Warner & Kaine Announce $17 Million for Improvements to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge & Assateague Island National Seashore

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $17,744,862 in federal funding to enhance beach access at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and Assateague Island National Seashore. Specifically, these federal dollars will be used to relocate the existing public recreational beach to a more stable part of the island. This funding will also go towards constructing a new access road, four new parking lots, new boardwalks, and paving for a multiuse path. 

“This award would not have been possible without the bipartisan infrastructure law, which we were proud to help usher into law. We are thrilled to see these federal dollars go towards enhancing beach access at Chincoteague and Assateague – a project that will help preserve this natural treasure, provide visitors with a better experience, and generate more economic activity in the region,” said the Senators.  

This funding, awarded through the Department of Transportation’s Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects (NSFLTP) Program, was only made possible by the passage of the Warner and Kaine-backed bipartisan infrastructure law, which reduced minimum project sizes from $25 million to $12.5 million and increased the federal share of projects on Tribal transportation facilities to 100 percent. 

The Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Program (NSFLTP) provides funding for the construction, reconstruction, and rehabilitation of nationally-significant projects within, adjacent to, or accessing Federal and tribal lands. The program provides an opportunity to address significant challenges across the nation for transportation facilities that serve Federal and tribal lands.

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