Press Releases

Rep. Smith Voices Concerns About Impact of Aviation Noise and Emissions on Environment, Health, and Quality of Life of People in Washington's Ninth

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) recently shared his priorities for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill with the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The FAA reauthorization is a crucial opportunity to more effectively address the environmental, health, and quality of life concerns of aviation impacted communities in the Puget Sound region and across the country. 

“As a member of Congress whose district is home to one of the busiest and fastest-growing airport hubs in the country, Sea-Tac International Airport, I know the importance of the aviation system for jobs and the economy. However, I have also seen first-hand the impacts of aviation noise and emissions on the environment, health, and quality of life of these communities,” said Rep. Smith

“As the aviation sector has grown, with more people flying more frequently, significant investments have been put toward airport infrastructure. We need to make similar investments in communities that feel the negative effects of aviation. This means not only investing in new technologies to reduce air travel emissions and expanding other forms of zero-emissions travel, but also directing funding to the communities disproportionately impacted by aviation.” 

“Residents living in aviation-impacted communities cannot wait any longer for relief from the public-health consequences of exposure to high concentrations of pollutants and high levels of aviation noise. Congress and the federal government must establish new programs to better measure the environmental and public-health consequences of exposure to high levels of noise and emissions and invest in resources to reduce those impacts on these communities. Millions of Americans who live near aviation hubs — like my constituents in the 9th District — deserve nothing less,” said Rep. Smith. 

Rep. Smith has worked throughout his career to push the federal government to recognize aircraft noise and emissions as serious environmental and health issues to support communities impacted by aviation. In his testimony, Rep. Smith urged members of the committee to include legislation he has introduced in the FAA reauthorization bill. 

In his testimony, Rep. Smith advocated for policies to:

  • Encourage the FAA to reevaluate its selection of noise measurement methodologies, health impact thresholds, and abatement program effectiveness.
  • Require the FAA to consider the impact on human health and environment when determining airport capacity and approving new flight routes.
  • Ensure the FAA’s approach to community engagement on the issues of environment, health, and quality of life is more robust, inclusive, and responsive to all community members. Rep. Smith has introduced the Aviation Impacted Communities Act to help cities, localities, and neighborhoods to better and more productively engage with the FAA.
  • Ensure greater access to the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP) for noise insulation. Rep. Smith has introduced the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program Act with Senator Patty Murray to help ensure that residents have access to federal funds for necessary repairs or replacements and homes are properly insulated from the harmful impacts of aviation noise.
  • Enable more extensive research on harmful ultrafine particles (UFPs) to properly regulate this pollution and help ensure that individuals and families living near aviation hubs are protected from the worst health implications of aviation emissions. Rep. Smith has introduced the Protecting Airport Communities from Particle Emissions Act to require the FAA to work with the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a national study of UFPs.
  • Engage the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Health and Human Service to address the environmental and health challenges of aviation activity.
  • Enable hyperlocal studies of air quality and noise impacts and for mitigation programs in communities. Rep. Smith has introduced the Aviation Noise and Emissions Mitigation Act to help us to better understand the effects of noise and emissions and fund initiatives driven by impacted communities to mitigate the effects of aviation activity.

More information about the Aviation Impacted Communities Act, the Aviation Noise and Emissions Mitigation Act, and the Protecting Airport Communities from Particle Emissions Act can be found here.

More information about the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program Act can be found here

Read Rep. Smith’s full testimony to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure here.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Adam Smith (WA-09), U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) today reintroduced the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act, transformative legislation that ends the inhumane conditions of detention centers and protects the civil and human rights of immigrants.

“We cannot wait any longer to reform our broken immigration system to ensure it is humane and just,” said Congressman Smith. “The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act would overhaul our immigration detention system by ending mandatory detention, promoting community-based alternatives, and ending the use of private, for-profit detention centers that have a shameful history of prioritizing their own profits over the civil and human rights of children and families. This bill is a crucial step forward to bringing due process back to our immigration system and centering the humanity and dignity of people who come to our country to build a better life. I thank my colleagues Congresswoman Jayapal and Senator Booker for their leadership on this issue.” 

"Our immigration system has allowed for the unjust treatment of immigrants and stripped them of their humanity and due process. We must respect and protect the basic rights of immigrants detained in the United States. I am proud to reintroduce this bill that would ensure our immigration system aligns with our country’s core values,” said Senator Booker. 

