Brindisi Joins Republicans in Protecting Properties from Flood Damages

Congressman Anthony Brindisi is standing up with fellow representatives on both sides of the isle following publication of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on Plan 2014. Brindisi aligned with Republican John Katko (NY-24), and Democrat Joseph Morelle (NY-25) to condemn the action.

“We’ve heard from the communities across the region and we agree: Plan 2014 is broken. It is important that the IJC take this GAO report seriously and follow its recommendations--but more action is necessary," said Brindisi in a joint statement. "The IJC needs to take substantive steps to protect Lake Ontario’s southern shoreline, listen to our communities, and act in a transparent way to ensure fairness and safety in our region. We will not stop fighting for the families, businesses, and homeowners that continue to pay the price for the IJC’s inaction."

In March, the members introduced theIJC Accountability Act, which would remove International Joint Commission (IJC) immunity from lawsuits, allowing impacted coastal communities to take legal action against the IJC for flooding damages.

In 2017 and 2019, communities along Lake Ontario’s southern shore experienced historic high-water levels, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to homes, businesses, and infrastructure. Reps. Brindisi, Katko, and Morelle have long worked in a bipartisan manner to hold the IJC accountable for failing to protect coastal communities, and called for substantive steps to prevent further devastation by increasing outflows to the maximum extent possible and developing a realistic plan for managing Lake Ontario water levels. Reps. Brindisi, Katko, and Morelle’s IJC Accountability Act will allow impacted communities to pursue legal action against the IJC for failing to prevent past and future flooding damage.