WASHINGTON, D.C.— Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) released the following statement today after being honored by the hydropower industry at the National Hydropower Association’s (NHA) Annual Conference.

“It is a tremendous honor to receive NHA’s Legislator of the Year award. Hydropower affords us great opportunity for energy growth, and I look forward to continuing to support its development,” McMorris Rodgers said. “We owe it to the Pacific Northwest and to the rest of the country to expand an energy source that will not only lower energy costs for the working middle class, but create thousands of new jobs.”

The Congresswoman co-authored the bipartisan Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act, which streamlines the permitting process for small hydropower and conduit projects. The legislation passed the House unanimously and was signed into law in August. She continues to pursue hydropower opportunities.