WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the United States Senate takes efforts to aid states impacted by Hurricane Sandy and other recent disasters nationwide, Senator Lisa Murkowski – a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee – was able to address a number of Alaska-specific concerns stemming from this season’s salmon shortfall and the rising threat of debris from last year’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

The Senate Appropriations Committee today released a Hurricane Sandy Supplemental Funding bill, including:

• $150 million dollars in fishery disaster relief, to be shared among multiple states and
• $56 million for marine debris efforts in several states.

“I believe the future destruction of the slow-motion threat posed by tsunami debris can be lessened through more action now. That’s why I asked the Appropriations Committee Chairs, Senators Inouye and Cochran for $20 million in debris cleanup on Monday (letter attached) and look forward to making our case to NOAA to ensure a robust portion of this funding is used to protect our shores from tsunami debris,” said Murkowski. “Alaska’s Chinook fisheries were declared a disaster exactly three months ago, but no funds have been appropriated to help communities and businesses impacted yet. This bill will go a long way in providing federal resources to Alaskans who suffered economically because of this year’s low King Salmon run get back on their feet.”