“There’s no question that our immigration system is broken,” said Congresswoman Jayapal. “The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act urgently reforms the alarming injustices of a broken, for-profit immigration detention system by ending the use of private detention facilities altogether, repealing mandatory detention, and prohibiting family detention while also restoring due process and increasing oversight, accountability, and transparency measures. This is a measure that will go a long way to restore humanity and dignity to the immigration system.” 

Background 

The legislation would inject much-needed justice and oversight in the American immigration system by taking steps to:

  • Repeal mandatory detention;
  • Prohibit the detention of families and children in family detention;
  • Phase-out the use of private detention facilities and jails over a three-year period
  • Create a presumption of release and impose a higher burden of proof to detain primary caregivers and vulnerable populations, including asylum seekers, pregnant women, LGBTQ individuals, survivors of torture or gender-based violence, and people under age 21;
  • Prohibit the detention of anyone under age 18 in a facility operated or contracted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE);
  • Require DHS to establish civil detention standards that provide, at minimum, the level of protection in the American Bar Association’s Civil Immigration Detention Standards;
  • Mandate the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to conduct unannounced inspections with meaningful penalties for failure to comply with standards. 

Rep. Smith recently sent a letter, led by Rep. Jayapal, with more than 100 members of the Democratic Caucus to President Biden calling on the Administration to not restart the family detention program. 

Statements of Support for the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act: 

“Women’s Refugee Commission is grateful to Representatives Jayapal and Smith and Senator Booker for their leadership in introducing the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act,” said Katharina Obser, director of the Migrant Rights and Justice program at Women’s Refugee Commission. “For too long, Women’s Refugee Commission has documented how current detention practices harm women and others seeking protection and separate them from their families and communities. This important legislation instead prioritizes community-based alternatives for those who need support in successfully navigating their immigration case. The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act lays the foundation for a fundamentally different approach to how we treat immigrants and is critical to an immigration system that centers justice and dignity.” 

"For years, people in detention, their loved ones, and communities have exposed system-wide abuse and negligence in immigration detention, demanding to free people and shut ICE facilities down for good,” said Hillary Li, Policy Counsel at Detention Watch Network. “The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act responds to these community calls to address this inhumane, discriminatory, and unnecessary system. Positive changes made by the bill, like ending mandatory detention and eliminating the profit motive that has grown the role of the private prison companies, will significantly reduce the scale of - and our reliance on - ICE detention. We are grateful for the Representatives and Senators leading and supporting this effort." 

“AILA welcomes the leadership of Representatives Jayapal (D-WA), Smith (D-WA), and Senator Booker (D-NJ) who have introduced the ‘Dignity for Detained Immigrants’ legislation in the House and Senate,” said Jeremy McKinney, President, American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). “This crucial measure would shift the government’s focus away from detention and towards humane and effective alternatives, such as case management programs that rely on community-based organizations to provide immigrants resources they need to better prepare for their immigration cases. There is a better way, and this legislation helps to get us there.” 

“The abuse, medical neglect, and human rights violations endemic to the ICE detention system have been fueled by our nation’s reliance on private prison companies, driven by greed and profit, and by laws that mandate detention,” said Maribel Hernández Rivera, Deputy National Political Director at the American Civil Liberties Union. “The ACLU is grateful to the lawmakers leading on this bill for fighting for an approach to immigration that replaces greed, cruelty, and impunity with dignity, humanity, and fairness.” 

“Amnesty International USA thanks Representatives Jayapal and Smith and Senator Booker for their continued leadership to address the human rights crisis in the U.S. immigration detention system,” said Amy Fischer, Director of Refugee and Migrant Rights, Amnesty International USA. “The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act is a critical bill to address the deadly and abusive immigration detention system by imbedding due process into detention decisions to significantly reduce the number of people subject to detention, establishing critical oversight to address the long history of cruel conditions in detention, and investing in community based alternatives to detention for those that need it. Congress must act to restore human rights to our broken immigration system, and the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act is a significant start.” 

