Congressman Kim Votes to Protect New Jersey Coastal Communities
Through Bipartisan Effort

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Andy Kim (NJ-03) voted to pass H.R. 729, The Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act, a package of bipartisan bills that takes steps to protect vulnerable coastal communities from extreme weather events.

“Our coastline isn’t just a natural resource we treasure, it’s key to our economy and it’s a point of pride when we tell people we’re from New Jersey,” said Congressman Kim. “Unfortunately, we’re seeing our coastal communities at greater risk from more common sunny day flooding and extreme weather events. These bills would further our efforts to help our state adapt to changing coastal conditions and help New Jersey’s coastal economy build its defenses for the next superstorm. Our communities simply cannot stand by and wait for the next big one to hit; I’m proud to have voted to pass this bill that will go a long way to make sure our coastline isn’t just a point of pride for us, but for generations to come.”

The Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act consists of ten bipartisan bills that provide new resources and modernizes efforts to increase resiliency for vulnerable communities like those in New Jersey. These bills include:

• H.R. 3115 – Living Shorelines Act: Establishes a grant program to fund the design, implementation, and monitoring of climate resilient living shoreline projects intended to protect coastal communities and ecosystem functions.
• H.R. 3596 – Keep America’s Waterfronts Working Act: Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) to establish a working waterfront grant program to preserve and protect coastal access for water dependent commercial activities. This includes areas like shore communities in Ocean County.
• H.R. 3541 – Coastal State Climate Preparedness Act: Designates funds specifically to be used for climate preparedness planning under the CZMA. These funds will help shore communities in Ocean County better prepare resiliency efforts.

“Investing in the health of our coast, ocean and shore communities is an investment in our future,” said Tim Dillingham, Executive Director of the American Littoral Society. “The initiatives supported in this bill will help us protect our environment, the health of our coastal ecosystems and our local economies in the face of a changing climate. They are investments we need to make today.”

In addition to passing The Coastal and Great Lakes Communities Enhancement Act, Congressman Kim also voted to pass The Coastal and Marine Economies Protection Act and the Protecting and Securing Florida’s Coastline Act, H.R. 205, which further protects coastal areas in the Gulf of Mexico. Congressman Kim also recently hosted a town hall in Seaside Heights focused on coastal community issues such as flooding and living shorelines strategies.

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