WASHINGTON — January 15, 2013 — New England lawmakers lost a battle Tuesday to secure millions of dollars in federal aid for the region’s groundfishing fleet as part of the latest efforts to provide emergency relief to Hurricane Sandy victims.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 241-180 Tuesday night to pass a $50.7 billion Sandy relief package nearly 80 days after the superstorm slammed into the mid-Atlantic. But to the dismay of lawmakers from New England and other regions, the House bill offers no assistance to victims of other disasters such as western wildfires and struggling the northeastern groundfishing industry.
The Senate had voted in late December for a $60.4 billion relief bill that included funding for other disasters around the country. But that bill died in the House, and Republicans concerned about the size and scope of the relief package removed the non-Sandy projects from their own bill.
The decisive blow came late Monday when the House Rules Committee voted along party lines to keep three amendments from Massachusetts representatives from being considered on the floor. The proposals sought between $116 million and $150 million for fisheries disasters.
As a result, advocates for the fisheries funding will have to either attempt to re-insert the money in the bill Senate next week or start from scratch with a new appropriations measure, meaning significant delays. Lawmakers from Alaska and Mississippi had also sought aid for fisheries disasters in their states.
Read the full story in the Portland Press Herald