Fecha de publicación: 07/03/2024 Fuente: California Agriculture Today Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-22) voted in support of the first Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Consolidated Appropriations Act, which provides discretionary resources for six of the twelve FY24 appropriations bills. Congressman Valadao, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, secured several wins for the Central Valley in the annual spending package, including $55 million in direct funding for community improvement projects. Community Projects direct existing federal dollars back to local communities through federal grants.
“I came to Congress to deliver results for the Central Valley, and I’m proud that my work on this year’s government funding bills brings taxpayer dollars back to our community for local water storage projects, infrastructure improvements, and public safety,” said Congressman Valadao. “Importantly, this bill helps us counter the threat of foreign ownership of U.S. farmland, fully funds veterans’ health care programs, and expands efforts to combat fentanyl. This is by no means a perfect bill, but it is the result of bipartisan cooperation to reduce wasteful spending, keep our government running, and provide critical support for our communities.”
Congressman Valadao submitted several community project funding requests. The following were included in the final bill. Click here for an interactive map of the Community Project Funding requests Rep. Valadao secured for the 22nd Congressional District.

$6 million for the city of Delano’s Well 42 Project to create a new city well and treatment plant to provide clean and contaminant free water to residents.
$6 million for McFarland to repave new roads and maintain several roads that are unsafe for vehicles and pedestrians.
$3.5 million for Porterville to build a new regional access road.
$4 million for the International Agri-Center Way Extension Project in Tulare to increase safety and reduce congestion in the area.
$3.9 million for Tulare County’s Ave 56 Farm to Market Road Project to resurface 7.2 miles of roadway.
$9 million for the construction of a new homeless shelter campus in Bakersfield.
$2 million for a new Kings County Community Service Center that will house a food bank, emergency shelter, housing navigation center, and centralized kitchen.
$7.3 million for the East Lacy Corridor Improvement Project in Hanford to resurface and restripe roads to increase safety.
$5 million to reconstruct the infrastructure of MLK Jr. Blvd in Bakersfield to increase accessibility and economic development of the area.
$1.6 million for Bakersfield to construct an integrated Portable Fueling Container for the fueling of hydrogen fuel cell buses and electric vehicles.
$230,200 to provide much-needed upgrades to the Shafter Senior Center.
$1 million for the Seaborn Reservoir Project to provide new surface water supply storage and flood mitigation for the greater Tulare area.
$1.75 million for the city of Lindsay to replace an old main pipeline to improve water quality.
$3.25 million for the Arvin-Edison groundwater recharge project to reduce landowner’s groundwater pumping and provide in-lieu groundwater recharge.
$622,000 to provide critical 911 dispatch equipment for the Wasco Police Department Dispatch Center to increase public safety for Wasco citizens.

Background:
Community Project Funding requests bring certain projects, which are already eligible, to the front of the line for federal grant funding. When the funding is approved through the annual appropriations process, these organizations or local governments must still submit their grant application. This money is already being appropriated to various accounts, and through Community Project Funding, Rep. Valadao is able to direct these available dollars back to his district. If Rep. Valadao did not submit these requests, the Biden administration and bureaucrats at departments would be making the decisions about where this money would go. Members of Congress know their communities better than department employees in DC, and have a better understanding of which projects would be most beneficial to their communities.
The post Congressman Valadao Secures $55 Million for Central Valley Projects appeared first on California Agriculture News Today.