Congress Likely to Delay Approving Money for Flint

Help for cities like Flint facing water crisis bottled up by Congressional concerns over overall Energy spending.

A proposal in Congress to provide funding for those suffering from water contamination in Flint faces some significant delays.

Congress is weighing whether to offer about $250 million to Flint and other cities struggling with problems in their water supplies.

The funding would designate about $100 million to be used by any city or state facing a drinking water emergency, while other monies would be earmarked to help fund loans for improving pipes and other infrastructure.

Some U.S. senators, including Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, briefly delayed moving the measure forward before approving the funding.

But privately congressional staff members say the proposal is still bottled up because it is part of a package to overhaul the nation’s energy policy and an unspecified number of members have concerns about the overall measure.

The plan could come up for consideration this week. But congressional sources say that is unlikely now, given the number of holds still being placed on the proposal.   

Author

  • Quinn Klinefelter is a Senior News Editor at 101.9 WDET. In 1996, he was literally on top of the news when he interviewed then-Senator Bob Dole about his presidential campaign and stepped on his feet.