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Cincinnati’s Delta Queen Steamboat a Step Closer to Renewed Operation

House votes to reinstate exemption of regulation keeping ship docked

Washington, September 25, 2013 | Greg Brooks ((202) 225-3164)
Tags: Energy

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – Cincinnati’s Delta Queen may once again navigate the Ohio River if today’s House of Representatives passed bill becomes law. Representative Brad Wenstrup, an early cosponsor of H.R. 1691, supports reinstating a longstanding grandfather clause for the historic boat from regulations passed after it was built. The exemption expired in 2008 and has kept the boat docked in Chattanooga in recent years.

 A lifelong Cincinnatian, Wenstrup said “This vote is a crucial step to get the Delta Queen back on America’s rivers. The boat represents an iconic part of Cincinnati’s history on the Ohio River, and I look forward to the day it will once again dock in the Queen City. I appreciate Steve Chabot’s leadership on this important effort.”

Rep. Steve Chabot, who also represents Cincinnati, sponsored the bill. The Delta Queen began operations in Cincinnati in 1948 and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1989. The bill passed the House by a vote of 280 to 89 and next heads to the Senate.

 

­Note: Rep. Wenstrup’s floor speech in support of the bill is available here

 

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Office of Representative Brad Wenstrup

www.Wenstrup.House.gov