NEWS: Sen. Schiff Demands Army Corps of Engineers Explain Use of Taxpayer Funds for Vice President’s Birthday

Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) isdemandingthat the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) provide details on the Trump administration’s decision tochange the water levelat Caesar Creek Lake in Ohio during a trip for Vice President J.D. Vance’s birthday earlier this month.
In aletterto U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth as well as the Army Corps and Secret Service leadership, Schiff highlights the potential inappropriate use of funds to alter water outflow levels of the lake for personal use and seeks information on the processes and documentation of the decision.
“Reporting suggests that the request from the Secret Service to alter the outflow request for Caesar Creek Lake was not just to ensure safe or secure conditions, but also to create favorable kayaking conditions. If true, this is an inappropriate and embarrassing abuse of power over publicly owned resources by the Trump administration,”Senator Schiff wrote. “Army Corps leadership improperly leveraged access to public services for personal use and waived standard documentation requirements to identify and justify risks associated with this deviation from normal practice. Accordingly, I request an explanation of this USACE action and a commitment to no longer using federal resources for such unjustified and frivolous purposes.”
Senator Schiff pointed to the President’s frivolous release ofbillions of gallons from Californiareservoirs earlier this year as another instance in which the Army Corps executed questionable abuses of water by the Trump administration. Schiff sought answers from the Army Corps on those releasesin February.
In his letter, Schiff demands that the Army Corps commit to no longer fulfilling wasteful personal and political demands of administration leaders.
The full text of the letter can be foundhereand below.
Dear Secretary Hegseth, Assistant Secretary Telle, and Director Curran,
I write to you to express serious concerns regarding the potential abuse of power exercised by Vice President Vance and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on August 2, in which the Secret Service directed USACE to change the outflow of Ohio’s Caesar Creek Lake for a recreational boat outing for the Vice President’s birthday. As a result of this request, Army Corps leadership improperly leveraged access to public services for personal use and waived standard documentation requirements to identify and justify risks associated with this deviation from normal practice. Accordingly, I request an explanation of this USACE action and a commitment to no longer using federal resources for such unjustified and frivolous purposes.
Reporting suggests that the request from the Secret Service to alter the outflow request for Caesar Creek Lake was not just to ensure safe or secure conditions, but also to create favorable kayaking conditions. If true, this is an inappropriate and embarrassing abuse of power over publicly owned resources by the Trump administration. While there is precedent for USACE to modify water levels to accommodate certain activities, the modification of outflows is usually executed for activities that serve a public purpose (e.g., emergency responder training) and not for the sole personal benefit of one individual and his/her family. The misuse of public water resources for the Vice President’s family is particularly offensive considering this administration’s cuts to federal agencies, cuts which are already harming outdoor recreation opportunities for American families.
This is not the first time this administration has misused Army Corps resources for questionable reasons or political gain. In February, President Trump directed USACE to release 2.2 billion gallons of water from two California reservoirs, falsely claiming that such a release would help fight the Los Angeles fires. That reckless act of political theater put Central Valley farms and residents at risk of flooding and wasted water intended for irrigation during the driest months of the year. The unnecessary release was executed despite the administration’s knowledge that the water would likely be wasted.
With the most recent act at Caesar Creek Lake, the Trump administration is providing further evidence of its willingness to exploit public resources for the personal and political benefit of administration officials. I hope that the public scrutiny of the Caesar Creek Lake water release will refocus the Army Corps on its mission to deliver vital engineering solutions that secure the country, energize the economy, and reduce risk from disasters.
Please answer the following questions no later than September 5, 2025.
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