Jaime Herrera Beutler voted with a bipartisan majority of the U.S. House of Representatives today to put on President Obama’s desk a bill ending the "Waters of the United States” rule. This rule overturns 42 years of Clean Water Act protection and expands the power of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers’ to regulate water – no matter how little – on any land, public or private.

Across the Puget Sound region, as real estate values and rents rise, cities large and small are struggling to preserve existing lower-cost, market-rate housing. A bipartisan plan to enact a local-option property tax exemption for existing rental homes aims to preserve lower rents and prevent the displacement of long-time tenants, even as landlords seek to make building improvements.

The Washington Department of Ecology is awarding grants to public utility, conservation and irrigation districts to help improve local and regional water supplies in river basins across the state.

Cashmere developer George Valison has successfully restored the shoreline of Mission Creek, resolving $20,000 in civil penalties and orders associated with unpermitted excavation work in Mission Creek conducted in 2012

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, applauded the long-term extension of critical clean energy tax credits for wind and solar energy in the omnibus spending bill.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) applauded today the inclusion of her permanent credit rate floor for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit in the final tax extenders package. The critical fix to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit—a program that has financed 90 percent of affordable housing projects in the United States and more than 50,000 affordable housing units in Washington state—will be permanently renewed.

Mayor Ed Murray announced the City of Seattle's $45 million investment in affordable housing development through the Office of Housing's Rental Housing Program. Once completed, these 809 apartments will be home to low-income families, youth, seniors, and single adults, some of whom would otherwise be homeless

U.S. Representative Dan Newhouse (WA-04), released the following statement applauding House passage of H.R. 8, the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act. This legislation will modernize the country’s energy laws and infrastructure for the 21st Century, facilitate more domestic energy production, modernize our energy workforce, improve management of the electric grid on federal lands and forests, update hydropower regulations, and strengthen overall U.S. national security and energy independence.

Councilmember Nick Licata, chair of the Budget Committee, released the following statement after the Budget Committee sent a 2016 Budget to the Full Council

The Board of County Councilors unanimously approved the county’s stormwater and code manual update today during a scheduled consent agenda meeting.

Acting County Manager Mark McCauley is seeking volunteers to serve on the county’s Clean Water Commission. Two positions are available, and terms run from January 2016 through January 2019.

The idea for the REDI fund emerged from a 3-year regional planning effort, Growing Transit Communities, which concluded in 2013. The City Council authorized the $1 million in the 2015 budget and asked the Mayor and the Office of Housing to develop a Regional Compact with King County, the State of Washington, and other regional public and private partners to govern expenditure of the fund.

The City of Bellevue invites residents to an open house on Nov. 19 to give input on the Draft Water System Plan, which describes how the city plans to meet water needs for the next 20 years. The open house will be held from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 450 110th Ave. NE, in Room 1E-113.

In Seattle, homeless veterans in urgent need of housing will be identified in partnership with the Veterans Administration for placement in ten designated VASH project-based voucher apartments at the Low Income Housing Institute’s McDermott Place, which currently serves 28 veterans.

HASCO was established in 1971 to increase affordable housing in Snohomish County. HASCO is a long-time recipient of HUD-VASH grants, including a grant to house 12 veterans experiencing homelessness earlier this year. The 20 housing units funded with this new grant brings HASCO’s total number of HUD-VASH vouchers to 219.

The three cities thank their customers for helping the region stretch its water supplies to meet the needs of people and fish in this unprecedented year. “As we move from the voluntary to advisory stage of our drought response plan, I want to acknowledge and thank the customers of Everett’s water system for meeting and exceeding the 10 percent reduction goal,” said Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson.

“With this vote today, Seattle neighborhoods will become more sustainable, socially inclusive and economically diverse. For the first time, private developers will build or contribute to affordable housing with every new apartment building or office building

Over the past 18 years, the Technology Matching Fund program has enabled 153 community organizations to build their capacity to provide technology and internet access, digital skills training, and electronic civic engagement. The majority of City funding for the program has been allocated from cable franchise fees, and has reinvested over $3.9 million in community based projects.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) issued the following statement after President Barack Obama announced a Major Disaster Declaration for the record-breaking wildland fires that affected communities across Washington state.

The penalty also cites the company for attempting to handle the shipment without proper planning or preparation. Soil in stormwater is a pollutant. The particles can harm habitat and injure the delicate breathing tissues in fish gills