The U.S. Senate’s expected to vote this week on a bill to rebuild the locks on the Mississippi River in a near-12-billion dollar project. A similar bill has already passed the House. Iowa farmers applaud the plan, saying it’ll help speed the shipment of grain and double the length of most existing locks.
Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says the project is an enormous, expensive undertaking. Grassley says “Any sort of budget restraints are going to decide whether it’s going to be done in maybe five years versus ten years, but there’s also the capability of getting it done too that may be as much of a restriction as the amount of money.”
The measure has wide support in the Senate and is expected to pass. The project would include the construction of five new locks on the Mississippi — all south of Iowa between Missouri and Illinois.