The new earmarks cost $16 billion in the omnibus spending bill

By Adam Andrezewski for Real Clear Policy

Congress’s $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year, Sept. 30, includes no less than $16 billion in earmarks — funding 7,510 pet projects in legislators’ districts.

These new earmarks will pay for projects that please legislators’ constituents in their home states and districts, rather than going to the core functions of the federal government.

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“As a result, legal bribes are offered to members of Congress who rush into these large, irresponsible spending bills without much scrutiny,” wrote Adam Andrezewski, CEO and founder of OpenTheBooks.com, in an opinion piece. A piece in The Daily Caller.

For example, $20,000 will go toward renovating a National Park Service bathroom in Murphysboro, Illinois.

A $1 million stairway to the beach at Mondo Cove Beach, California gives surfers easy access to the waves; The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland will receive $1 million; The Universal Hip Hop Museum in New York will receive $2 million; $3 million will go to restore the Irish Heritage Center in Maine; And $3.75 million will go toward renovating the Chicago YMCA.

Republicans in red-Texas allocated $500 million to $300 million to Democrats, while in Florida, the state’s Republican caucus allocated $445 million to $251 million to Democrats.

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“It’s time to tell Congress: Go back to a regular budget, not ad hoc bills full of special favors,” Andrezewski wrote. The $1.7 trillion budget is up from about $1.5 trillion last fiscal year.

OpenTheBooks has logged each earmark in a searchable database, showing which members of Congress requested how much money and for which project.

Former Honorary President of OpenTheBooks, US Senator Dr. Tom Coburn said it best: “Earmarks are the gateway drug to runaway spending bills.”

Syndicated with permission from RealClearWire.

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