March 10, 2022 - WASHINGTON – Rep. Jim Costa voted to fund $11,004,664 in Community Project Funding for 10 local projects that he previously secured for CA-16. This funding, included in the Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package, responds directly to some of the most pressing needs in Fresno, Madera, and Merced Counties.   
   
“These projects are critical investments that will have a profound impact in the day-to-day lives of my constituents,” said Costa. “The projects support underserved areas and foster economic development, making a real difference in local infrastructure and providing more opportunity for folks to get ahead.  I am proud to have fought for funding that will make our communities healthier, safer, stronger, and more resilient.”   
   
Costa championed funding for 10 projects that will directly benefit Fresno, Madera, and Merced County residents. These include:   

• $475,000 for  Fresno City College  to develop the Nurse Pipeline Extension Project, a collaborative program with Fresno State, to increase the number of Nurse Practitioners in the San Joaquin Valley;  

• $1.9 million for the  Fresno County Economic Development Corporation  to construct a 60,000-square-foot training center in West Fresno to assist women, minorities, veterans, ex-offenders, at-risk and disconnected young adults, and other underrepresented individuals with job training and counseling; 

• $500,000  to study the viability of a project to expand the single purpose  Los Banos Creek  into a multi-purpose reservoir, which would provide long-term solutions to flooding, drought, overdraft, and subsidence in Fresno, Madera, Merced, and Stanislaus Counties; 

• $2 million for the  Merced County Courthouse Museum  to rehabilitate Merced County’s most historic building, community gathering place, and educational resource; 

• $279,000 for the  City of Dos Palos  to replace a water clarifier at the city’s aging water plant to ensure uninterrupted service for residents. 

• $3.5 million for the  City of Madera  to rehabilitate a 50-year-old corroded pipeline responsible for carrying the City’s wastewater to its treatment plant;

• $950,000 for the  City of Gustine  to finish the water loop line from North Avenue to East Avenue, which will create a more stable and safe water distribution system; 

• $625,000 for  Madera Unified School District to ensure the district’s approximately 5,500 English Language Learners address unfinished learning in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic; 

• $475,000 for  UCSF Fresno  to construct an Alzheimer’s Center and Center on Aging, which will provide clinical services for age-related care and serve as a center for geriatric and neurological education for students and residents;

• $300,000 for Advance Peace Fresno to intervene and help prevent gun violence by investing in communities and individuals disproportionately impacted by violent crime. 

In addition, the twelve-bill omnibus government funding package will help middle-class families with the cost of living, create American jobs, supports the vulnerable, and works to help small businesses and restaurants that are key to our economic future. The funding in this bill reverses decades of disinvestment in historically underserved communities across the country and will ensure a more prosperous future for all Americans.   
  
The legislation also provides emergency aid to Ukraine as Russia wages a brutal, unprovoked war against the Ukrainian people. The package includes:  

• $13.6 billion in emergency funding for security and humanitarian needs for Ukraine 

• $32,869,000 for the Federal Maritime Commission to address supply chain issues  

• Increases funding for key domestic priorities, including a $400 increase to the maximum Pell Grant and establishing President Biden’s cancer research initiative.  

• Secures major bipartisan legislation, including the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which authorizes prevention and prosecution programs to help victims of sexual assault  

• Creating new cybersecurity protections to fight against vicious cyber-attacks on our infrastructure by Russia and other bad actors. 

The Fiscal Year 2022 government funding package is expected to be voted on by the Senate and signed into law by President Biden later this week. A detailed summary of the bill is available here.    
  
The full text of the bill can be viewed here.  
Source: Congressman Jim Costa