Rep. Slavens offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 36.   

            A resolution to memorialize Congress to maintain funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.

            Whereas, The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative represents a long-overdue commitment to a fundamentally important natural resource and an investment in its long-term health for future generations. This effort is wide ranging in scope, with the approved $475 million targeted for hundreds of projects to improve wildlife habitat, dredge toxic sediments left by industrial sources, fix beach pollution, and combat invasive species. Apart from the obvious impact this investment will have in reversing damage inflicted over generations, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative will both protect and create jobs in the region; and

            Whereas, Administration officials have indicated their intention to reduce funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative by $175 million for Fiscal Year 2011 and by $125 million for Fiscal Year 2012, and other proposals would cut the funding even more severely. These proposals have elicited strong reactions throughout the Great Lakes basin; and

            Whereas, While the need for fiscal prudence is clear and understood, research has shown that the short-term and long-term economic benefits of Great Lakes restoration investments far outweigh the costs. The 2007 Brookings Institute report, Healthy Waters, Strong Economy: The Benefits of Restoring the Great Lakes Ecosystem, estimated that every dollar spent on Great Lakes restoration yields four to five dollars in economic benefits to the region. Great Lakes Restoration Initiative projects put people to work and yield environmental and aesthetic improvements that will assist the region in attracting new talent and investment that will create additional economic opportunities. Putting off badly needed restoration now will only lead to far higher costs in the future and imperil the quality of the Great Lakes for years to come; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we memorialize Congress to maintain funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.