“The U.S. immigration detention system is the largest in the world, depriving tens of thousands of immigrants of their freedom and rights on any given day,” said Andrea Carcamo, Policy Director, Freedom for Immigrants. “Black immigrants and immigrants of color are disproportionately harmed by this intrinsically abusive detention system, and the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act would be a crucial first step in addressing this national shame. Critically, this legislation would end unjust policies that further the abuse and exploitation of those in ICE custody, including solitary confinement, no-bond detention, and the use of for-profit detention centers. This Act will bring us one step closer to realizing an immigration system rooted in racial equity, dignity, and fairness for all people."

The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act is co-sponsored by Representatives Jake Auchincloss (MA-04), Becca Balint (VT-AL), Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44), Donald S. Beyer Jr. (VA-08), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Brendan F. Boyle (PA-02), Shontel M. Brown (OH-11), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Cori Bush (MO-01), Tony Cárdenas (CA-29), André Carson (IN-07), Troy A. Carter (LA-02), Greg Casar (TX-35), Sean Casten (IL-06), Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (FL-20), Judy Chu (CA-28), David N. Cicilline (RI-01), Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), Emanuel Cleaver, II (MO-05), Steve Cohen (TN-09), Gerald E. Connolly (VA-11), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Jason Crow (CO-06), Danny K. Davis (IL-07), Madeleine Dean (PA-04), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), Debbie Dingell (MI-06), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Dwight Evans (PA-03), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), Lois Frankel (FL-22), Ruben Gallego (AZ-03), John Garamendi (CA-08), Jesús “Chuy” García (IL-04), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), Al Green (TX-09), Jim Himes (CT-04), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Glenn Ivey (MD-04), Sheila Jackson Lee (TX-18), Sara Jacobs (CA-51), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. (GA-04), Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37), Robin L. Kelly (IL-02), Ro Khanna (CA-17), Derek Kilmer (WA-06), Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08), Rick Larsen (WA-02), Barbara Lee (CA-12), Summer Lee (PA-12), Teresa Leger Fernandez (NM-03), Mike Levin (CA-49), Ted W. Lieu (CA-36), Zoe Lofgren (CA-18), Doris Matsui (CA-07), Betty McCollum (MN-04), Morgan McGarvey (KY-03), James P. McGovern (MA-02), Gregory W. Meeks (NY-05), Grace Meng (NY-06), Gwen Moore (WI-04), Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Grace F. Napolitano (CA-31), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06), Jimmy Panetta (CA-19), Donald M. Payne, Jr. (NJ-10), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Mark Pocan (WI-02), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Mike Quigley (IL-05), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), Andrea Salinas (OR-06), John Sarbanes (MD-03), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Terri A. Sewell (AL-07), Brad Sherman (CA-32), Darren Soto (FL-09), Melanie Stansbury (NM-01), Eric Swalwell (CA-14), Mark Takano (CA-39), Shri Thanedar (MI-13), Bennie G. Thompson (MS-02), Dina Titus (NV-01), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Jill Tokuda (HI-02), David Trone (MD-06), Marc Veasey (TX-33), Nydia M. Velázquez (NY-07), Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), Nikema Williams (GA-05), and Frederica S. Wilson (FL-24). 

The Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act is endorsed by African Communities Together; African Human Rights Coalition; American Civil Liberties Union; American Humanist Association; American Immigration Lawyers Association; Americans for Immigrant Justice ; Amnesty International USA; Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC; ASISTA Immigration Assistance; Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP) ; Bend the Arc: Jewish Action; Cameroon Advocacy Network; CASA; Center for Constitutional Rights; Center for Gender & Refugee Studies; Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP); Center for Victims of Torture; Church World Service; Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center; Coloradans for Immigrant Rights; Communities United for Status & Protection (CUSP); Community Change Action; Detention Watch Network; #DetentionKills Transparency Initiative; First Focus Campaign for Children; Freedom for Immigrants; Friends Committee on National Legislation ; Government Accountability Project; Grassroots Leadership; Haitian Bridge Alliance; Human Rights First; Human Rights Watch; Immigrant Justice Network ; Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC); Immigration Equality Action Fund; Immigration Hub; Immigration Law & Justice Network; Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDH); International Refugee Assistance Project; Justice Action Center; Justice in Motion; Justicia Digna; Latin America Working Group; Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service; Muslim Advocates; National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR); National Domestic Workers Alliance; National Immigrant Justice Center; National Immigration Law Center; National Immigration Project (NIPNLG); National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice ; National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights; National Partnership for New Americans; Oasis Legal Services; Oxfam America; Quixote Center; Refugees International; Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights; Showing Up for Racial Justice; Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC); Tahirih Justice Center; Tsuru for Solidarity; UndocuBlack Network; Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice ; Vera Institute of Justice; Voice for Refuge Action Fund; Washington Office on Latin America; Women's Refugee Commission; Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights; The Advocates for Human Rights; Alianza Sacramento; American Friends Service Committee, Colorado; Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus; Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta; Black and Brown United in Action ; The Bronx Defenders; Carolina Migrant Network; Central American Resource Center of Northern CA - CARECEN SF; Central Vermont Refugee Action Network; Cleveland Jobs with Justice; CLUE VC; Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA); Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC); Community Asylum Seekers Project; Connecticut Shoreline Indivisible; Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services Inc; Dorothy Day Catholic Worker, Washington DC; El Refugio; Esperanza Immigrant Rights Project; Families for Freedom; Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project; Georgia Immigration Collaborative; Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights; Illinois Community for Displaced Immigrants; Immigrant Defenders Law Center; Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity; Interfaith Welcome Coalition - San Antonio; ISLA: Immigration Services and Legal Advocacy; Jewish Activists for Immigration Justice of Western MA; Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center; Legal Aid Justice Center; Long Beach Immigrant Rights Coalition; Louisiana Organization for Refugees and Immigrants; Make the Road New York; The Mami Chelo Foundation; Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition; Michigan Immigrant Rights Center; Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project; New York Immigration Coalition; NorCal Resist; Northwest Immigrant Rights Project; Orange County Rapid Response Network; Pangea Legal Services; People's Budget OC; Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network; Transforming Justice Orange County; Wind of the Spirit Immigrant Resource Center. 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) today announced the 15 Community Project Funding Requests he submitted to the House Appropriations Committee for consideration in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations bill.

Local leaders and organizations are celebrating the announcement as an important step forward for the realization of these projects, which will make investments across the Ninth District in mental and behavioral health care, affordable housing, public transportation, criminal justice, public safety, education, technology, small business, local economy, and more. 

See below for statements of support from local leaders, organizations, and governments. 

Arc of King County – Arc Legacy Center: Access to Affordable Housing and Services for Individuals with Disabilities
 

“The new Arc Legacy Center will help fill a critical gap in King County's services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), allowing us to streamline access to affordable housing, supportive services, public assistance, and schools, jobs, and transit. We have far reaching community support for this project, including our close partner, Mercy Housing NW. We are so thankful for Representative Smith's support of this project, and we will be able to leverage this commitment to raise the remaining public and private funds needed to complete the project. Altogether, this work will significantly improve quality of life and long term health for people with IDD, and ensure that our community lives with dignity, purpose, connection, and care.” Robin Tatsuda, Executive Director of The Arc of King County
 
“We are thrilled to partner with The Arc of King County to build their new home, “The Arc Legacy Center”. Additionally, we are creating twenty-six accessible, transit oriented, and permanently affordable homes for persons with Intellectual and Development Disabilities as part of Mercy Housing Northwest’s 130-unit affordable development at the Angle Lake light rail station. This represents an amazing opportunity to expand The Arc’s mission and reimagine housing options for the IDD community in a well-designed, affordable, supportive community.” Joe Thompson, President, Mercy Housing Northwest
 
City of Federal Way – Downtown Civic & Community Space
 
“The city of Federal Way greatly appreciates Congressman Smith’s support for our new Civic and Community Space in downtown Federal Way. The new community space will be a vital resource for the residents of Federal Way, providing a safe and welcoming environment for people of all ages and backgrounds to come together and connect with each other. The space will offer a wide range of activities and programs, including educational workshops, cultural events, community markets and recreational activities. This project is an important step in our ongoing efforts to enhance the quality of life for our residents and visitors and build a more connected, engaged, and thriving community.”  Mayor Jim Ferrell, City of Federal Way
 
City of SeaTac – Airport Station Area Pedestrian Improvement Project
 
“Improving the lives of our underserved community is one of the most important things we can do as a city. This project will create safer and better connections between our residents and mass transit. Once completed, it will allow our community to better access their jobs, schools, and community resources.” Mayor Jake Simpson, City of SeaTac
 
