Donovan Bill for Staten Island Seawall Passes the House

Washington, D.C. – Tonight, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Congressman Dan Donovan’s (R-NY) legislation (H.R. 6666) that would allow the Secretary of Interior to grant an easement on Miller Field to the City of New York for operation and maintenance of the Staten Island Seawall following its completion. The bill resolves potential legal impediments and is critical to ensuring that the Staten Island Seawall Project starts construction on time. Failure for the Senate to immediately pass Donovan’s bill would be a major setback for Staten Island East Shore residents. HR 6666 will now head to the Senate to be voted on.

A transcript of Donovan’s floor speech in support of the bill can be found below:

“…I rise in support of H.R. 6666, a bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to grant an easement to the City of New York for operation and maintenance of the Staten Island Seawall project following its completion.

“I have lived on Staten Island my entire life and was there with my fellow residents as Superstorm Sandy devastated our community. New York suffered an astronomical $19 billion in damages, and nearly 1.2 million of my neighbors were without power. We lost 43 New Yorkers during that storm - 24 of them from Staten Island and several more from the portion of the district that I represent in Brooklyn. This project will help my constituents to recover.

“This will be transformative for tens of thousands of Staten Islanders, as it will give them the comprehensive flood protection, and flood insurance relief, that they need. When the project is 50 percent complete, many people will begin to receive discounts in their flood insurance premiums; and when the project is completed, most of the families living on the other side of this project will have no requirement to have flood insurance coverage at all. It will be a truly life changing project for them.

“Mr. Speaker, I ask that the House approve this legislation under the suspension of the rules, so that the Seawall project can bring these benefits to my neighbors on Staten Island.”

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