Washington, D.C. – Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today released its preliminary analysis of the House version of the fiscal year 2010 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act.  There are 109 projects worth $394.8 million in this year’s version.  This represents a 6.8 percent increase in the number of projects, and a 36.5 percent decrease in dollar amount from the fiscal year 2009 version, which had 102 projects totaling $621.3 million.  Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Chet Edwards (D-Texas) requested two projects totaling $20.7 million and Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.) requested one project worth $14.4 million.

Here are some examples of wasteful spending in the bill:

• $26,360,000 by House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Ander Crenshaw (R-Fla.) for a fitness complex in Jacksonville, Florida.  This fitness complex is being built for servicemen and women and their families in the Mayport Naval Station.  There are dozens of privately owned fitness centers and gyms in the area.
• $14,400,000 by House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.), and Reps. John Tanner (D-Tenn.) and Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.) for a chapel complex at Fort Campbell in Kentucky.
• $10,240,000 by House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Sam Farr (D-Calif.) for construction of a two story Marine Meteorology Center for the Monterey National Security Agency in California.  This building is designed to give scientists better working conditions despite the fact that there are already many university, National Weather Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration meteorological centers in California.
• $8,500,000 by House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Chet Edwards (D-Texas) and House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member John Carter (R-Texas) for the Fort Hood Chapel Family Life Center. 

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.