08.15.17

Hoeven Secures $10 Million to Help Cover Costs of DAPL Protest

Senator Included Funding in DOJ Budget, Worked with Attorney General & DOJ to Ensure State’s Application Was Successful

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today announced that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded North Dakota $10 million to help reimburse the state for the costs of the Dakota Access Pipeline protests. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Hoeven worked to secure the funding in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 budget for the DOJ’s Emergency Federal Law Enforcement Assistance program earlier this year. 

The senator has consistently worked with the DOJ since May to ensure the state’s application was successful. This includes speaking with Attorney General Jeff Sessions and DOJ officials on several occasions and writing to Sessions on July 11 in support of the application. Hoeven continues his efforts to provide additional funding in the FY2018 appropriations bills.

“Ensuring the safety of everyone in the area during the protests was a tremendous undertaking for our law enforcement,” said Hoeven. “Considering the protestor camp was allowed to remain on federal land and the Obama administration’s decision to prolong the situation and refusal to enforce the law, it only makes sense that the federal government should shoulder a share of the cost. That’s why we worked so hard to bring this funding to the state and relieve some of this burden.” 

Today’s funding comes in addition to the support Hoeven secured for state and local law enforcement during the protests, including resources from the Office of Justice Service at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This amounted to $1.3 million in additional support for law enforcement, according to the Interior Department. Further, Hoeven worked to bring in more than $1.1 million of Army Corps of Engineer resources to help clean up the protest site prior to the spring thaw.

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