The United States government should work for your best interests.  Sadly, this week, a whole lot of federal bureaucrats decided they know better than you do.

Nowhere was that more clear than with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers who started high-volume water discharges from Lake Okeechobee into the St. Lucie today.  For those that may be new to our community, these discharges are the precursor to our water turning a thick guacamole like consistency with a stench that’s somewhere between rotting carcass and year old milk.  Animals die, businesses suffer, and lives are put at risk because of the Army Corps’s failed management of Lake Okeechobee.

The Main Point.  We shouldn’t be in this situation.  No discharges at all would be necessary if the Army Corps would manage Lake Okeechobee in a way that prioritizes Floridians’ public health.

The Details.  As you may recall, the Army Corps currently manages Lake Okeechobee under an outdated schedule called the Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule.  Not only is this plan more than a decade old, but it is based on debunked science and bad data.  That’s why I fought in Congress to pass a law requiring the Army Corps to change how they manage the Lake.  This new plan is finished, but bureaucrats in D.C. did what they do best: throw up extra red tape that has caused implementation delays.  Now, we’re getting discharges again.

The Bottom Line.  As your representative in Congress, I will continue to fight to stop these discharges, send the water south to the Everglades where it is needed and defend Florida’s public health.

Amazingly, the Army Corps is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to rogue federal bureaucrats this week.  Watch the latest #WeekInReview here for more alarming news.