Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet responds to a question during a televised debate with Republican challenger Joe O'Dea on Oct. 28, on the campus of Colorado State University in Fort Collins. (David Zalubowski/The Associated Press)
Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet responds to a question during a televised debate with Republican challenger Joe O'Dea on Oct. 28, on the campus of Colorado State University in Fort Collins. (David Zalubowski/The Associated Press)

Sen. Michael Bennet and Sen. John Hickenlooper have secured $3.1 million funding for La Plata County projects in the Senate’s Fiscal Year 2023 omnibus spending bill.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations has approved $1.825 million for the La Plata County Substance Abuse Treatment Facility, which follows a feasibility study for the center the county conducted in the fall. An additional $1.3 million was approved for the Fort Lewis College Nursing Workforce Education Degree Program, a partnership between FLC and University of Colorado Anschutz that aims to renovate Skyhawk Hall into a nursing-focused learning space with the intention of filling a demand for nurses in the Four Corners.

Hickenlooper
Hickenloopercca

This money was requested by Bennet and Hickenlooper through the Congressionally Designated Spending Process, which allows local governments or nonprofit organizations to push for funding priorities in their districts. Senators can then submit these specific projects to be considered in one of the nine annual funding bills that allow requests from the CDS process.

“Coloradans know best what their communities need,” said Hickenlooper in a news release. “These projects are examples of how everyone wins when Washington listens to the needs of the people we serve.”

Although these projects have been approved in the Senate’s version of the omnibus spending bill, money will not be officially secured until both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate pass a final FY2023 spending bill. This final vote should be conducted by the end of the calendar year.

In addition to the La Plata County projects approved, the Senate version of the FY2023 appropriations bill includes funding for other statewide priorities, including:

$5 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.$1.93 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation, including $186 million to fund Western drought programs under the WIIN Act.$941 million for the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s conservation operations.$900 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, including $8 million for the Rio Grande National Forest and $3.4 million for the Pike and San Isabel National Forest.$748 million for the Colorado River Water Quality Improvement project.$515 million for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program to offset lost property tax revenue to counties with significant federal lands.$324 million for COPS Hiring grants to support the hiring of about 1,800 officers nationwide.$225 million to address PFAS contamination on military bases and in neighboring communities.$160 million for National Renewable Energy Laboratory facilities and infrastructure, a $20 million increase from FY22.$20 million for University Consortium for Space Technology research.$14 million for a Fire Station Support Building at Fort Carson.$10.1 million for the Arkansas Valley Conduit.$505,000 for the Amache National Historic Site operations and five full-time staff members.

“From upgrading water infrastructure to increasing access to affordable housing to investing in minority-owned businesses, these projects will help meet the needs of Coloradans and continue our work of building an economy that works for everyone and every community,” Bennet said in a news release. “For the second year in a row, this process has empowered Coloradans to tell Congress directly about the challenges their communities face and how Washington can be a better partner. I’m pleased to help bring this funding to over eighty projects across our state.”

Kate Corliss is an intern for The Durango Herald and The Journal in Cortez and a student at American University in Washington, D.C. She can be reached at [email protected].