Sen. Dick Durbin met Wednesday with Metropolitan Water Reclamation District President Kari K. Steele and turned up the pressure on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over long-delayed federal reimbursement tied to the Thornton Composite Reservoir. The site, carved out of the Thornton Quarry and tied into Chicago’s Deep Tunnel system, stores stormwater and combined sewer overflow before it is pumped to the Calumet treatment plant. MWRD officials and lawmakers say the unpaid federal share has left the district on the hook for roughly $200 million, money they argue could instead bankroll local flood-relief projects.
Durbin Pushes for Work-Plan Cash
Durbin’s sit-down with Steele and his next moves were detailed by CBS Chicago, which reported that he has filed an amendment to the FY26 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act to try to direct the Corps to make reimbursement funds available. The meeting follows a December letter from Durbin and other members of the Illinois delegation asking the Corps to include $25 million in its FY26 Work Plan toward MWRD reimbursement. Together, those moves put federal appropriations and the Corps’ annual Work Plan at the center of a long-running funding fight.
Why Thornton Matters
The Army Corps’ project page lists the reservoir’s expanded volume at 24,200 acre-feet, or roughly 7.9 billion gallons, and notes that the non-federal sponsor has completed final construction and is eligible for reimbursement. The Corps also reports that the reservoir protects more than 35,000 structures and substantially reduces combined-sewer overflows by holding runoff and sewage before it is treated at the Calumet Water Reclamation Plant. The same project page records a $12 million reimbursement paid from the FY22 Work Plan and indicates that additional funds are needed to finish reimbursing the district.
What Durbin Is Asking
In a Dec. 19 letter, Durbin and other Illinois lawmakers urged the Army Corps to add $25 million to its FY26 Work Plan to begin paying down the federal share for Thornton, according to a press release from Durbin’s office. That release states that the reservoir has delivered about $660 million in flood-reduction benefits to 14 communities but that the Corps still owes approximately $200 million for design and construction. Durbin’s office also notes that he previously secured roughly $39.2 million in earlier Work Plan and IIJA funding for MWRD.
Money for Local Projects
MWRD and local officials say any reimbursements would be funneled into shovel-ready stormwater and flood-protection projects across the south suburbs, including work in Robbins and other communities, according to a recent MWRD press release. The agency pointed to the Robbins Flood Protection Project and a new stormwater park as examples of work that reimbursements helped advance, and officials say federal pay-backs also unlock additional matching grants and local construction.
How Reimbursements Move Through the System
Reimbursements to non-federal sponsors are paid through the Army Corps’ annual Work Plan, a process that can take years to fully play out. The Corps’ project page notes the $12 million reimbursement made in FY22 and explains that any additional Work Plan funds would be used to continue reimbursing the non-federal sponsor for the federal share of Thornton. That connection between congressional appropriations, the Corps’ Work Plan and neighborhood-level projects is a key reason lawmakers are pressing for a specific line item in FY26.
What’s Next
For now, Durbin says he will keep pressing both on Capitol Hill and directly with the Corps to get the money moving, while MWRD officials say they plan to redeploy any federal reimbursements into projects that shore up flood-prone neighborhoods. Whether the Corps includes the $25 million request in its FY26 Work Plan will dictate how quickly the district can turn those long-awaited repayments into concrete, local construction work.
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