Cardin seeks federal aid for So. Maryland

Military, higher ed requests top wish list

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Together, Cardin and U.S. Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, both Democrats, put in for more than $1.4 billion in federal spending for hundreds of pet projects at a time when such requests have become subject to heightened scrutiny over wasteful spending and political nepotism.

As a result, all 535 senators and congressmen have been required to disclose their earmark requests on their congressional Web sites for the first time ever as a way of increasing transparency and accountability.

Cardin's requests total $1.14 billion; Mikulski is seeking $942 million. About $650 million in earmarks overlap because they were submitted by both senators.

Cardin's largest requests are for three military projects:

- $16.46 million to construct the Advanced Energetics Research Lab at Naval Support Facility Indian Head, which will seek to identify and develop new and advanced materials for munitions, platform designs and applications to support the war-fighter.

- $9.8 million to add a Telemetry Data Center to the Atlantic Test Range at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, which will support integrated test operations and joint trials with other facilities.

- $6 million for Pax River to support integrating and upgrading Special Operations Forces vehicles and platforms to provide war-fighters with access to a common operational picture and air-ground-sea interoperability.

The Senate Appropriations Committee will consider these requests later this year, before it is voted on by the full Senate. The chamber's budget plan must then be reconciled with versions from the House of Representatives before the October 1 start of the federal fiscal year.

Non-military Southern Maryland funding requests run the gamut of issue areas. They include:

- $5 million for the Southern Maryland Commuter Bus Initiative to address overcrowding by increasing peak period transit service for commuters in Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's counties. The money will support planning, design and construction of new and expanded commuter parking lots in all three counties, as well as acquisition of buses and contract service with private transportation companies to meet the growing demand.

- $3 million for The Alliance for Coastal Technologies, headquartered in the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory in Solomons, which provides critical services for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's developing Integrated Ocean Observing System.

- $1 million for the Office of Naval Research's N-STAR Educational Outreach Program to continue the collaboration among the College of Southern Maryland, the region's public schools and the two Naval installations that provide students and teachers with the resources they need for careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

In a statement, Cardin said his requests "reflect our regional and national priorities" that will help Maryland weather the economic downturn and "meet the challenges of the future."

Several of his requests aim to expand higher educational opportunities.

Cardin has asked for $500,000 on behalf of St. Mary's College to enhance education in engineering and atomic physics in Southern Maryland through a partnership between Pax River and the college that will provide summer training and research for students, base personnel and other individuals.

The public honors institution is also seeking $200,000 to expand its College 101 program that assists women and minority students with admission and transition to higher ed, as well as boosting interest in math and science curriculum.

The Southern Maryland Higher Education Center in California is hoping for $100,000 in federal aid to purchase equipment for a new engineering lab in order to expand its course offerings and degree programs. The College of Southern Maryland has requests $514,000 toward the Southern Maryland Simulation Alliance for Health Education, which would enable the use of shared technology and expertise with local hospitals and other schools of nursing in Maryland.

Cardin also submitted a number of statewide requests, including $2 million for a interoperable communications system for emergency responders, $2.5 million for the state's oral health campaign, $2 million for the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Water Trails and $1 million to upgrade the Maryland State Police's electronic dispatch system in order to synchronize resources and provide quicker emergency deployments.

abrody@somdnews.com