U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) secured robust investments for Michigan priorities and high-impact, local public projects in the bipartisan Fiscal Year 2026 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act that passed the Senate.
The bill includes funding for strengthening Michigan’s water infrastructure, protecting our wildlife and environment, and improving access to clean drinking water for Michiganders. As Co-Chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force, Peters also advocated and secured increased funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which plays a critical role in protecting and restoring Great Lakes waterways and habitats. The bill now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.
“Protecting our Great Lakes and Michiganders’ access to clean drinking water have been some of my top priorities,” said Senator Peters, Co-Chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force. “This bipartisan legislation helps us accomplish those things by investing in our state’s water infrastructure, removing dangerous lead pipes, and working to protect folks from exposure to toxic PFAS contamination. The bill also makes sure the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, a historic program that keeps our Great Lakes healthy and vibrant, continues to receive funding to carry out essential cleanup projects in our state.”
The bill includes numerous measures led and supported by Peters, including:
Protecting our Great Lakes, Fisheries, and Environment
Funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative: Peters fought and secured $369 million in the bill for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). The GLRI is the largest investment in the Great Lakes’ health, ecosystem, and water quality.
Since the program’s inception in 2010, roughly $4 billion has been used to fund over 8,000 projects to combat the greatest threats to the Great Lakes, including invasive species, harmful algal blooms, and loss of fish and wildlife habitats. During his time in the Senate, Peters has championed the GLRI. Earlier this Congress, he led the effort to introduce the Great Lakes Restoration Act of 2025, which would reauthorize the program and increase its annual authorized funding levels.
Keeping Invasive Carp Out of the Great Lakes: Invasive carp pose a grave risk to the lasting health of our Great Lakes. That’s why this bill provides funding for the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Aquatic Invasive Species program, which supports Great Lakes Basin-wide efforts to combat aquatic invasive species, including invasive carp. This work helps assess the threats posed by invasive carp to the Great Lakes and supports efforts to detect and respond to new invasive species. The bill also provides funding for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Biological Threats and Invasive Species Research Program which produces essential research, detection methods, and tools to help keep invasive carp out of the Great Lakes. Finally, the bill also provides funding for efforts to monitor, detect, and respond to aquatic nuisance species within the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain Systems.
Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration: The bill protects funding for the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act, which helps fund critical fish and wildlife projects in the Great Lakes Basin. Funding from this program has helped establish ecosystem management tools, restored wetlands and aquatic habitat, and advanced fish and wildlife monitoring and modeling.
Great Lakes Science Center: Peters secured $15 million in the bill to support the Great Lakes Science Center, which works to enhance our understanding of the Great Lakes’ complex ecosystem through studies and collaboration with a wide range of partners. Earlier this year, bipartisan legislation authored by Peters to reauthorize funding for the Great Lakes Science Center was signed into law.
Strengthening Michigan’s Water Infrastructure & Ensuring Clean Drinking Water
Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds: The bill restores funding for both the Drinking Water and the Clean Water State Revolving Funds, which the Trump Administration had proposed slashing by nearly 90 percent. The Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds are vital to protecting Michigan’s water resources and rebuilding critical water infrastructure.
These projects provide Michigan residents with significant benefits, ranging from reduced exposure to pollution to lead-free drinking water. While the primary focus of the state revolving funds is offering financing solutions for water infrastructure for wastewater, storm water, and drinking water systems, the funds also reduce energy waste and decrease water system rates, improving affordability.
Bolstering Lead Abatement Programs: Lead poisoning continues to be a public health challenge in areas with aging infrastructure, causing life-long health impacts particularly among children.
Peters helped secure much-needed funding for critical programs that support communities seeking to clean up lead contaminated waste sites, replace toxic lead pipes, and minimize exposure in surrounding areas. This includes funding for the Lead Testing in Schools Program, the Reducing Lead in Drinking Water Grant Program, and State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) for lead hazard reduction.
Strengthen St. Ignace’s Water and Wastewater System: The bill provides $36,000 for St. Ignace to update its system that controls the alarms and communication between water wastewater plants as well as other facility operations.
Upgrade Marquette County K.I. Sawyer Wastewater Treatment Plant: The bill provides $1,370,000 to upgrade the disinfection system at the K.I. Sawyer Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Funding for the National Park Service: The bill includes more than $3 billion to support National Park Service (NPS) operations. This funding will allow NPS to more effectively manage its 433 national parks, monuments, historical sites, and other recreational areas that encompass nearly 84 million acres of land across the United States. Michigan is proud to be home to five National Parks, which draw more than 2.5 million visitors to the state annually.
Forest Service: The bill provides robust funding for the Forest Service. These resources will help ensure adequate staffing levels and improve forest restoration and fire risk reduction efforts.
Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF): The bill allocates funding for federal land acquisition and financial assistance to states through the Great American Outdoors Act. This program is critical for improving recreational access to our federal lands, protecting iconic landscapes, delivering grants to states and local governments to create and protect urban parks and open spaces. It also provides farmers and ranchers with easements to allow them to continue to steward their private lands in the face of development pressures.
Addressing Wildfires: As catastrophic wildfires grow in size and frequency, it is essential that support for, and investments in, the federal firefighting workforce keep pace. As such, this bill fully funds essential wildfire preparedness and suppression efforts by providing $4.25 billion for wildfire suppression, of which $2.85 billion is for the Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund.
The Reserve Fund provides the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior with an assured amount of funding to be used when major fire activity requires expenditures exceeding regular base suppression operations funding. This bill also provides much-needed funding to help prevent a devastating pay cut for the federal firefighting workforce.
Tribal Programs: In total, the bill provides $12 billion for Tribal programs across the Department of the Interior and the Indian Health Service, rejecting President Trump’s proposed cuts of nearly $1 billion from Tribal programs.
Indian Health Service (IHS): The bill provides $8 billion in total resources for IHS to maintain critically important health care services and maintain current staffing for doctors, nurses, and health services staff.
Supporting Tribal Self-Governance and Essential Services: The bill provides $1.91 billion, an increase in funding, for the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ operations of Indian programs. This funds essential government services in critical areas like roads and infrastructure, housing improvement, natural resources protection, Tribal courts, economic development, and social services. This funding is essential for Tribal governments exercising self-determination and crucial to upholding the federal government’s trust responsibility.
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