Tester, Daines Usher Bill Through Senate to Expand Access to Clean Water on Fort Peck

Legislation Extends Fort Peck-Dry Prairie Rural Water Project

(U.S. Senate)—U.S. Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines pushed a bill through the Senate to deliver clean water to over 27,000 people on the Fort Peck Reservation and surrounding communities.

The legislation would extend the authorization of the Fort Peck-Dry Prairie rural water project from 2020 to 2026.

“This bill will provide access to clean water for families, businesses, and schools across Fort Peck,” said Tester. “I will keep holding Washington accountable to Fort Peck to increase access to clean water, improve local schools, increase the quality of health care, and build the infrastructure that allows local businesses to thrive.”

“Clean and safe water is a basic need for all communities,” said Daines. “This bill will put the shovel in the ground for a project that will deliver high-quality water to members of the Fort Peck Tribes and surrounding area.”

This critical water infrastructure project will construct more than 3,200 miles of pipeline to carry municipal, rural, and industrial water to the Fort Peck Reservation and surrounding communities.

80 percent of the private systems on the Fort Peck Reservation currently have nitrate levels above safe drinking water standards.

Tester and Daines are both members of the Senate Indian Affairs and Appropriations Committees.