WASHINGTON – Tomorrow (Wednesday), U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) will chair a Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee field hearing in Southwest Iowa focusing on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ river management following the devastating flooding in the region. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) will also participate. Witnesses will include officials from the Army Corps and local leaders and stakeholders from Fremont County, among others. The meeting takes place 8:30-a.m. at Kaufman Hall (24116 Marian Ave., in Glenwood), and includes the following witnesses:

• Major General Scott Spellmon: Deputy Commanding General, Civil and Emergency Operations – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Civil Works)
• John  Remus: Chief, Missouri River Basin Water Management Division U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Civil Works), Northwestern Division
• Cathy Crain: Mayor City of Hamburg, Iowa
• Leo Ettleman: Farmer & Community Advocate, Fremont County, Iowa
• Joel Euler: Attorney Doniphan County, Kansas, and,
• Blake Hurst: Executive Director: Coalition to Protect the Missouri River, from Hermann, MO

Ernst says “As Iowans continue to recover from the devastating floods, we need answers to the critical question of how best to manage our rivers and water infrastructure. This hearing will bring together officials from the Army Corps and local leaders and stakeholders to examine what happened over the last few weeks and discuss how we can prevent this kind of destruction from happening again.”

Grassley says “Flood control should be the number one priority of the Army Corps of Engineers. The current river management policy needs fixing, and recent flooding makes that more urgent than ever. This hearing will help put a spotlight on the real-world impact that policies crafted in Washington have on Iowans and Americans across the Midwest. I thank Senator Joni Ernst for her hard work and leadership on the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee. Having her in this key role will continue to pay dividends for Iowans.”