BATON ROUGE- A task force meeting was held Monday to discuss funding for the slow-moving Comite River Diversion Canal project of nearly 25 years.

Rep. Valerie Hodges questioned the priority of the project, and recalled the 2016 flood.

"This is a priority that saves lives," Hodges said.

Officials at the Amite River Basin Commission says that tax dollars currently going towards the project only cover about ten to fifteen percent of the cost.

Sen. Mack White says the Comite River Diversion Canal project still needs hundreds of millions of dollars more in funding. The state has been trying to get additional funding from the President himself, but the Army Corps budget is simply too tight.

The Amite River Basin Commission, Army Corps of Engineers, and the LaDOTD will pay to build a bridge on Hwy. 61, and a railroad over the anticipated canal as soon as finances are worked out.