Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) has announced the approval of a $5.7 million grant for the City of Lakewood to improve the Freedom Bridge overpass near the Madigan Army Medical Center Gate to alleviate congestion and improve public safety along the Berkeley street corridor.

Improvements will include an additional eastbound ramp to the bridge, a second left turn lane to the I-5 southbound off-ramp, upgrades to traffic signs and additional pedestrian facilities for increased public safety.

Funding for the project is provided under the Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act of 2011 and will be completed as a joint effort between the State of Washington Department of Transportation, the City of Lakewood and the Command at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

"Knowing that the DOD recognizes how critical investments are to addressing these issues affirms its commitment to this community and to the people affected by the immense growth on and around the base," said Congressman Smith. "I'm proud to have been a part of the efforts to secure this funding and look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure proper coordination so the improvements can be completed within a timely manner. Making sure we have the infrastructure in place to improve access and ease congestion around Madigan Gate and I-5 continues to be at the top of our agenda."

"These necessary improvements will benefit everyone because they will increase safety and help alleviate congestion," said Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy, a co-chair of the South Sound Military and Communities Partnership (SSMCP). "This is another success for the Partnership's collaboration of communities with the Department of Defense to serve our service members, veterans and neighbors. I look forward to working with the City of Lakewood and the Washington State Department of Transportation to get these critical projects moving."

"The residents of the South Sound are very pleased the DoD and OEA have provided $5.7M in critical access and improved traffic flow project funding along the I-5 Corridor," said Mayor Doug Richardson. "WSDOT and the City of Lakewood worked together as members of the SSMCP to apply for these vital infrastructure dollars and they will provide substantial steps forward in addressing congestion and safety in the South Sound region.

Earlier this year, South Sound stakeholders were successful in securing nearly $7 million in the Washington State budget for Interchange Justifications Reports (IJR) to examine potential impacts from Marvin Road in Thurston County to SR 512 in Pierce County. Without these studies, securing federal funds for this project would not have been possible.

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Congressman Adam Smith (WA-09), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee, has been chosen as a 2012 Best of Congress Award recipient by Corporate Voices for Working Families and Working Mother Media for his demonstrated leadership on and support of policies that create opportunities and improve the quality of life for working Americans and their families.

Winning Members of Congress were chosen by the Best of Congress Steering Committee based on their achievements, voting records, office policies and advocacy efforts to advance economically sound policies that support the following issues: Workplace Flexibility, Family Economic Stability, Work and Family balance and Workforce Readiness.

“All people should have the opportunity to work and still be there to meet their family’s needs,” said Congressman Smith. “Policies that support the balance between work and family are critical to maintaining a healthy quality of life for all Americans and to enhancing productivity in the workplace.” 

Notable working-family friendly policies sponsored and supported by Congressman Smith include:

• H.R. 6046 – Military Spouses Equal Treatment Act of 2012 – Ensures equality of military and veteran benefits for all military spouses.
• H.R. 687 - Military Spouses Employment Act - Gives tax incentives to employers for hiring spouses of active duty members.
• H.R. 865 - Veteran Employment Transition Act of 2011- Increases the eligibility of veterans to receive the Work Opportunity Tax Credit
• H.R.1519 - Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the portion of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) known as the Equal Pay Act to revise remedies for, enforcement of, and exceptions to prohibitions against sex discrimination in the payment of wages.
• H.R. 2364 - Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to provide for employee leave to care for a domestic partner or his or her child, parent-in-law, adult child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law (as well as for a spouse, child, or parent), if such person has a serious health condition.
• H.R. 1537 - Uniting American Families Act of 2011 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to include a "permanent partner" within the scope of such Act.

The 2012 Best of Congress Winner profiles can be seen online at WorkingMother.com and will be included in the August/September issue of Working Mother magazine.

For more information on Congressman Smith’s efforts on behalf of working families, visit www.AdamSmith.House.gov/AmericasWorkers.