Sen. Hoeven Holds Flood Protection Meeting With Minot Leaders

MINOT, N.D., Oct. 9 -- The office of Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., issued the following news release:

Senator John Hoeven today convened a meeting with Minot city officials to outline his priorities for flood protection in advance of Maj. Gen. Richard Kaiser's, Commander of the Mississippi Valley Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, visit to the city later this week. The upcoming meeting with Kaiser dovetails with Hoeven's ongoing work with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Brock Long, who the senator hosted in Minot earlier this year. Since then, Hoeven has continued his efforts to ensure FEMA:

* Reevaluates discrepancies in its preliminary flood maps.

* Provides an extended timetable for public comment on the maps.

* Updates the maps as permanent flood protection is built.

These priorities will help ensure affordable flood insurance in the region and give time for the Corps' to complete its study and proceed with the flood protection project.

"Our meeting with Mayor Barney and the city leaders was an opportunity to prepare for General Kaiser's visit," Hoeven said. "As Division Commander, his support will be essential as we move forward on comprehensive flood protection for the Minot region. At the same time, we continue to work with FEMA to make sure the remapping process works for Minot."

Hoeven is also working with FEMA to identify additional funding to construct flood protection for the remainder of the Souris River Basin. The Army Corps of Engineers current project entails four phases and federal support is needed to develop subsequent phases and ensure protection for the whole region.

This comes as part of Hoeven's ongoing work to secure comprehensive flood protection for communities across the state. In May, Hoeven announced that the Corps' FY2017 work plan includes $900,000 to support its feasibility study in the Souris River Basin (https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/news/news-releases/hoeven-army-corps-work-plan-supports-minot-flood-study-sewer-upgrades-in-petersburg). Hoeven also met (https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/news/news-releases/hoeven-stresses-north-dakota-priorities-comprehensive-flood-protection-projects-with-omb-nominee-rep-mulvaney) with Mick Mulvaney, Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), during his confirmation process to stress the importance of flood protection for communities in North Dakota. OMB is responsible for approving Army Corps work plans, and Hoeven has stayed in regular contact with Mulvaney since his confirmation to ensure Minot's study is funded and can proceed without delay or interruption.