Sen. Dean Heller says the House and Senate have agreed to include the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act in the final version of the Water Resources Development Act.
“This is a monumental step in the legislative process for the Tahoe Basin,” said Heller, R-Nev.
He said it was a bipartisan team effort by the Nevada and California delegations to get the funding and send “a clear message that Lake Tahoe is once again a national priority.”
Heller, a Republican, was joined in the effort by fellow Nevada Sen. Harry Reid and California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein, all Democrats.
The language provides a total of $415 million in the Tahoe Basin over the coming seven years.
That includes $150 million for wildfire prevention focused on fuel reduction and forest restoration. It has $80 million for environmental improvements ranging from new bike trails to creek restoration.
The invasive species management program has $45 million to prevent the introduction of harmful species such as watercraft inspections.
Another $113 million will pay for storm water projects such as erosion control and watershed restoration and runoff control.
It allocates $20 million to the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout recovery program. Finally, there’s $5 million in the bill to improve accountability and oversite of projects and $2 million to cover costs of land exchanges and sales in both states.
Heller said the funding ensures the important work to preserve Tahoe for future generations will advance.
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