The region could lose out on millions in funding for projects if
a plan to eliminate earmarks by members of Congress is passed.

The measure, favored by the Democratic leadership and Bush
administration, could affect funding already in the pipeline for
projects in the Allegheny National Forest, Bradford Area School
District and Bradford Regional Medical Center, among numerous other
entities.

Officials said pork barrel spending has more than tripled in the
past few years, with money often set aside by lawmakers for roads,
bridges and economic development efforts – a key part of developing
rural northcentral Pennsylvania.

“There are those that criticize earmarks as wasteful spending,
but they go for good projects in our region and I’ll stand behind
mine,” U.S. Rep. John Peterson, R-Pa., said. Peterson is a member
of the House Appropriations Committee.

“The funding helps build the basic infrastructure of our
economy, which helps rural areas like ours grow.”

President Bush is calling for earmarks to be cut in half this
year, with full disclosure of sponsors, costs, beneficiaries and
justification for the projects. Members often tie in the funding
for special projects in larger pieces of legislation.

“While I’m proud of the earmark process, the public should know
who sponsored them,” Peterson said.

Among the funding secured by Peterson that is already in the
pipeline – projects that were passed by the House last year, but
not by the Senate – includes $1.5 million for the Allegheny
National Forest fish hatchery in Warren County;

* $1.7 million for the Kiasutha Campground site;

* $200,000 for the first phase of the Allegheny Reservoir
Recreation Management Plan;

* $100,000 for technology upgrades and new equipment for the
Bradford Area School District;

* $100,000 for equipment upgrades and new information technology
at Bradford Regional Medical Center;

* $100,000 for the Smethport Area School District to establish
the campus as an official iQcenter so the high school can begin
administering Microsoft Office Specialist certification tests to
students, among other elements;

* $1.3 billion for Perkins technical education grants, which are
used by Bradford Area High School, among other local schools;

* $400 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,
which includes funding for WPSU and WPSX;

* $100,000 for recreational improvements at the East Branch
Clarion River in Elk County;

* $186 million for Abandoned Mineland Reclamation – abandoned
mines are located in neighboring Cameron and Elk counties; and

* $216 million for the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT)
program.

Meanwhile, funding was also set aside for law enforcement
agencies to fight the spread of methamphetamine across the region,
for rural wastewater management, special education grants,
Community Development Block Grants and rural transportation.

“The recreation sites in the Allegheny National Forest are in
the best shape ever because of these earmarks,” Peterson said. “The
new marina – that’s a million and a half dollars in spending that
needed to be done. A lot of people went across the border into New
York state to the Onoville Marina. Now Pennsylvania is able to
compete and the use has been up immensely.

“Our region says it wants the tourism so we need to have our
sites in the finest condition. The upgrades to the campgrounds, the
Tionesta Dam upgrades, these are things that help with tourism and
build our economy.”

Meanwhile, Peterson said the region’s high schools and hospitals
rely on federal funding to help build up their technology to modern
levels. “It’s always about upgrading and becoming more modern.”

According to Peterson’s Communications Director Chris Tucker,
officials are expecting the Democrats to offer and accede to a
continuing resolution either later this month or in early February,
allowing the federal government to continue operating this year –
mechanically necessary given that core appropriations bills never
got passed.

All told, only two of the 11 fiscal year 2007 appropriations
bills the House passed last year were taken up and approved by the
Senate – Homeland Security and Defense.

“We’re left to pick up the pieces and figure out a way to manage
two years-worth of requests in a single year of appropriations
work,” Tucker said, adding instead of asking congressional
committees to assign funding to projects according to a district’s
outstanding needs, that will now be done by bureaucrats in either
Washington or Harrisburg.

“(It’s) not exactly the most efficient or effective means of
allocating funds in our view,” Tucker said.

Peterson said rural areas typically rely on earmarks for federal
funding, in part, because they don’t have professional grant
writers like urban regions.

“The process is behind because of the switch over (between
political parties),” Peterson said. “With all that change
happening, I wouldn’t bet the farm yet the earmarks are gone. I
hope we haven’t totally lost them all.”