WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) announced that he secured over $14 million in federal funding for 11 projects across Orange County in the first package of FY 2024 appropriations bills. The package includes the Agriculture; Energy and Water; Military Construction-VA; Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development; Commerce, Justice, and Science; and Interior appropriations bills. The House and Senate will consider the bills this week ahead of the March 8 funding deadline before they are sent to the President to be signed into law.

“I am proud to have secured millions in funding for projects that will help improve the quality of life for Orange County residents,” said Senator Padilla. “These investments will support local governments and non-profits working on the ground in our communities to provide cleaner water, safer streets, job training, and upgraded infrastructure. As our state continues to face opioid and mental health crises, this funding will also help ensure everyone can access support and critical recovery resources.”

Projects across Orange County that will receive federal funding include:

• Orange County’s Opioid Prevention Plan – $3.4 million: This funding will support Orange County’s Opioid Prevention Plan which will increase education and intervention services in local communities across the County.

• City of Brea Arovista Park – $2 million: This funding will help modernize Arovista Park, including creating the only all-accessible playground in North Orange County.

• Orange County PFAS Treatment Plants Project – $1.75 million: This funding will support a project to remove PFAS from drinking water wells and mitigate continued contamination of groundwater.

• City of Buena Park Municipal Water Well Construction – $1 million: This project will construct a new municipal water well in order to provide a local supply of safe drinking water for the community.

• East Orange County Water District Advanced Metering Infrastructure Project – $1 million: This funding will cover the hardware costs needed to upgrade the district’s residential water metering infrastructure.

• Santa Ana Alternative Response Program – $963,000: This funding will expand the Santa Ana Multi-Disciplinary Response Teams (SMART) alternative response model to dispatch mental health professionals to respond to calls involving mental health concerns and substance abuse that do not rise to the level of criminal activity or jeopardize public safety.

• City of Fullerton for Well 7A Construction Project – $959,752: This funding will support the construction of a new water well, which will be equipped with a single new pump, motor, and electrical equipment.

• Santa Margarita Water District for Ranch Water North Open Space Well PFAS Treatment Facility – $959,752: This project will construct a well head treatment to produce drinking water from a source otherwise impaired by PFAS and high salinity in Orange County.

• City of Placentia Public Safety Center 911 Technology Upgrades – $750,000: This funding will support 911 dispatch system and associated IT infrastructure upgrades in the soon to be completed Placentia Public Safety Center.

• Serrano Water District Pump Station Upgrades – $750,000: This project will upgrade and seismically retrofit a reservoir to increase local water supply reliability and enhance public safety.

• City of Anaheim Store One—Food Services Incubator and Job Training Center – $500,000: This project will support the City of Anaheim’s efforts to equip and furnish a former Northgate Market site to open Store One – a Food Services Incubator and Job Training Center. This center will provide local job training and space for micro food-related businesses to receive business planning and development services.

More information on these appropriations bills is available here.

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