Budget ax chips NNY earmarks

WASHINGTON — For all the flack Congress catches for wasting money on pork barrel projects — and the debate over earmarks that's likely to surface again in this year's north country congressional contest — the real story in Northern New York may be all the federal money that is not being spent in the region.

Congressional committees have taken a pass on far more north country projects than they have approved so far this summer.

In the House alone, about $15 million in earmarks directed at least in part toward the 23rd Congressional District have advanced in the Appropriations Committee, roughly half of that for one project at Fort Drum.

But subcommittees left out some $35 million in requests from Rep. William L. Owens, D-Plattsburgh. And for the projects they did approve, the panels slashed $11.5 million from what Mr. Owens requested, in some cases in partnership with other lawmakers, meaning about $45 million in potential earmark spending looks unlikely to arrive in Northern New York next year.

That is fairly typical story across the country, reflecting both the realities of a tight budget year and deficits, as well as lawmakers' appetite for earmark requests. The number of requests to the Appropriations Committees always far exceeds what is eventually approved, even when deficit spending is not a major campaign issue.

But it is also a story that could hardly be told a few years ago, before Democrats took control of the House and started requiring lawmakers to disclose earmark requests. In past years, most lawmakers kept requests a close secret until they were approved — rather than make the story about what they did not secure, instead of what they did.

Causalities in the north country include Canton-Potsdam Hospital, which could miss out on $700,000 in federal funds to build an addition; the city of Watertown, which appears unlikely to win $370,000 for its combined sewer overflow project; and the village of Clayton, which appears to miss out on $500,000 for redevelopment of Riverside Drive.

Even Fort Drum, awash in construction dollars, will have to wait on a $6.7 million ammunition supply point and a $6.9 million chapel to accommodate a growing population.

Some projects may advance in the Senate; the Appropriations Committee there, for instance, approved several million dollars for a new railhead at Fort Drum, which Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., as well as Mr. Owens, had requested.

But the pressure will be on a conference committee to not expand earmark spending, meaning a project in one version but not the other — or funded at differing amounts — could face challenging odds or possibly a spending cut. The rehabilitation of the Ogdensburg-Prescott International Bridge is one such project, having been approved for $750,000 in a Senate bill but $700,000 in the House.

And some bills have yet to be considered. This week, a House subcommittee will take up defense appropriations, which may or may not include $7.25 million in research at Clarkson University, Potsdam, and $430,000 for the Fort Drum Regional Health Planning Organization. Both have been recipients in the past, having established a track record.

Earmarks played a role in last year's special election for the seat Mr. Owens won. He supported earmarks, but his main rival, Douglas L. Hoffman, attacked them and pledged not to ask for such projects if elected.

Matthew A. Doheny, running for the GOP nomination this year, has been more supportive of earmarks, especially in the context of construction at Fort Drum. But Mr. Hoffman, the Conservative and Republican, remains a big influence in the race, especially leading up to a Republican primary.

And in the House, Republicans have seized on the earmark issue to cast Democrats in a wasteful light. House Republicans have foresworn earmarks this year, agreeing not to request any in the spending bills for fiscal 2011, which earmark critics credit with bringing down earmark spending overall for next year — both because there are far fewer Republican requests and Democrats have not filled the void.

WASTING OR SAVING?

Earmarks that were requested by Rep. William L. Owens, D-Plattsburgh, and slashed by House appropriators include:

■ Project: Lake Champlain Bridge

Requested: $5 million

Approved: $400,000

■ Project: Ogdensburg-Prescott Bridge rehabilitation

Requested: $5 million

Approved: $700,000

■ Project: SUNY Upstate Medical Center Fort Drum Regional Branch

Requested: $500,000

Approved: $250,000

■ Project: Law enforcement visual intelligence technology, NY State Sheriffs Association

Requested: $1.4 million

Approved: $200,000.

■ Project: Combat Asian long horned beetle in NY forests

Requested: $1 million

Approved: $500,000