Introduction

The Congressional Pig Book is CAGW's annual compilation of the pork-barrel projects in the federal budget. A "pork" project is a line-item in an appropriations bill that designates tax dollars for a specific purpose in circumvention of established budgetary procedures. To qualify as pork, a project must meet one of seven criteria that were developed in 1991 by CAGW and the Congressional Porkbusters Coalition.

The late “King of Pork” Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.), July 19, 2001

“All they are is a bunch of psychopaths.”

The late CAGW “Oinker” Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), December 26, 1999

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing more than one million members and supporters nationwide. CAGW’s mission is to eliminate waste, mismanagement, and inefficiency at all levels of government.

I. AGRICULTURE

Members of Congress have long used the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act to feed at the trough, and their appetite grew prodigiously in FY 2024. The number of earmarks increased by 81.3 percent, from 331 in FY 2023 to 600 in FY 2024, and the cost went up by 61.6 percent, from $466.2 million in FY 2023 to $753.4 million in FY 2024. The increase in the number and cost of earmarks were both the largest of the FY 2024 bills.

$11,385,000 for 10 earmarks funding broadband expansion by 14 legislators, including $4,224,000 for the Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative in California by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) and $1,000,000 for Tillamook County, Oregon, by Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.). The $11,385,000 earmarked in FY 2024 is a 19.4 percent increase from the $9,537,427 that legislators added in FY 2023.

There is absolutely no reason to earmark a penny of broadband funding. There is so much money and so many programs across the federal government for broadband deployment that anyone who wants funding can get it. In his testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology on March 31, 2022, Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr stated that, “$800 billion has been appropriated by Congress or budgeted by agencies for infrastructure programs over the past two years that could be used on efforts to bridge the digital divide.” He also estimated that one-tenth of that amount, or $80 billion, would be sufficient to connect all unserved areas of the country.

More than half of the $800 billion came from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which gave $350 billion to state and local governments for infrastructure, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained $65 billion solely for broadband deployment and affordability programs, including $42.45 billion alone for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program. The regulations for the use of the ARPA and IIJA funds differ, and making matters worse, a May 31, 2022, Government Accountability Office (GAO) report identified at least 133 broadband programs spread across 15 federal agencies. The report understandably called for improved alignment “to help address fragmentation and overlap.”

The 14 congressional broadband bandits are exacerbating this disarray and contributing to wasteful spending.

$10,000,000 for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) New England Plant, Soil, and Water Laboratory in Orono, Maine by Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Susan Collins (R-Maine).

$7,000,000 for a veterinary diagnostic center at the University of Clemson’s Livestock Poultry Health program by Senate Appropriations Committee member Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).

$5,000,000 for the USDA ARS Sugarcane Research Unit in Houma, Louisiana by Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.).

$1,248,000 for the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service Water-Smart Rice in the Lower Colorado River Basin of Texas project by Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas).

II. COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE

The FY 2024 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Act contained 1,046 earmarks, a 69.5 percent increase from the 617 earmarks in FY 2023. The cost of the earmarks climbed by 16.5 percent, from $944.4 million in FY 2023 to $1.1 billion in FY 2024. The increased number and cost of earmarks in the FY 2024 CJS bill were the second highest of any bill.

$350,008,000 for 474 earmarks funding the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program, a 76.9 percent increase from the 268 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 52.5 percent increase in cost from the $229,551,000 contained in the FY 2023 CJS bill. The FY 2024 JAG projects represent 31.8 percent of the $1.1 billion in earmarks included in the FY 2024 CJS bill. The $350,008,000 is the most ever earmarked for the JAG program, and represents 37.9 percent of its top-line FY 2024 appropriation.

The JAG program has been around since 1988 in one form or another. In 2005, Congress merged several DOJ grant programs under the JAG umbrella. Unfortunately, the program gives away money with too much flexibility and no effective targeting strategy, along with weak oversight and few consequences for mismanagement of the funds.

An October 15, 2010, GAO report found that JAGs “lack key attributes of successful performance assessment systems that GAO has previously identified, such as clarity, reliability, a linkage to strategic or programmatic goals, and objectivity and measurability of targets.”

The George W. Bush administration’s ExpectMore.gov described the Byrne grants as “a variety of potential local law enforcement activities rather than a clearly defined, specific or existing problem, interest, or need. … With program funds eligible to be used for multiple purposes, the Department of Justice cannot target the funds to high priority uses. There are no meaningful goals for the program. Performance measures are still under development. Grantees are not required to report on performance. As a result, it is difficult to determine what the program is accomplishing.”

Since FY 2001, members of Congress have added 2,962 earmarks for the JAG program costing $1.8 billion.

$247,347,161 for 311 earmarks for the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program, a 58.7 percent increase from the 196 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 39.1 percent increase from the $177,880,000 million earmarked in FY 2023. The COPS earmarks equal 22.5 percent of the FY 2024 CJS bill, making COPS and JAG combined account for 54.3 percent of the total cost.

