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Sticking point resolved in House Everglades bill
By Times staff writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 14, 2000
Federal lawmakers reached a compromise on the final sticking point of Everglades restoration -- labor wages -- putting the bill back on track for a House vote that could come as soon as Tuesday.
Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., the ranking Democrat on the Transportation Committee, had been protesting the exclusion of a 69-year-old labor wage statute known as the Davis-Bacon Act. The act requires federal construction projects, like those in the Everglades restoration plans, to pay "prevailing wages" set by the Department of Labor.
Once Oberstar received confirmation that the Davis-Bacon Act would apply to all water projects in the bill, he dropped his objection.
Lawmakers had worried that if the Davis-Bacon issue could not be resolved soon, they would have to pass the restoration as a stand-alone bill.
The Senate passed a nearly identical bill last month, 85-1. It calls for $1.4-billion to fund the initial 10-project phase. Officials on all sides are optimistic that the bill will pass the House.
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