Murray helps lead fight to restore Hanson Dam federal funding

Federal funding is back this year for the Howard Hanson Dam along the Green River for a project to improve fish passage and water storage.

Well, partial funding.

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, said in a Jan. 15 press release that she had helped secure $190 million for the dam as part of a three-bill package passed 82-15 on Jan. 15 by the Senate in Washington, D.C. The House already had approved the bills which now go to President Donald Trump to sign into law.

In 2025, Trump removed $500 million in funding from the Hanson Dam fish passage project, which wasa decision strongly opposed by Murray. This current bill will get the project going.

“This bill rebukes that effort—and delivers $190 million for the Howard Hanson Dam to finally begin construction on a critical project to reduce flood risk and ensure long-term water reliability for over one million people in the region,” Murray said.

Hanson Dam was built in the early 1960s to protect the people and infrastructure of the Green River Valley from historical catastrophic flooding, including the cities of Kent, Auburn, Renton and Tukwila. The cities of Tacoma, Covington and Kent also get water supply from the Green River. Kent gets a portion of its water through Tacoma Public Utilities, but most of the city’s supply comes from the Clark Springs watershed, fed by the Cedar River.

The Hanson Dam’s flood protection, and levees built along the Green River, played a major role in controlling flooding during the atmospheric river that struck the area in December.

During last month’s historic flooding, the Army Corps of Engineers stored record amounts of water behind the dam, preventing an estimated 5 feet of additional flooding in Auburn, according to the press release. This funding is combined with language in the bill that applies broadly but will allow the Army Corps of Engineers to incrementally fund the project by modifying the existing design and construction contract within 60 days of this bill’s enactment.

While the project originally needed $500 million to move forward with construction, this language allows the Corps to get the Hanson Dam project back on track with this award, according to the press release. Once complete, the project will continue to protect communities, improve water reliability and enhance ecosystem resilience for generations to come.

Murray said this legislation has “provisions that make sure Trump cannot corruptly rip away funding for Army Corps projects in blue states like he did last year.”