IFPTE Requests House Rules Committee Advance Bipartisan Amendment to Keep USACE in NYC
As the House Committee on Rules took up consideration of amendments to the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, IFPTE urged all Members of the House Committee on Rules to advance a bipartisan amendment that supports IFPTE Local 98 members’ effort to keep U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) offices in New York City from being relocated.
The amendment is sponsored by Congresswoman Laura Gillen (D-NY) and co-led with Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), along with cosponsoring Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY). If advanced out of the Rules Committee, the amendment would be considered on the House floor for a vote by all House Members.
IFPTE’s letter noted the strong bipartisan support for keeping USACE offices in New York City and cited letters from Congressional Republicans in New York alongside their Democratic colleagues, as well as support from Republicans in the New York State Senate and County executives.
The letter notes that relocating USACE offices away from Lower Manhattan and Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn is likely to be costly and will negatively impact and delay critical projects, such as “the Harbor and Tributaries Study, Fire Island to Montauk Point project, South Shore of Staten Island project, and maintenance of the New York-New Jersey Harbor.” The current locations are advantageous because they provide USACE employees with “direct access to federal, state, and local partners, including emergency management agencies, transportation authorities, and municipal governments that are essential to project delivery and disaster response.”
The letter also notes that IFPTE Local 98 coducted a workforce survey that “indicates that a significant portion of the workforce would consider leaving federal service if the office is moved outside Manhattan – with 65% of those surveyed who live in Long Island, 69% of those in Queens, and 33% of those in Brooklyn intending to quit if their office is moved to New Jersey; and 40% of those New Jersey intending to quit if USACE relocates further into New York State – which would exacerbate existing staffing shortages and undermine the successful execution of major infrastructure and public safety missions.”