[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 195 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 195

 Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River 
                           Navigation System.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 29, 2021

  Mr. Inhofe (for himself, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Boozman, and Mr. Cotton) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                    on Environment and Public Works

                 May 28 (legislative day, May 27), 2021

Committee discharged; considered and agreed to with an amended preamble

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River 
                           Navigation System.

Whereas June 5, 2021, marks the 50th anniversary of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas 
        River Navigation System (referred to in this preamble as ``MKARNS'');
Whereas, in the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1946 (Public Law 79-525), Congress 
        authorized the Army Corps of Engineers (commonly referred to as the 
        ``Corps'') to undertake comprehensive improvements on the Arkansas and 
        Verdigris Rivers, which served as the foundation of the MKARNS;
Whereas the MKARNS opened for full use in December 1970, which, after over 20 
        years and $1,200,000,000, was the largest civil works project undertaken 
        by the Corps at the time;
Whereas President Richard M. Nixon officially dedicated the MKARNS on June 5, 
        1971, at a ceremony at the Tulsa Port of Catoosa, Oklahoma;
Whereas the MKARNS is named for United States Senator John L. McClellan of 
        Arkansas and former Oklahoma Governor and United States Senator Robert 
        S. Kerr of Oklahoma, who advocated for the creation of an expansive, 
        inland waterway system;
Whereas the MKARNS is 445 river miles long, with 18 locks and dams, spans from 
        Catoosa, Oklahoma, to the Mississippi River, and serves commerce from a 
        12-State region consisting of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Texas, 
        Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, 
        Missouri, and Idaho;
Whereas the MKARNS provides year-round, accessible inland waterway 
        transportation to 5 public ports, 50 private port terminals, and over 90 
        industries;
Whereas, on an annual basis, the MKARNS provides for $8,500,000,000 in sales 
        impacts, $1,600,000,000 in transportation cost savings, and $289,000,000 
        in business taxes;
Whereas the MKARNS contributes to 56,000 full- and part-time jobs, and 20 
        percent of all jobs in the United States are linked to waterborne 
        commerce supported by the inland waterway system;
Whereas, on average, 11,000,000 tons of commodities with a value upwards of 
        $4,000,000,000 travels on the MKARNS annually, with sand, gravel, rock, 
        chemical fertilizer, iron, and steel accounting for nearly 60 percent of 
        all waterborne commerce;
Whereas there are 4 designated Foreign-Trade Zones along the navigation system 
        at the public ports at Catoosa, Muskogee, Little Rock, and Pine Bluff;
Whereas the MKARNS allows for the lowest-cost and most environmentally friendly 
        method of moving goods, with 1 barge transporting the equivalent of 15 
        jumbo railcars and 60 large semi-trailers;
Whereas, in 2015, the Corps upgraded the classification of the MKARNS from 
        ``Connector'' to ``Corridor'' on the National Marine Highway, designated 
        the MKARNS as a high-use waterway system, and labeled the MKARNS as 
        Marine Highway 40;
Whereas Congress authorized multiple uses for the MKARNS, including navigation, 
        flood control, hydropower, recreation, water supply, and wildlife 
        conservation;
Whereas, through the end of 2020, Arkansas River Basin projects, including the 
        MKARNS, are estimated to have cumulatively prevented nearly 
        $16,000,000,000 in flood damages in the Arkansas River Basin region;
Whereas there are 15 hydropower plants on the MKARNS which provide low-cost 
        power to 7,000,000 people and produce 2,500,000 kilo-watt-hours per 
        year;
Whereas inland waterways provide many recreational opportunities, such as 
        fishing, boating, and hiking, and over 4,000 recreational vessels lock 
        through the MKARNS and 5,400,000 people visit Corps-operated recreation 
        areas along the MKARNS annually;
Whereas modernization of the MKARNS will empower future economic development, 
        promote freight mobility, and expand agricultural exports and the 
        movement of iron and steel products, while relieving congestion on our 
        roads and bridges;
Whereas the increased backlog in critical maintenance causes the economic 
        uncertainty of complete navigation disruption on the MKARNS, which would 
        cost beneficiaries up to $2,000,000 per day;
Whereas Congress authorized the MKARNS to be deepened to 12 feet in 2003, and 
        approximately 90 percent of the MKARNS is already 12-feet deep;
Whereas the capacity of each barge could be increased by 200 tons for each 
        additional foot of draft, increasing the overall freight capacity of the 
        MKARNS by 40 percent and resulting in over $250,000,000 in increased 
        business sales annually; and
Whereas Oklahoma, Arkansas, the surrounding region, and the entire Nation have 
        benefitted, and will continue to benefit, greatly from the MKARNS: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) honors 2021 as the 50th anniversary of the McClellan-
        Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System;
            (2) recognizes that investments in inland waterway 
        navigation infrastructure are an investment in the long-term 
        strength and security of the United States economy; and
            (3) commits to completing the deepening of the McClellan-
        Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System from 9 feet to 12 feet.
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