The COPS program provides grants, training, and technical assistance to local law enforcement. It was targeted for a $96 million reduction in then-President Trump’s FY 2019 Major Savings and Reforms, which stated that the program is “not well targeted to achieve public safety outcomes.” The Republican Study Committee’s (RSC) budgets from FYs 2018 through 2020 called for the elimination of funding for COPS, and CAGW’s Prime Cuts has also called for terminating the program.

In FY 2008, COPS received 680 earmarks requested by hundreds of members of Congress costing $245.2 million. In that same year, the Office of Management and Budget’s Program Assessment Rating Tool gave the COPS program a “results not demonstrated” rating, which “indicates that a program has not been able to develop acceptable performance goals or collect data to determine whether it is performing,” noting that the COPS program’s “long-term goals have no timelines or specific targets.”

This subpar characterization of the program corresponded with a significant decline in earmarks with legislators abstaining from adding projects between FYs 2010 and 2017. However, earmarks for COPS have returned without any evidence that the problems identified in 2008 have been addressed. Since FY 1998, legislators have added 3,506 earmarks for COPS, costing taxpayers $3.5 billion.

$139,499,000 for 97 earmarks funding operations, research, and facilities at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a 32.9 percent increase from the 73 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 25.2 percent increase from the $111,465,000 earmarked in the FY 2023 CJS bill.

The earmarks include: $6,000,000 for the University of California, La Jolla for a bioremediation assessment of the impact of offshore pollution by the late-Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.); $4,000,000 for the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation for the Alaska King Crab Enhancement Project by Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee member Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska); and $2,521,000 for the Oregon Kelp Alliance for the Oregon Kelp Forest Protection and Restoration Initiative by Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and Rep. Val Hoyle (D-Ore.).

Since FY 2001, members of Congress have added 383 earmarks for NOAA, costing $2.2 billion.

$22,141,000 for 15 earmarks supporting fishing industries, including: $4,000,000 for juvenile pacific salmon research at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game by Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee member Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and $1,265,000 for the Fisheries and Aquaculture Innovation Center at the University of Delaware by Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee member Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.).

According to NOAA, the U.S. fishing industry produced $321 billion in commercial and recreational sales in 2022. It can go fish and get by without the support of earmarks.

$190,000 for a shark repellant study at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Florida by Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.). The laboratory had an operating budget of $35,739,237 in 2023 and could easily pay for the study itself.

Taxpayers are going to need a bigger boat.

III. DEFENSE

Though reduced from FY 2023, the DOD Appropriations Act again included the most funding via earmarks, which has occurred each year since FY 1994. The number of earmarks decreased by 28.7 percent from 150 in FY 2023 to 107 in FY 2024, and their cost declined by 25.5 percent from $10.2 billion in FY 2023 to $7.6 billion in FY 2024. The cost constitutes 33.5 percent of the $22.7 billion in earmarks in all 12 appropriations bills for FY 2024.

Legislators did not add their names to any earmarks in the FY 2024 DOD Appropriations Act, but they again added the most anonymous earmarks of any bill. The 107 anonymous earmarks in the legislation equal 86.3 percent of the 124 anonymous earmarks spread across all of the FY 2024 appropriations bills.

$1,945,275,000 for 54 anonymous earmarks for health and disease research under the Defense Health Program (DHP), which is an 8.3 percent decrease in cost from the 56 earmarks worth $2,121,460,000 in FY 2023, and the third highest ever earmarked for the program. The amount earmarked in FY 2024 for the DHP represents 25.6 percent of the total of $7.6 billion in DOD earmarks.

A March 14, 2012, Washington Post article stated that then-DOD Comptroller Robert Hale proposed decreasing the Pentagon health budget in part by eliminating “one-time congressional adds,” which he said totaled $603.6 million in FY 2012 for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program.

The late Sen. Tom Coburn’s (R-Okla.) November 2012 “The Department of Everything” report pointed out that the DOD disease earmarks mean that “fewer resources are available for DOD to address those specific health challenges facing members of the armed forces for which no other agencies are focused.” According to the report, in 2010 the Pentagon withheld more than $45 million for overhead related to earmarks, which means those funds were unavailable for national security needs or medical research specifically affecting those serving in the military.

On June 17, 2015, then-Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) suggested that funding for medical research should only be included in the DOD bill if the secretary of defense determined it was directly related to the military. He said that “over the past two decades, lawmakers have appropriated nearly $7.3 billion for medical research that was ‘totally unrelated’ to the military.” In a response that explains why legislators continue to believe that they have the knowledge, privilege, and right to earmark billions of dollars for the DHP, Senate appropriator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) claimed that none of the secretaries of defense that he had known, despite being “talented individuals,” were qualified to decide whether any of this research is related to the military.

