From the Houston Chronicle: Final approval for Ike Dike included in must-pass defense bill

A good example of fiscal federalism, which is defined as: financial relations between units of governments in a federal government system. . . . The theory of fiscal federalism assumes that a federal system of government can be efficient and effective at solving problems governments face today, such as just distribution of income, efficient and effective allocation of resources, and economic stability.

In this case, the national government is helping fund a costly infrastructure project that will protect an industry that impacts the national, state, and local economy. The precise funding mechanism is an appropriations bill designed to allow spending for defense purposes. Since the Ike Dike is designed to protect 

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The annual defense bill that Congress is working to pass by the end of the year includes final approval for the plan to build the coastal barrier known as the "Ike Dike" at the mouth of Galveston Bay — likely ensuring that the long-sought, $31-billion dollar project will finally get the green light from the federal government.

. . . Legislation approving the barrier cleared both chambers this summer. But that bill, the Water Resources Development Act, stalled in negotiations, with lawmakers ironing out differences in the House and Senate versions. It has now been rolled into the annual defense bill, must-pass legislation almost certain to be signed into law by President Joe Biden.

. . . Once fully constructed, the Army Corps of Engineers estimates, the project will save $2.2 billion in storm damages every year, though how useful the gates will be when they are complete — or over the half-century or more that the structure is expected to operate — remains to be seen. Like any other levees or dams, the barrier could fall short or fail to hold back the biggest storm surges.

The defense bill has bipartisan support and is expected to pass both the House and Senate soon.

. . . Plans call for a gated structure stretching across the mouth of Galveston Bay and the Houston Ship Channel, as well as 43 miles of dunes protecting the Galveston and Bolivar Peninsula coastline, a "ring levee" that would protect the north side of Galveston island and ecosystem restoration extending southwest to South Padre Island.

It is also costly. The federal government would pay at least $19 billion, and the local region would on the hook for some $11 billion more. The state legislature created an entity called the Gulf Coast Protection District and gave it power to impose taxes for the project in the future.

The defense bill does not include funding for the project, meaning Congress will have to approve spending on it at a later date, something lawmakers have acknowledged could be a "heavy lift."


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Wikipedia: Ike Dike.

- Gulf Coast Protection District.

- Water Resources Development Act of 2022.

- H.R.7776 - James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023.

- BRACE FOR THE STORM: The Ike Dike will transform Galveston. See how in a fly-through tour.