City of Seattle – Civilian Assisted Response & Engagement (CARE) Department
 
“The City of Seattle is creating a new paradigm for emergency response through a third department that will work alongside Police and Fire, expanding our public safety toolkit and meeting the diversity of community needs. This innovative new department, the Civilian Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE) Department, will address the underlying health and social issues that lead to many emergency calls and help community members in their moment of need, and launching it is a priority for my administration to improve safety outcomes. We are grateful to Rep. Adam Smith for his support for the CARE Department as we reimagine community safety.” Mayor Bruce Harrell, City of Seattle
 
Indian American Community Services – IACS Community Center
 
“Indian American Community Services (IACS) provides support services for all ages and life stages in our immigrant refugee community with intent to reach out to our partner organizations and communities to share in the resources and spaces offered by the community center thereby creating a thriving ecosystem for all communities.” – Lalita Uppala, Executive Director, Indian American Community Services
 
King County Sexual Assault Resource Center – Technology and Data Project to Benefit Survivors of Sexual Assault
 
“Serving our community means not only having the right people in place, but also the technology they need to maximize efficiency and provide data view-through to better inform our work and priorities. The role of technology is often overlooked; we are thrilled that Congressman Smith recognizes its importance.” Mary Ellen Stone, Chief Executive Officer, King County Sexual Assault Resource Center (KCSARC)
 
Sound Transit – South Renton Transit Center
 
“The South Renton Transit Center will be a major connection hub for Sound Transit’s Stride bus rapid transit line, linking communities along I-405 and SR 518 all the way from Burien to Lynnwood. The Transit Center will be crucial to ensuring South King County has access to a high-capacity, integrated transit network, with connecting service on King County Metro. We’re grateful to Rep. Smith for recognizing the importance of this project and including it for consideration in the FY 2024 appropriations bill.” Sound Transit Board Chair and King County Executive Dow Constantine
 
Weld Seattle – 1426 Jackson Reintegration Resource Center
 
“Weld Seattle strongly believes in replacing barriers with opportunities. Once completed, our Reentry Resource Center will offer access to housing, employment, mental health and other wraparound services to individuals reentering the community from incarceration, homelessness, and substance use disorder. We are humbled by the congressional support from Representative Smith as it demonstrates their faith in the efficacy of this model in increasing public safety, enhancing service accessibility, and generating community engagement surrounding these high-visibility issues that impact our region.” Patrick Arney, Executive Director, Weld Seattle
 
Read additional statements of support from Weld Seattle’s community partners here.
 
YMCA of Greater Seattle – Severson House Renovations (transitional housing)
 
"The affordable housing crisis in the Greater Seattle Area requires our urgent, intentional action as a collective. The Y is committed to being part of the solution. The Severson House renovations will preserve and improve existing transitional housing for homeless young adults ages 18 to 24 in South King County. Investing in affordable housing for these young people is investing in the future of our communities.” Loria Yeadon, President & CEO of YMCA of Greater Seattle
 
Find more information about the FY 2024 Community Project Funding requests here.
 
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) today announced the 15 Community Project Funding requests he submitted to the House Appropriations Committee for consideration in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 appropriations bill.

The requested funding would go towards 15 community projects across the Ninth District, which will make great strides for affordable housing, public transportation, criminal justice and public safety, mental and behavioral health care, workforce and education, small business, economic empowerment, and more. 

“The appropriations process is an important way to send federal dollars back to our districts and make investments that will strengthen our communities. The 15 community projects I am announcing today for consideration in the FY 2024 appropriations bill will serve individuals and families in our region who need our support – from survivors of sexual assault, to people reentering the community from incarceration, to immigrant and refugee communities – and will invest in some our region’s most pressing challenges including housing, transportation, economic opportunity, and public safety. I am thrilled to submit these projects for consideration, and I will push to get this funding across the finish line to advance the incredible work of these organizations and strengthen the Ninth District.” 

See below for the full list of Rep. Smith’s Community Project Funding requests. Submitting projects to the House Appropriations Committee is the first step in the process and does not guarantee they will be funded. 

