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Federal lobbyist: WRDA movement, earmark wins and funding uncertainty for Lake Charles port
Summary
Emily De Silva of the P Card Group told the Port of Lake Charles board the Water Resources Development Act includes authorizations helpful to the port and that the port secured a $3 million FY‑24 community project and an $1.8 million FY‑25 appropriation in a rail rehab measure; she warned of appropriations timing uncertainty.
Emily De Silva, a partner in the P Card Group’s Washington office and a native of the region, briefed the Port of Lake Charles board on federal funding and policy developments during the Dec. 16 meeting.
De Silva said the port’s federal team has worked with the congressional delegation and Army Corps staff on both programmatic and appropriations funding. She cited a $3,000,000 community project included by Rep. Higgins in FY‑24 for city docks and said an $1,800,000 amount for a rail rehabilitation project was included in FY‑25 appropriations language under consideration. "Just last year in FY '24, Congressman Higgins included $3,000,000 for city docks and we worked with his staff on that," De Silva said.
On authorization policy, De Silva discussed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), which sets authorizations for Army Corps projects; she said WRDA contains two relevant authorizations for the port — a jetty extension and channel deepening — and that continuing appropriations and conference processes may delay final funding decisions. De Silva said Congress had been operating under a continuing resolution and that language for the next CR was expected; she noted the need to pass funding by Dec. 20 to avoid additional disruption.
De Silva also described efforts to raise the port’s profile within the Strategic Seaport program (a Department of Defense designation) and cited relationships in Congress she said will help the port’s prospects for authorization and funding.
Her remarks were followed by expressions of thanks from commissioners. The transcript does not record follow‑up votes tied directly to the lobbyist presentation; the briefing was informational and intended to update the board on federal advocacy status.
