If the water bill passes officials hope it will help improve the ecosystem in the Everglades. The Water Resources Development Act authorizes the Army Corps of Engineers to create Broward County Water Preserve Areas, which they say can help the Everglades function when water gets low.

South Florida Republican Mario Diaz-Balart says the legislation is important for another reason too.
“Look, one of the huge issues is the dredging of the Port of Miami, which is 100% funded by the state, not the federal government but we still need a WRDA bill to pass in order to allow that to happen", said Diaz-Balart. "So it’s huge for the economy of Florida and the country and these are very very important projects.”

The bill also authorizes the Army Corps of Engineers to expand and deepen other ports across Florida, and make improvements to Lake Okeechobee and the Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands.

The chair of the Senate public works committee, Barbara Boxer of California, says there are also provisions in the legislation intended to help states like Florida during hurricane season.

“Fact is we have extreme weather and we have some rules in place in this bill that’s going to make it a lot easier for people in your state to deal with the Corps after an extreme weather event”, said Boxer.

The Senate legislation will have to be combined with a House version. But there’s a catch: the bill only authorizes the projects. It doesn’t provide any money. That cash will have to be voted on and passed separately before any Florida projects get underway.