WASHINGTON – U.S. senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand say the recently passed omnibus spending bill includes $40 million in federal funding for the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC), which is nearly $4 million more than it received last year.

The funding will support the continued operations of the SLSDC, as well as projects to modernize the agency’s facilities.

“The Saint Lawrence Seaway is a major trade channel, and this federal funding is vital to ensuring the safe, reliable, and efficient transportation of goods between North America and global markets, so New York’s manufacturers and farmers can continue to sell their products all over the world,” Gillibrand said in a prepared statement. “This investment in infrastructure will directly benefit the North Country, helping to create jobs and promoting economic development. I will continue working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure that critical infrastructure projects such as this have the support they need to succeed.”

“The Saint Lawrence Seaway helps sustain tens-of-thousands of good-paying jobs, generates billions in economic activity and sparks numerous trade opportunities along the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System. This federal investment will help ensure those contributions can continue,” Schumer said in a prepared statement. “This new funding will allow SLSDC to upgrade and maintain its infrastructure along the seaway – clearing the way for a safe, efficient and reliable transportation system.”

The Seaway connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean for commercial waterway trade and is jointly operated by the United States and Canada.

The SLSDC is the agency of the United States Department of Transportation that is responsible for the operations and maintenance of the U.S. portion of the Saint Lawrence Seaway.

Funding will support the SLSDC’s operational activities, such as vessel traffic control, vessel safety, environmental inspections, trade promotion, and infrastructure renewal, as well as projects to renew the SLSDC’s facilities.

These projects, as designated by the SLSDC’s Asset Renewal Program, were first launched in 2009 and are the first efforts to repair and modernize American seaway infrastructure in its 50-year history.