The Senate on Thursday rejected an attempt to kill a federal program that Michigan lawmakers are attempting to trade for help with the water crisis in Flint.
An amendment proposed by Republican Sens. Dan Coats, of Indiana, and Pat Toomey, of Pennsylvania, attempted to end the Department of Energy’s Advanced Vehicle Fund, but was denied 48-49. It needed 60 votes to pass.
Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, both Democrats, have attempted to use the $250 million fund as a bargaining chip in getting a federal funding deal for Flint and other cities with lead-contaminated water.
Coats said the program costs taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, with two failed projects costing $500 million combined.
“It’s time to wind down this program,” he said. “This will not affect any proposals currently with the Department of Energy on this program but it will prevent any new programs going forward.”
Republicans, who see it as “crony capitalism,” in Toomey’s words, despise the Advanced Vehicle Fund.
“This is exactly the kind of program our constituents hate,” he said. “It’s the kind of crony capitalism where taxpayers are forced to subsidize preferred companies and special interests.”
However, the Democrats, especially those from Michigan, prize the fund as a way to keep the automakers in their home state happy.
Still, Stabenow and Peters have resigned themselves to giving up the funding to pay for recovery money for Flint.
The deal makes $100 million available to any state experiencing a drinking water emergency, $70 million to back secured loans to upgrade water and drinking infrastructure, and $50 million in funding for health programs to address and prevent the effects of lead exposure. Cities from around the country would be able to get help through the deal.
Stabenow attempted to attach the deal to a comprehensive energy bill that passed the Senate Wednesday, but Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee, who wants to make the state pay for any help for Flint, blocked it. Negotiations on a standalone bill are ongoing, she said.
“The bottom line is we have developed a bipartisan bill that phases out this program in a responsible way for the businesses currently involved and uses that to pay for water infrastructure needs across the country,” she said.
Peters said killing the program would essentially be killing any chance of getting a deal for Flint and other cities dealing with lead water issues.
“What this does is eliminate a program that basically pays for a very particularly crafted agreement we are working on with regards to the Flint water issues and water infrastructure issues all across the country,” he said.
