Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA) has introduced and passed an amendment to H.R. 4553, the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2026, aimed at reinforcing congressional support for spot dredging of the Vermilion River.
The amendment adjusts the Army Corps’ Operations and Maintenance account by $50 million. This move is intended to highlight the need for maintaining the Vermilion River’s authorized depth of 9 feet and width of 100 feet. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has not conducted dredging activities on the river since 1997, despite having funds available for such work.
In 2019, Congressman Higgins’ office played a role in securing funding and coordinating a hydrologic and hydraulic analysis through the Army Corps and UL Lafayette. The study included half a million data points and found that targeted dredging would improve water retention and help reduce flooding risks. In 2021, Higgins secured $50 million in the Army Corps’ Work Plan for this purpose, but no sediment removal has occurred so far.
Congressman Higgins stated, “They’re sitting on a ton of money, nationwide, maybe a trillion dollars. We’re going to track every penny. The COE casually drags on and on and on for decades, delaying work that needs to be completed. I’m not certain the COE serves a purpose any longer, other than obstructing every sovereign state from actually building bridges and levees.”
Clay Higgins has represented Louisiana’s 3rd district in Congress since replacing Charles Boustany in 2017 (https://higgins.house.gov/about). Before serving in Congress, he was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. He was born in New Orleans in 1961 and now lives in Lafayette.
