PUTNAM COUNTY, NY — More than $10 million in federal infrastructure funding will come to Putnam County from the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, with projects in every town in the county receiving an investment, U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler announced Thursday at a news conference in Carmel.
“The two funding bills we passed that were signed into law included a combined $58 million in funding for our district,” Lawler said in a news release after the event. “These funds will meet a variety of needs across NY-17 — ensuring clean drinking water for various localities, mitigating flooding in several neighborhoods, revitalizing downtown communities, providing critical resources for local law enforcement, improving pedestrian safety, and creating good-paying, union jobs right here in our district.”
He was joined by local elected officials at Carmel Town Hall.
“We want to give a big thanks to Congressman Mike Lawler for helping us fund this clean water project,” said Carmel Town Supervisor Michael Cazzari. “The $2,275,000 that he has secured for us is going to make a real difference in improving our clean water, it’s going to improve the access to Lake Mahopac for our residents.”
“Bringing back $1.237 million to cover the engineering costs and the rehabilitation of the Lake Carmel Dam is huge for the town,” said Kent Town Supervisor Jaime McGlasson. “It’s one of several dams that needs rehabilitation and I’m thankful that this one was chosen. I’m even more pleased that the request was able to be fully funded.”
Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne and New York Assemblyman Matt Slater said they appreciated how accessible Lawler was to local officials.
Lawler was one of 101 Republicans in the House of Representatives to vote for the omnibus spending bill, over which the party split, 101 “yes” to 112 “no.”
“I was proud to vote in favor of this budget, which included an increase in funding for Head Start – something I have fought for since the start of this Congress,” he said in March. “It also increases funding for national defense, cancer research, military pay, and border security — all while holding true to our deficit reductions negotiated in the Fiscal Responsibility Act — the largest deficit reduction in our nation’s history.”