$15M » Merit will be deciding factor
Updated: 04/27/2009 06:34:39 PM MDT
Washington » Rep. Jason Chaffetz plans to punt about $15 million to the Utah Department of Transportation instead of earmarking it himself, saying merit -- not politics -- should determine what roads get built with federal cash.
The move is rare for a House member and a first for a Utah congressman.
"I don't need to have all of the control. In fact, I don't want it," said Chaffetz, a Republican who railed against earmarks when he ran for office and who has refused to ask for one since joining the House in January.
Congress is expected to pass a new transportation bill later this year that would give every member of the House a pot of money to spend on "high priority projects" in their areas. Federal lawmakers have until May 8 to submit their pet projects and a transportation subcommittee is holding a hearing today to discuss these earmarks.
It's common for cities and counties to make direct pitches to members of Congress for the funds. But Chaffetz said it makes more sense to allow transportation officials to determine what the biggest needs are.
"We are trying to take the politics out of selecting worthy road projects," he said in a conference call with reporters Monday.
Still, that money will go to a project in the 3rd Congressional District. One likely scenario is that the Utah Department of Transportation, or UDOT, spends the federal cash on the widening of Interstate 15 in Utah
County. Since the state has already funded that project, Chaffetz's allocation would free up about $15 million in state funds, which carry less restrictions, to go to smaller projects.
UDOT wouldn't be required to spend that freed up state cash in the 3rd District, but officials said the money would most likely stay in Chaffetz's area.
"It would be hard for the process not to recognize the origin of where this money came from," said John Njord, UDOT executive director.
The 3rd District includes much of western Salt Lake County, all but a small piece of Utah County and a big portion of central Utah.
Two key Republicans on transportation issues in the Utah House heralded Chaffetz's decision as a major step for more local control. American Fork Republican Rep. John Dougall said the standard transportation earmarking is nothing more than "patronage" and "pork barrel spending."
Njord thinks it's inefficient. Any project paid for in part by federal funding must follow federal environmental and planning procedures. He said that means every $1 from the federal government is the same as getting 85 cents from the state.
A letter from Transportation Committee leaders to House members Monday defended the high priority projects, saying the process allows lawmakers "to invest in worthwhile projects critical to their districts that may not otherwise be funded." The letter said the member allocations also make sure that the "diverse needs" of each district are met.
