Congressman Bishop Secures Over $14 Million for Law Enforcement, Public Safety, and Clean Water in Middle & Southwest Georgia

WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) a senior member of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, secured over $14 million in funding for nine crucial projects in Middle and Southwest Georgia that help hardworking families have access to affordable, clean water. These projects also help communities update equipment for local law enforcement, fight child abuse as well as domestic violence, and continue improvements to Lake Seminole. The funds were included as part of a bipartisan appropriations bill, H.R. 6938, for Fiscal Year 2026 which funded the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Commerce, and the U.S. Department of Energy as well as related federal science, energy, and environmental programs.

The bill passed the U.S. House by a vote of 397-28 and now proceeds to the U.S. Senate for approval before being signed into law by the president.

“Georgians work hard and Congress should be matching that effort to ensure that they can afford to live in safe communities with clean water,” said Congressman Bishop. “The funding that I secured supports our counties, towns, schools, and community organizations. It improves the quality of life for families throughout Georgia’s Second Congressional District, whether they live in urban or rural areas.”

The nine projects in Georgia’s Second Congressional District for which Congressman Bishop secured funding include:

• $9,747,000 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to manage invasive aquatic vegetation, restore access on Lake Seminole, and restore the local ecosystem;
• $1,092,000 to the Lee County Board of Commissioners for a 1.0 million gallon per day well and treatment facility to provide safe, reliable, and potable drinking water to their residents;
• $960,000 to the City of Blakely for a major water transmission line that would improve service to areas of the city that have very poor water pressure, including the Early County School System;
• $739,000 to the Southwest Georgia Children's Alliance, Inc., to expand prevention programs, informed care practices, and justice system response to child abuse and domestic violence across 17 counties in Georgia’s Second Congressional District;
• $629,000 to the Early County Board of Commissioners to upgrade its regional 911 emergency services equipment;
• $478,420 to the City of Attapulgus for the first phase of a multi-phase plan to replace existing asbestos cement water mains within its drinking water distribution system;
• $313,000 to Columbus State University for its campus police force purchase two new police cruisers, mobile data terminals, and security cameras to help its efficiency and operational capabilities as well as improve campus safety;
• $306,000 to the City of Buena Vista's Police Department to replace old patrol vehicles and other obsolete equipment so that it will improve patrol effectiveness as well as officer and community safety; and
• $120,000 to the City of Newton to upgrade its existing emergency services vehicles.

H.R. 6938 is the product of ongoing negotiations between Democratic and Republican Appropriators in the U.S. House and Senate as well as Congressional leaders in both chambers. Notably, the overall bill prevented more than $163 billion in Trump Administration cuts that would have gutted public services, law enforcement, and other crucial infrastructure programs. The bill was also stripped of partisan “poison pill” amendments.

Today, Congressman Bishop also voted on separate bipartisan legislation to restore the Affordable Care Act enhanced tax credits which expired at the beginning of January. The tax credits were eliminated as part of H.R. 1 in July of 2025 as part of the “big, ugly bill” to help pay for tax breaks that predominantly benefited billionaires. With the loss of the ACA enhanced tax credits, thousands of Middle and Southwest Georgians have seen their healthcare premium costs skyrocket.

###