Another recent example is our work with the Bureau of Reclamation in excavating the spillway and associated areas at the Folsom Dam Auxiliary Spillway control structure in Sacramento, California. By collaborating with our partners, we are not only saving the taxpayer money, but also are reducing the flood risk for Sacramento much quicker than would have been possible working independently. Through these types of whole-of-government partnerships, unique authorities, and integrated civilian-military capabilities, we are better positioned to deliver solutions.

 

Wounded Warrior Program

We have [an] engaged work force who cares very deeply about the work that we do and also recognizes the great sacrifice borne by our veterans and wounded warriors in service to our nation. We increased our efforts to assist wounded warriors who served our nation and are now transitioning to civilian life. In the past three-and-a-half years, we have helped more than 700 wounded warriors develop new skills and find employment. We reach out to veterans and wounded warriors through veterans’ resource organizations and a variety of career fair, outreach, and transition events. Our Veteran Curation Program hires veterans for up to five months, providing training in a variety of skills, to provide tangible work experience and improve veteran access to the mainstream job market. As with everything we do, mission success depends on our people, who take great pride in what they do to serve the Army and the nation as we engineer solutions for our nation’s toughest challenges.

Do you foresee a shift in priorities as USACE tackles new challenges in funding, climate change, resilience, and security?

That’s really a great question. I think perhaps the nature of our challenges may change slightly as we adapt to uncertainty and a changing environment, but I think the core pillars of our strategy remain the same – support national security, transform civil works, reduce disaster risks, and prepare for tomorrow. As I mentioned earlier, we are challenged to obtain the requisite amount of resources to implement projects. It is unlikely we will have a shift in priorities, but what you will see is that we are maturing new methods such as the public-private partnership, alternative financing to meet existing requirements as well as watershed-informed budgeting through a whole-of-government approach.

The last report card on U.S. infrastructure from the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) awarded a D+ overall and estimated $3.6 trillion in repairs were needed by 2020 to upgrade parks, levees, bridges, and other systems. Can USACE expect better grades with the 2017 report card? How is the Army Corps of Engineers doing in terms of addressing the repairs?

We appreciate the thoroughness of the findings and recommendations from ASCE, as the report card is an important metric of our ability to sustain or improve the aging infrastructure. It’s a bit premature to say we will get a better grade, but I can say we are developing processes and partnerships that work toward achieving greater results.

As I mentioned earlier, in order to finish the projects that we are currently funding in the Corps of Engineers, we would need $19.7 billion and we receive about $1 billion in construction per year. A tremendous shortfall, to be sure, but it still represents only a tiny portion of the $3.6 trillion in repairs needed by 2020 that were identified in the report card. It is simple math.

The Corps of Engineers is actively considering public-private partnerships. We are earnestly exploring how public-private partnerships can help us deliver more high-quality infrastructure through leveraging private-sector investments and developing a culture of innovation for global competitiveness through a highly collaborative environment.

Yet our efforts to find alternative funding are bearing fruit and will help to reduce the gap. Our plan is to reinforce that success by devoting more attention and resources to alternative financing and public-private partnerships in order to complete more of our projects. It is critical that we do so in order to reduce risk for Americans and to prepare for tomorrow.

Do you foresee USACE downsizing in these times of fiscal uncertainty?

It would be premature to speculate on which decisions might be made down the line based on shrinking budgets. It is evident that each year USACE executes a deliberate process to identify requirements, and then to prioritize those requirements based on available resources. Many factors bear on those decisions and each one is weighed on its own merits. Americans have confidence USACE is being a good steward of taxpayers’ money, making every dollar count, as USACE works toward executing the Army Corps’ requirements.