As Alaskans continue to grapple with the hardships from recent disasters – fisheries shortfalls and tsunami debris washing ashore – Senator Murkowski today voted in support of the Supplemental Appropriations Bill H.R. 1 that will provide a financial response to federally-recognized disasters across the country, from Alaskan fisheries to East Coast communities still reeling from Hurricane Sandy.
However, when spending was proposed that did not serve the purpose of relief or response – whether future anti-flood construction projects or paying the costs for putting out wildfires in advance of fire season – Senator Murkowski cast her vote against those measures to craft the leanest bill possible.
“This Supplemental Bill delivers on the promise from the federal government for disaster relief,” said Murkowski. “This is not a perfect bill by any means, but it is a bill that addresses the urgent concerns of millions of Americans – including the Alaskans who suffered economically from this summer’s low king salmon runs as well as the coastal Alaskans who regularly see a new and possibly dangerous piece of debris in their waters or off their beaches.”
Thanks in part to Senator Murkowski’s work on the Appropriations Committee, the Supplemental Funding bill includes:
- $150 million dollars in fishery disaster relief, to be shared among multiple states, and
- $56 million for marine debris efforts in several states.
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