Restore Back Bay Study

Floor Speech

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Ms. McBRIDE. Mr. Speaker, I just want to start by thanking my colleagues who have spoken earlier in this speaking program for honoring individuals whose lives were cut tragically short, and I want to extend my condolences to all those who are mourning those who have been honored in this Chamber today.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share my disappointment at the rejection of my amendment to the Energy and Water Appropriations bill.

My amendment supported the continuation of the Back Bay study, a congressionally authorized effort to help Delaware better address the vulnerabilities facing our coastal communities.

Delaware is the lowest-lying State in the Nation. In Sussex County, farmers, small businesses, and families are already dealing with the consequences of rising sea levels, coastal flooding, and increasingly severe weather.

The Back Bay study, which began in November of 2022, has been providing valuable research needed to strengthen infrastructure and plan for the future.

But earlier this year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers terminated the study, citing an inability to ``develop a scope and budget that is compliant.''

In response, Senator Coons, Senator Blunt Rochester, and I called on the Army Corps to reinstate the study and provide a real explanation for walking away from this congressionally authorized effort.

Given their inaction, I filed my amendment. But the message from the majority party's leadership that has refused to even allow for a vote on my amendment is that research that supports the long-term safety of Delawareans in the face of rising sea levels is of no consequence to them.

I will keep working to restore the Back Bay study because Delawareans cannot afford for this study to simply be abandoned. Farewell to Retiring Legislators

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Ms. McBRIDE. Mr. Speaker, this coming June 30, the Delaware's State legislature will convene for its final regular session day of the 153rd general assembly. With it, the State senate and statehouse will bid farewell to several retiring legislators, leaders with over a century in combined public service to our State of neighbors.

Representing constituencies across Delaware, spanning the partisan and ideological spectrum, I was proud to call these legislators colleagues during my 4 years in the general assembly. I had the chance to see their devotion to their constituents, and I will take a moment in this Chamber to celebrate their service.

In my old stomping grounds of the Delaware State Senate, my forever president pro-tempore, Senator David Sakola, is retiring after over 35 years in office. During that time, Dave has been a tireless champion of public education, environmental sustainability, and equality.

For the last 6 years as the President pro-tempore of the State senate, Dave led a caucus that raised the minimum wage, passed paid family and medical leave, advanced historic gun safety legislation, and protected vulnerable neighborhoods whose rights and freedoms have been anything but secure. I am proud to call Dave not only a former colleague but a friend and mentor.

Across the aisle, Senator Dave Lawson is retiring after 16 years representing western Kent County. A Vietnam veteran, retired Delaware State trooper, former volunteer with his local fire company, and a businessman, Dave has spent his life serving the Nation that he loves. He has paid it forward time and time again, fighting for those who put their lives on the line for all of us from veterans to first responders.

In the statehouse, my dear friend Deb Heffernan is retiring after 16 years representing the Sixth District. During her time in Dover, Deb has been an effective advocate for her neighbors delivering for teachers, families, caregivers, and people with disabilities. She has brought her expertise to defending our environment and investing in next-generation infrastructure in her district and across Delaware. During my time in the Delaware General Assembly, Deb and I teamed up often, including to lead the successful effort to pass paid family and medical leave statewide.

To my former colleagues who are also turning the page on this chapter of their service, Representatives Ron Gray, Rich Collins, Charles Postles, Jeff Hilovsky, and my friend Kevin Hensley, I thank each of them for their service on behalf of our neighbors across the First State.

From supporting small businesses to promoting financial literacy, protecting people with disabilities to fighting for farmers, they have worked across the political divide to champion causes on behalf of their constituents.

Mr. Speaker, in Delaware, public service is not defined by the title before your name nor the side of the aisle you sit on. It is defined by our capacity to deliver for our neighbors, working across difference to ensure government works for those it is meant to serve.

I thank my former colleagues and my friends in Leg Hall for their years of service to the greatest State in the history of the Union, and best wishes to a happy retirement.

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