Trump Uses Veto for First Two Times in Second Term
President Donald Trump used his veto the first two times in his second term on two bills, one called Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act and another called the Miccosukee Reserved Area Amendments Act.
In a White House press release regarding Trump’s veto of the Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit (AVC) Act, it was explained that the AVC “is a water pipeline being constructed to provide municipal and industrial water to communities in southeastern Colorado.”
The press release goes on to explain that the pipeline project — which was “originally authorized as part of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project in a bill” signed by former President John F. Kennedy — was supposed to be “initially funded by the federal government, but repaid by local users, with interest, over a 50-year period.”
The press release adds that “the current bill would not require the federal government to extend the reimbursement deadline”:
The Arkansas Valley Conduit (AVC) is a water pipeline being constructed to provide municipal and industrial water to communities in southeastern Colorado. It was originally authorized as part of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project in a bill signed by President Kennedy in 1962. For decades it was not built, largely because the AVC was not economically viable. Under the original plan, project costs were to be initially funded by the federal government, but repaid by local users, with interest, over a period of 50 years after construction was completed. But the participants were unable to meet this repayment obligation.
In 2009, President Obama signed the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act, which not only reduced the payment obligation from 100 percent to 35 percent, but also provided that miscellaneous revenues from the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project as a whole would be counted toward the AVC’s cost share. However, even then, construction did not begin until 14 years later, after the state of Colorado authorized $100 million in loans and grants for the project.
The current bill would not require the federal government to extend the repayment period (on the already reduced repayment requirement) by an additional 25 years, thereby creating a 75-year repayment period. The bill would also cut the interest rate in half.
“Enough is enough,” the White House statement added. “My administration is committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding costly and unreliable policies. Ending the massive cost of taxpayer handouts and restoring fiscal health is vital to the nation’s economic growth and fiscal health.”
In a press release regarding the Miccosukee Reservee Area Amendments Act, it was explained that “the subject of this bill is a specific area of Everglades National Park known as ‘Camp Osceola'”:
The subject of this bill is a specific area of Everglades National Park known as “Camp Osceola.” In 1998, Congress passed the Miccosukee Reserved Area Act, which authorized the Miccosukee Tribe of Florida Indians (tribe) to permanently occupy a certain area of Everglades National Park. The reserved area did not include Camp Osceola. Nonetheless, the tribe has a residential community in this area, including wastewater treatment and water infrastructure, and experiences periodic flooding. H.R. 504 would require the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Tribe, to take appropriate measures to protect structures at Camp Osceola from flooding.
Camp Osceola was built in 1925, without permission, in a low-lying area raised with fill material. It initially served as a family residence and gift shop, then later as a site for airboat rides. None of the current structures at Camp Osceola are more than 50 years old and do not meet other criteria for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
The previous administration developed a plan to protect and replace unauthorized infrastructure at Camp Osceola, which could cost up to $14 million. But despite seeking funding and special treatment from the federal government, the Miccosukee Tribe has actively sought to obstruct the reasonable immigration policies that the American people decisively voted for when I was elected.
“My Administration is committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding projects for special interests, particularly those that are not aligned with my Administration’s policy of expelling violent and illegal criminal aliens from the country,” the press release added.
