(Washington, D.C.) – Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today named Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) January Porker of the Month for earmarking more than $105 million dollars for 36 defense-related projects in his home state in the fiscal 2006 Defense Appropriations bill.  As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Harkin is in a position to make sure his state benefits even in a time of war and is a prime example of the need for earmarking reform.

The bill appropriates nearly $408 billion dollars along with $50 billion in emergency funding for the war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Sen. Harkin and others like him still included non-requested earmarks and pork projects in the bill, meant to support the military during a time of sacrifice.

After the conference report passed, Sen. Harkin issued a press release bragging to his constituents about the $105 million in earmarks he had secured for Iowa, some of which were not even requested by the Department of Defense. 

Two of the most egregious examples from the press release are $750,000 for the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant in Middletown and $850,000 for the Fort Des Moines Memorial and Education Center in Des Moines, both of which were not originally requested yet were added in conference.  The Army Ammunition Plant will receive funding to continue a health study and screening that tests former workers for health problems related to their jobs, while the Fort Des Moines Memorial and Education Center will receive funding to develop educational programs.

In light of the shameless spending and self promotional culture in Congress, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) have introduced the Obligation of Funds Transparency Act (S. 1945 and H.R. 1642, respectively) to reform the process by which earmarks get added to appropriations bills.  It is designed to make earmarks more visible and amendable before legislation is passed, requiring the specific projects to be included in the text of spending bills and prohibiting agencies from funding any earmark that is not printed in the text of an appropriation bill. 

If this bill passes, lawmakers like Sen. Harkin would not be able to use influence to add their pet projects in conference.  For [?], CAGW names Sen. Tom Harkin Porker of the Month for January 2006.

Citizens Against Government Waste is the nation’s largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.  Porker of the Month is a dubious honor given to lawmakers, government officials, and political candidates who have shown a blatant disregard for the interests of taxpayers.