Find more information about the FY 2024 Community Project Funding requests, including project descriptions, here

Abu Bakr Islamic Center – Wadajir Residences & Souq – $4 million
Tukwila
 
Africatown Community Land Trust – Walker Street Homes – $1 million
Central District
 
Arc of King County – Arc Legacy Center: Access to Affordable Housing and Services for Individuals with Disabilities – $2 million
SeaTac
 
Cham Refugees Community – Cham Community Center –$2.25 million
Rainier Valley
 
City of Bellevue – Digital Equity for Affordable Housing – $1.5 million
Bellevue
 
City of Federal Way – Downtown Civic & Community Space – $2.5 million
Federal Way
 
City of Renton – Monroe Avenue Northeast (NE) Stormwater Quality Treatment and Infiltration Facility – $2.5 million
Renton
 
City of SeaTac – Airport Station Area Pedestrian Improvement Project – $4.5 million
SeaTac
 
City of Seattle – Civilian Assisted Response & Engagement (CARE) Department – $3.5 million
Seattle-wide
 
Filipino Community of Seattle – Filipino Community Village 2 – $4 million
Rainier Valley
 
Indian American Community Services – IACS Community Center – $4 million
Kent
 
King County Sexual Assault Resource Center – Technology and Data Project to Benefit Survivors of Sexual Assault – $790,000
King County, district-wide
 
Sound Transit – South Renton Transit Center – $3 million
Renton
 
Weld Seattle – 1426 Jackson Reintegration Resource Center – $4 million
Seattle
 
YMCA of Greater Seattle – Severson House Renovations (transitional housing) –$750,000
Auburn 

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Legislation Will Expand Use of Federal Dollars for Sound Insulation Repairs and Replacements 

SEATTLE, WA – Today, Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) introduced the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program Act, which would allow the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to waive the regulation that bars the use of federal funds on the same project twice for airports who choose to repair or replace sound insulation that are failing. 

“We must do everything we can to support communities impacted by aviated noise and emissions. The Airport Improvement Program (AIP) is an important fund used to mitigate homes from aviation noise, however, current regulations prohibit the use of AIP funds on the same home or structure twice. The legislation Senator Murray and I are introducing today would allow the FAA to bypass this regulation to ensure that residents have access to federal funds for necessary repairs or replacements and homes are properly insulated from the harmful impacts of aviation noise,” said Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.). “Thank you to Senator Murray and the Port of Seattle for their work on this legislation, which is crucially important to the Puget Sound region and aviation impacted communities across the country.” 

“We’ve got a very specific problem for the people who live near Sea-Tac Airport whose properties were soundproofed decades ago and are in need of updates and repairs, but the airport can’t use its federal dollars to make those fixes until we change the law,” said Senator Murray. “That’s why I am proud to join Representative Smith in introducing the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program Act.  Our bill waives an antiquated FAA regulation that bans the use of federal dollars on the same project twice for certain noise mitigation replacement projects —passing this legislation will bring relief to homeowners living near the airport.” 

Statements of support for the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program

“We are deeply grateful to U.S. Representative Adam Smith and U.S. Senator Patty Murray for their leadership on aircraft noise and emissions issues, and for introducing today’s legislation. The Port is committed to working with surrounding communities to utilize all available federal funding for sound insulation in homes and buildings near the airport, and this bill would allow us to identify and then receive grants to provide additional sound insulation to eligible homes. We look forward to working with our Congressional delegation toward passage of this legislation.” – Port of Seattle Commissioner Hamdi Mohamed 

“I applaud the effort by Congressman Smith to allow the Port of Seattle to access federal dollars to repair failed sound insulation for the thousands of airport community residents who granted a permanent aviation easement to the Port in exchange for insulation that in too many cases has failed to last.” – Washington State Senator Karen Keiser 

“SeaTac, one of the fastest growing airports in the country, has noise and air quality issues that impact our community. These impacts are even greater for residents who have failed Port packages that no longer reduce aircraft noise. Thankfully Senator Murray and Rep. Adam Smith are working at the federal level to allow these homes to receive much-needed fixes to provide noise relief to homeowners in our community.” – Washington State Representative Tina Orwall 

“As a new mom and a neighbor of the airport, I support the Sound Insulation Treatment and Replacement Program Act which protects SeaTac residents from the impacts of airport operations. This bill would allow the FAA to revisit decades-old sound insulation packages and bring them up-to-date to meet current codes and protect vulnerable residents from airport noise and its impacts which affects their quality of life.” – SeaTac Deputy Mayor Senayet Negusse 

A fact sheet of the Sound Insulation Treatment Repair and Replacement Program Act can be found here. The bill text can be found here

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