Weekly News Summary For February 13-19, 2006:
President Bush asked Congress February 6 to approve a $2.77 trillion budget to fund numerous federal programs in the fiscal year beginning October 1.
The administration’s budget total includes $65.6 billion for the Department of Transportation (DOT) and $35.5 billion for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The DOT budget includes $415 million for the Maritime Administration, down from $673 million this fiscal year, and $8 million for the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, down from $16 million this fiscal year. MarAd’s budget request includes $154 million for the Maritime Security Program, which provides resources to maintain a U.S.-flag merchant fleet crewed by U.S. citizens to serve both the commercial and national security needs of the United States.
The money sought for Homeland Security includes $8.4 billion for the U.S. Coast Guard, about 6 percent more than the funds appropriated for this fiscal year. That total includes $934 million for the Coast Guard’s Integrated Deepwater System, a program to replace an obsolete fleet of cutters and aircraft.
To support the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ civil works program, the president asked Congress to appropriate $4.73 billion for the 2007 fiscal year.
“The Army civil works budget for fiscal year 2007 is the highest budget ever proposed for the civil works program,” said John Paul Woodley Jr., assistant secretary of the Army (civil works), at a budget briefing February 6. “It provides critical funding for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to continue to contribute to the nation’s economic and environmental well being.”…
With 78 senators signed onto the bipartisan letter in support of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) and three more senators, including Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) expressing support, the initial goal waterways advocacy groups set of netting 60 supporting signatures was exceeded.
Sens. Leahy and Bayh had indicated their participation after the letter had already been sealed and Sen. Coburn indicated that he would send a separate letter to Sen. Frist (R-Tenn.) requesting action on the Senate floor.
Paul Rohde, executive director of Midwest Area River Coalition 2000, said Sen. Frist received the letter on February 7 from Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond (R-Mo.), a longtime river supporter.
The 60-senator benchmark was established in September 2005 when Sen. Frist told Rohde and other river supporters to come back when they had 60 signatures.
“He threw the gauntlet down at that time,” said Rohde. “We then knew what we were working with. This is a good step, but this is the time when we need everyone to contact their senators and the White House and impress the importance of WRDA right now.”…
Salvage operations are still being coordinated following an incident in Louisville when the mv. Kelly Lee, owned by Magnolia Marine Transportation Company, Vicksburg, Miss., lost three of its barges in tow, resulting in one 80-foot barge carrying 800,000 gallons of liquid asphalt striking a railroad bridge on January 26.
Two of the barges, including the liquid asphalt barge that struck the railroad bridge, went through McAlpine Dam spillway. The barge that went over the spillway and did not come in contact with the bridge was captured with assistance from towboats in the area including the mv. River Wildcat, owned by Excell Marine Corporation; mv. Gail Ann, owned by Five M Transportation Company; and mv. Glenn R, owned by McBridge Towing Company. The barge that did not go over the spillway was secured with the help of the same vessels.
The barge that did go over the spillway but was secured sustained minor damage. Both of the two secured barges were transported from the scene without any problems.
The river was closed for about 17 hours following the incident. There were about 12 tows that were delayed due to the closure….
In order to install two hurricane-protection sector gates as soon as possible, the New Orleans Engineer District has decided to close a portion of the Harvey Canal in metro New Orleans for five months.
“Completing this $39 million project is of high importance to providing hurricane protection for 250,000 people who live on New Orleans’ West Bank,” said Col. Richard Wagenaar, district engineer.
The Harvey Canal is an industrial waterway about 10 miles long for inland barges, towboats and other shallow-draft vessels. It will be closed at one point only, the construction site just south of the Lapalco Boulevard in Harvey.
“No industries will be blocked by this closure,” said Lary Yorke, the Corps’ construction site-engineer. “The construction site is less than one quarter mile long.”…
American Commercial Lines Inc. (ACL), Jeffersonville, Ind., reported last week that it had net earnings of $8.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2005 and $11.8 million for the full year. It was the company’s first earnings announcement since it went public in October 2005.
For the quarter, the company reported net sales of $236.2 million, a 31 percent increase compared with $180.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2004. The net income figure included a charge for the early retirement of debt of $7.3 million as a result of the company’s initial public offering during the quarter.
The total 2005 net income of $11.8 million compares with the reported $4.4 million for 2004. The 2004 figure included an extraordinary gain on the discharge of debt of $155.4 million and extraordinary bankruptcy-related charges of $140 million. Excluding those items, net income for 2004 would have been a loss of $11 million….
The Waterways Journal encourages letters to the editor.
Have something on your mind?
Send letters to: jshoulberg@waterwaysjournal.net.
(Please indicate whether or not your letter is intended for publication.)
