In the newly passed $1.7 trillion federal appropriation bill, a sum of $21.2 million was earmarked for 11 local projects in Orange County, according to a review by The Epoch Times.
Federal earmarks are money for specific local projects at the request of congressional members.
Residents in three municipalities—Middletown, Newburgh, and Kiryas Joel—saw the most money for local governmental and nonprofit programs.
For Middletown, the city hall got $3.45 million to upgrade the city’s century-old water infrastructure, the police department got $300,000 for public cameras and license plate readers, and the Cornerstone Family Healthcare on Grove Street got $2.8 million to build up an urgent care center.
In the greater Newburgh area, the Town of Newburgh got $3.45 million to replace water main pipes made of asbestos cement. The City of Newburgh got $4 million (the county government is the official recipient) to construct the Newburgh Landing Pier for inter-municipal economic growth.
The Newburg Campus of Orange County Community College received $1.13 million for a hospitality sector job development program called FoodTEC.
As for Kiryas Joel, the village got $1.5 million to upgrade its water treatment plant and another $825,000 to build a new emergency services center.
The remaining earmarked projects for the county are a new welcome center at the Storm King Art Center, a drainage project in the Town of Cornwall, and a study on transportation between Stewart International Airport and the Metro-North Beacon Train Station.
Sean Maloney, former Democratic congressman for New York’s 18th District, recommended all the above projects except for Kiryas Joel’s water treatment plan, which was submitted by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
Per current congressional rules, each House representative can recommend no more than 15 local projects for earmarks; no cap exists for senators.
Congressional earmarks were banned for almost a decade over corruption concerns, with notable scandals involving former Reps. Randy Cunningham (R-Calif.) and Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.).
In 2021, the practice made a comeback in both Houses with more strings attached, including a cap of 1 percent of federal discretionary spending, a ban on earmarks for for-profit entities, and more disclosure rules for congressional members.
It also got new names. Instead of earmarks, it is called Community Project Funding in the House and Congressional Directional Spending in the Senate.
A major argument by supporters of earmarks is that elected congressional officials have a better idea of local needs than appointed federal employees.
Nationwide, about 7,200 local projects are earmarked for the fiscal year 2023, totaling $16 billion.
The 2023 federal spending bill, formerly called Consolidated Appropriations Act, passed both Houses in December and was signed into law by President Joe Biden on Dec. 29.
Pat Ryan currently represents the 18th District, which encompasses almost all of Orange County and parts of Ulster and Dutchess counties.
