Senate-Passed Spending Bill Includes $61 Million in Funding Requested by Senator Boxer for Bay Area Projects

December 19, 2007 -- Washington, DC –Last night, the U.S. Senate passed the FY 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill, which includes more than $61 million requested by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) for Bay Area projects ranging from programs for at-risk youth and gang prevention to wetlands restoration and dredging that will allow the Port of Oakland to receive newer, larger cargo ships.

Boxer sought funding for the following projects included in the omnibus spending bill:

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· After School Programs for At-Risk Youth (East Palo Alto) - $76,643 - The funding will provide after-school learning and enrichment activities in East Palo Alto, where over one third of the city’s residents are under the age of 19, and the high school dropout rate is 64 percent.

· The Place to Be After Three Program (City of Fairfield) - $406,796 – Funding will support daily operation of after school programs including physical fitness and nutrition components at three middle school sites and one alternative education site.

· Gang Prevention Initiative (East Palo Alto) - $466,500 - Funding for personnel and support to maintain Anti-Gang Initiative in cooperation with 13 other local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies.

· Solano County Gang and Methamphetamine Enforcement Teams - $164,500 - Funding to continue and expand two multi-jurisdictional enforcement teams – one for methamphetamine and one for gangs.

“Providing quality after-school programs is a critical investment in our children’s well-being and productivity. This bill makes an important investment in after-school and gang prevention programs that will help keep our kids safe and provide them with a real alternative to drugs, gangs and violence,” Boxer said.

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· Port of Oakland Harbor Deepening - $40,666,752 - Continuation of the Port of Oakland’s 50 foot channel deepening project. The project will deepen the federal channels of the Oakland Harbor and Port-maintained berths to a depth of 50ft. below mean lower low water (MLLW) in order to accommodate the newest generation of deep-draft container ships.

“As the fourth busiest port in the nation, Oakland harbor is one of this country’s most important economic gateways,”"This bill provides critical funding to deepen the Oakland harbor so that the next generation of commercial ships can reach the Port of Oakland. This environmentally sound project will also use material left over from dredging to restore wetlands in the San Francisco Bay.” Boxer said.

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· Nutrition Education Program (Berkeley) - $324,258 - The Edible Schoolyard is a nutrition education program that teaches the principles of ecology, the origins of food, and promotes healthy food choices.

“As the nation confronts the crisis of childhood obesity, the Edible Schoolyard program is at the cutting edge of providing young people with healthy diet options,” said Boxer.

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· Hamilton Airfield Wetlands Restoration (Marin County) - $8,375,808 - The first phase of the Hamilton Wetland Restoration Project will provide nearly 700 acres of restored tidal and seasonal wetlands at the site of a former Army base in Marin County acquired through the BRAC process. Making beneficial use of sediment dredged from the maintenance of maritime channels, the project will provide habitat for several threatened and endangered species as well as shorebirds and waterfowl migrating along the Pacific Flyway.

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· San Francisco Bay Salt Pond Restoration - $4,922,000 - The project will restore the health of the San Francisco Bay, one of the nation’s largest estuaries, by creating the largest restored wetlands on the West Coast, providing extensive habitat for federally endangered species and migratory birds. It will also provide tidal and fluvial flood protection in the Bay, including approximately 42,800 acres, 7,400 homes and businesses and significant urban infrastructure including major highways, parks and airports.

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· Angel Island Immigration Station (San Francisco) - $1,107,450 - The Angel Island Immigration Station is considered the “Ellis Island of the West,” where more than one million immigrants entered the United States between 1910-1940. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark and one of America’s “11 Most Endangered Historic Places.” Funding would go towards the restoration of the Hospital at the Angel Island Immigration Station, which would be used as a museum, administrative, interpretative and genealogical research facility.

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· Direct Access to Housing Program for Chronically Homeless (San Francisco) - $1,436,561 - The funding is for the City of San Francisco’s Direct Access to Housing (DAH) program, which provides housing to chronically homeless and disabled persons struggling with medical, mental health and/or substance abuse issues. The program includes on-site behavioral health services and provides access to primary care for persons at extremely high risk for continued health deterioration and death as a result of their chronic homelessness.

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· San Francisco Supportive and Transitional Housing - $525,280 - Funding will help provide permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals and programs to help homeless persons in the City transition to a life of self-sufficiency.

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· Mason Street Project (San Francisco) - ­$588,000 – Funding is for new construction of Mason Street Housing, a 56-unit development to provide permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals.

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· Ed Roberts Campus (Berkeley) - $238,772 - The funding will be for construction of a disability and transit center that will offer a wide range of health, rehabilitation and other services for disabled children, adults, and seniors. The facility will provide direct services to approximately 100,000 Californians each year.

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· East Bay Regional Communications System - $540,500 - Dublin, San Ramon, Pleasanton and Danville will join a two-county system allowing for shared, interoperable communications between different agencies and disciplines.

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· San Francisco Old Mint - $500,000 - Funding will go towards the restoration of the Old Mint building and implementation of the Museum of the City of San Francisco.

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· East Palo Alto Water Supply Improvements - $812,130 - Funding will be used to reopen the Gloria Well and add a new water treatment system. The well would provide 500,000 gallons per day, meeting the City’s water requirements through 2010 and enabling East Palo Alto to continue to approve new development projects that are part of the community’s revitalization plan.

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· Marin County Breast Cancer Research - $286,919 - The funding is for a research project to investigate the high and increasing incidence rate of breast cancer in Marin County in order to decrease breast cancer rates locally and nationally.

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The Senate passed the omnibus spending bill by a vote of 76 to17. The House is expected to approve Senate changes to the bill later this week, at which point it will go to the President for his signature.

Source: Senator Barbara Boxer