The House passed an amendment that attached $170 million to a water infrastructure bill for Flint, the eastern Michigan town where lead contamination has made it unsafe to drink the water.
The vote was 284-141, with 101 Republicans joining all 183 Dems in voting yes and one member voting present.
The Water Resources Development Act of 2016 now includes Flint funding both in the House and Senate versions of the bill, though there is a $50 million difference between the two bills. The Senate passed a version of the bill with $220 million for Flint and cities like it earlier this month.
The amendment proposed by Michigan lawmakers Dan Kildee, a Democrat, and John Moolenaar, a Republican, would go toward helping the city update its water infrastructure, including removing lead pipes and modernizing its water distribution system.
“What happened in Flint was a failure of government at every level of government,” Kildee said. “Through this amendment, Congress can take its rightful place in fulfilling its obligation and its responsibility in helping my hometown.”
The full Water Resources Development Act passed by the House includes about $5 billion for Army Corps of Engineers water infrastructure projects. It was scheduled for a House vote later Wednesday.
Flint’s residents are unable to drink their tap water without a filter. In April 2014, the city government, which then was controlled by the state, switched water sources from Lake Huron to the Flint River in an effort to save money.
The river was so polluted and corrosive that it caused lead pipes leading to residents’ homes to deteriorate, contaminating the drinking water in the city. The state was placed under federal and state states of emergency. The federal state of emergency lifted in August, though some federal agencies remain in the city.
Recent test results show homes still have high amounts of lead in their drinking water and only a few homes in the city have had their lead pipes removed.
Moolenaar, who is from the district next to Flint, assured his Republican colleagues that Congress approving funding for Flint was a proper decision.
“Members of both sides of the aisle have found fault with the federal government’s actions in Flint,” he said. “Fixing the water infrastructure is a proper role for the federal government and a step forward for the city and its residents.”
