Area GOP congressman won’t seek earmarks

Steve Austria of Beavercreek declares ‘the earmark system is broken.’

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By Jack Torry and  Jonathan Riskind, Washington Bureau Updated 10:58 AM Friday, March 12, 2010

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Steve Austria, R-Beavercreek, on Thursday, March 11, said he will not ask for earmarks again this year, the second consecutive year he has refused to request them.

Austria joined most House Republicans in a voice vote in a closed-door meeting to ban all earmark requests for one year. The vote, spearheaded by House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-West Chester, came just one day after House Democrats decided to end steering earmarks toward companies that make profit.

Al-though Austria did not rule out asking for earmarks next year, he said in a statement that “the earmark process is broken.’’ He urged the creation of a more transparent system so that “deserving” requests — identified by Austria as those that strengthen national security — “can be fairly reviewed and debated.”

Earmarking allows a lawmaker to insert into a spending bill additional money for a project in his district. In the 2010 federal spending year, lawmakers from both parties were responsible for $15.9 billion in earmarks, which is a tiny fraction of the annual federal budget.

In addition to Austria and Boehner, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana, said he supported the one-year ban. In a statement, Jordan complained that “earmarks have become a symbol of what most Americans believe is wrong in Washington, D.C.’’

“Federal spending is out of control, we’re borrowing from our children to pay for today’s overspending, and the priorities of Congress are completely out of line with the American public,’’ Jordan said.

According to Taxpayers for Common Sense — a Washington-based organization that is critical of earmarks — U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville, won $28.1 million in earmarks for the 2010 federal spending year, which is the third highest total among Ohio members of the House.

“I support Leader Boehner’s commitment to earmark reform and the one-year moratorium as a means to developing a more transparent process. The Dayton region already has a procedure that helps ensure openness and accessibility for our community’s strategic priorities. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House to make the Dayton region’s earmark process a national model,” Turner said.

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