninsula loop. Pacific Transit provides complimentary dial-a-ride service for elderly and disabled people, and this funding helps ensure that those services are retained. Pacific Transit provided over 117,000 passenger trips in 2005. This vehicle replacement is part of the agency’s 6 year capital improvement plan and is identified in regional plans as critical to serving regional mobility needs.
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