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W E E K L Y  U P D A T E    May 23,  2017
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President Trump Releases Full 
FY 2018 Federal Budget

Today the administration released its full federal budget for FY 2018. The  $4.1 trillion budget request would cut spending for non-defense domestic programs by $54 billion and slash overall federal spending by $3.6 trillion over the next decade.   Previously, in March the administration released a "skinny" budget outlining many of the principles and cuts contained in the full budget proposal.  The Northeast-Midwest Institute  has prepared a fact sheet on the administration's proposal  that can be viewed here.   

For more information please contact   Matthew McKenna Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
NEMWI to Host Congressional Briefing on The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI): Success Stories and the Challenges Ahead

The Northeast-Midwest Institute's Great Lakes Washington Program will hold a Congressional Briefing on Tuesday, June 6 at 2 PM in Rayburn HOB 2252 entitled  "The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI): Success Stories and the Challenges Ahead." The briefing will provide Congressional staff and Great Lakes organizations the opportunity to hear directly from Great Lakes Stakeholders about some of the achievements  that are being made through the GLRI. The briefing will include an overview of the GLRI, success stories through the cleanup of toxic areas of concern and habitat restoration in  the Great Lakes, challenges the GLRI faces in the current budget environment, and the economic impacts that the GLRI has had on the region over the last eight years.  The tentative list of speakers includes:
  • Mr. Matt McKenna, Northeast-Midwest Institute
  • Mr. Cameron Davis, GEI Consultants, Inc.
  • Mr. Chad Lord, Healing Our Waters Coalition
  • Mr. Kyle Rorah, Ducks Unlimited 
  • Mr. Matt Doss, Great Lakes Commission
To RSVP, please email events@nemw.org.

For more information, please contact   Matthew McKenna Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
IAGLR Conference
Held in Detroit, MI

The International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR) held their annual conference last week in Detroit, MI.  This year marks the 60th anniversary of the conference and was the largest ever held, with over 1000 people in attendance.  The IAGLR conference is an annual conference that focuses on a wide scope of Great Lakes research.  Research was shared in over 70 conference sessions on a variety of topics including fisheries, water monitoring and modeling, harmful algal blooms, the Great Lakes Areas of Concern, outreach and education, and others. 
 
The conference plenary speakers were Joan Rose, Ph.D., Michigan State University and winner of the 2016 Stockholm Water Prize; and Cameron Davis, GEI Consultants and former Senior Advisor to the U.S. EPA Administrator.  Dr. Rose talked about areas where Great Lakes scientists should invest their efforts in order to achieve high water quality.  Mr. Davis talked about the need for Great Lakes scientists to link their work more closely to disciplines outside the physical, biological and chemical sciences.
 
For more information, contact Ankita Mandelia, Policy Analyst for the Towards Sustainable Water Information Program, or Matthew McKenna, Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program.

This Week on Capitol Hill

The House will vote on  H.R. 953, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2017, which seeks to loosen regulation of pesticides approved for use by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The Senate will continue focusing on confirming President Trump's political nominations. Additionally, the following Committee activity is scheduled for the remainder of the week:

Wednesday, May 24th
  • The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure will hold a full committee markup at 10:00 AM in House Rayburn 2167. Legislation to be considered includes:
    • H.R. 2518 - The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2017
    • H.R. 2548 - The FEMA Reauthorization Act of 2017
    • H.R. 2593 - The Federal Maritime Commission Authorization Act of 2017
Thursday, May 25th
For more information, contac Matthew McKenna ,
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation