Press Releases

(Honolulu, HI) – Congressman Ed Case (Hawai‘i – District 1), who yesterday personally inspected the Navy’s Pearl City-Waiawa main water line that ruptured last Friday, today urged senior Navy officials in the Pentagon to immediately and fully implement without delay an already-appropriated replacement project.  “This one line services much of the vital water needs of some 92,000 people throughout Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and beyond,” said Case. “Restoring normal water service as soon as possible, and preventing future disruptions, is critical not only to all who live and work on base and in related defense facilities, but also to overall mission readiness throughout the Indo-Pacific Command.”

Case reviewed emergency repairs to the 65-year-old pipeline that transmits water from the Navy’s Waiawa well to the Joint Base. With that link severed, base wide water needs are being met temporarily from the Navy’s Hālawa and Red Hill wells. “This emergency drawdown from these other wells taps into one of Honolulu’s main aquifers for civilian use as well and is not sustainable over time,” said Case. “We need to both restore full service from the Waiawa pipeline immediately, but also replace the aging pipeline completely to address further potential ruptures.”

“A $78 million full replacement project was included in the current fiscal year military construction budget and is currently out to bid from private contractors”, said Case, a member of the House Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs. “However, the President has instructed the Department of Defense to review all pending military construction projects for potential diversion of appropriated funds to pay for his Southern border plans as part of his emergency declaration.”  Case followed up today directly with Mrs. Phyllis L. Bayer, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment. “I told the Assistant Secretary directly that both the emergency repairs and permanent replacement project were critical not only to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam but to Honolulu overall and that diversion of the appropriated funds to the border was unacceptable on several levels.” 

Case last week voted with the House majority to disapprove of the President’s emergency declaration, and, at a hearing of his Milcon-VA Subcommittee, further stated that the President was not authorized to divert funds already appropriated for specific projects elsewhere.   “The Waiawa pipeline situation demonstrates in spades why the President’s efforts to circumvent Congress can have such harmful consequences. If this or any other President believes that there is an emergency that requires funding to address, that President should first seek Congressional approval for the use of the funds,” said Case.

At yesterday’s inspection of the ruptured water line, Case also thanked the Navy, as well as the civilian crews of Dawson Engineering and Hawaiian Dredging, who all pitched in to work through the weekend to undertake emergency repairs at the Pearl City site.