TALLAHASSEE –Governor Rick Scott made the following statement today regarding President Trump signing a law authorizing the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir:

Governor Scott said, “Over the past two years, I have fought tirelessly for the EAA Reservoir by signing Senate Bill 10 into law and going to Washington to advocate for this important project. This reservoir will help end the algal blooms on our coasts and today, with President Trump’s action to approve our plan, I’m proud to say that our hard work has paid off and resulted in another big win for Florida families.

“During my time as Governor, we’ve made record investments in the Everglades and secured major accomplishments including: putting in law a dedicated $200 million annual investment for Everglades projects; investing $100 million in state funding for the federal Herbert Hoover Dike while also securing federal funding to complete repairs; and accelerating 16 Everglades projects to send water south and provide billions of gallons of water storage around Lake Okeechobee. Over the past eight years, we’ve invested more than $2 billion to restore Florida’s Everglades and with today’s great news, we are taking yet another step forward to restore the Everglades and send more water south.

“While today is a historic step to making our plan a reality, Congress has sadly failed to do its part to properly fund Everglades restoration. Everglades projects should have a 50/50 cost share between the State of Florida and the federal government, yet, thanks to inaction by Congress, the federal government is nearly $1 billion behind on its commitment. Today, I’m again calling on Congress to step up and finally commit its fair share, including funding this reservoir now.

“I will never stop fighting to protect our incredible environment and I will make sure that Florida continues to be the best place in the nation to live, work and raise a family for generations to come. We will continue to do everything possible to advance these important projects.”