Hyde-Smith Votes to Advance Interior-Environment Appropriations Bill

Strategic Insights -

Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, voted in support of the FY2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, which was approved on a 26-2 vote. The bill, which funds the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and other agencies, includes several items of interest to Mississippi, such as funding for water systems, wastewater infrastructure, and unique cultural projects.

Key Takeaways:

  • The FY2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on a 26-2 vote, with Sen. Hyde-Smith voting in support.
  • The bill includes $7.8 million for regional wastewater improvements in Clinton, Bolton, and Raymond, $2.5 million for the DeSoto County Regional Utility Authority's Effluent Pump Station Project, and $1.17 million for stormwater infrastructure improvements in Natchez.
  • Additional funding includes $500,000 for the City of Louisville's Historic Strand Theater Preservation and Restoration and $20 million for the American Battlefield Protection Program.
  • The bill also includes report language for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to continue mineral assessments on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (Ole Miss) and the EPA to update and refine its draft of the Rodenticide Strategy.
  • $49 million is allocated for the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund, and report language directs the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore, enhance, and better manage habitat for waterfowl and wildlife at the Mathews Brake and Yazoo National Wildlife Refuges.

Statistics:

  • $7.8 million for regional wastewater improvements in Clinton, Bolton, and Raymond
  • $2.5 million for the DeSoto County Regional Utility Authority's Effluent Pump Station Project
  • $1.17 million for stormwater infrastructure improvements in Natchez
  • $500,000 for the City of Louisville's Historic Strand Theater Preservation and Restoration
  • $20 million for the American Battlefield Protection Program
  • $49 million for the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund
  • $3.3 billion for national parks
  • $2.8 billion for Clean Water and Drinking Water Revolving Funds

Sources:

  • Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith's news release on the FY2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill
  • Office of Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Mississippi
  • Senate Appropriations Committee
  • Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • U.S. Department of the Interior
  • North American Wetlands Conservation Fund
  • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service