Since FY 1996, members of Congress have added 966 earmarks for the DHP, costing taxpayers $22.8 billion.

$518,300,000 for two earmarks funding the M1 Abrams upgrade program, a 25.9 percent reduction from the $699,200,000 in earmarks in FY 2023.

Over the objections of senior DOD officials, members of Congress have for many years provided funding for the M1 upgrade program. Although the tank plant is in Lima, Ohio, its suppliers are spread across the country, which helps to explain the widespread support. Past versions of the DOD bills, including in FYs 2016 and 2017, hinted at a parochial incentive for the program’s continuance: industrial base support. There’s nothing like a jobs program disguised as a national security priority.

The continued funding for the program makes it worth revisiting why the Pentagon has long objected to finite resources being wasted on an unwanted project.

On February 17, 2012, then-Army Chief of Staff General Raymond Odierno told the House Armed Services Committee that the U.S. possesses more than enough tanks to meet the country’s needs and “our tank fleet is in good shape.”

On September 6, 2023, the DOD announced that it intends to move on from the M1A2SEP, based in part on lessons learned in the fighting in Ukraine. The funding would be redistributed to develop the M1E3. The new tank will integrate technologies designed to increase survivability and maneuverability and likely be fielded beginning in the 2040s.

Since FY 1994, there have been 47 earmarks for the M1 Abrams, requested by at least 13 members of Congress, costing taxpayers $3 billion. Continuing to commit vast resources to an unnecessary program will inevitably make upgrading the Abrams in the manner the Pentagon prefers much more difficult.

$282,353,000 for two earmarks for the F-35 JSF, with the bulk of the funding going toward the acquisition of three aircraft for the Air Force beyond the amount requested by the DOD.

A small ocean of ink has been spilled cataloging the many troubles of the JSF. It has been under continuous development since the contract was awarded in 2001 and has faced innumerable delays and cost overruns. Total acquisition costs now exceed $428 billion, nearly double the initial estimate of $233 billion. According to an April 15, 2024, GAO report, total lifetime costs of the program will now exceed $2 trillion, or 17.7 percent more than the previous $1.7 trillion estimate in September 2023.

On April 26, 2016, then-Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) called the JSF program “both a scandal and a tragedy with respect to cost, schedule, and performance.” In February 2014, then-Under Secretary of Defense

for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Frank Kendall referred to the purchase of the F-35 as “acquisition malpractice,” a description that has yet to be improved upon.

The JSF has been plagued by a staggering array of persistent issues, many of which were highlighted in the FY 2019 DOD Operational Test and Evaluation Annual Report, which revealed 873 unresolved deficiencies including 13 Category 1 items, involving the most serious flaws that could endanger crew and aircraft. While this is an overall reduction from the 917 unresolved deficiencies and 15 Category 1 items found in September 2018, the report stated that “although the program is working to fix deficiencies, new discoveries are still being made, resulting in only a minor decrease in the overall number of deficiencies.”

In July 2023, the DOD stopped accepting new deliveries of the JSF from the prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, because of delays in the Technology Refresh-3 program, a $1.8 billion effort to provide new capabilities. A May 2024 GAO report found that the contractor is running out of storage space for JSFs waiting delivery. The three additional JSFs added via earmarks in FY 2024 will not help.

Many of the problems with the F-35 program can be traced to the decision to develop and procure the aircraft simultaneously. Whenever problems have been identified, contractors needed to go back and make changes to planes that were already assembled, adding to overall costs. Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum on July 24, 2015, then-Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James stated, “The biggest lesson I have learned from the F-35 is never again should we be flying an aircraft while we’re building it.”

The JSF has suffered from a woeful readiness rate for years, and the picture has not improved with time. An April 15, 2024, Defense One article reported a mission capable rate of 51.9 percent for the F-35A, 59.7 percent for the F-35 B, and 61.9 percent for the F-35C.

Of course, the program’s many problems have not stopped the Pentagon from asking for funding, and members of Congress from supplying it, oftentimes exceeding the request from the DOD. This trend continued in FY 2024. Upon completion of the development phase, additional funding will be needed to retrofit the JSFs purchased via earmarks, adding to overall program costs.

The wide distribution of F-35 supply lines across the country is no accident. According to a map showing the local economic impact of the JSF on Lockheed Martin’s website, the only states that do not have at least one supplier for the aircraft are Hawaii and North Dakota. This gives all but two representatives and four senators more than enough incentive to keep greasing the wheels.

The deficiencies that have plagued the DOD in recent years have been identified ad nauseum. The Pentagon’s track record in addressing its financial shortcomings and procurement failures makes it evident that these problems will continue until members of Congress hold the DOD to a much higher standard of effectiveness and efficiency. Since FY 2001, legislators have added 39 earmarks for the JSF program, costing $12.4 billion.

$221,735,000 for three earmarks for the National Guard Counter-Drug Program, an 84.8 percent increase from the $120 million in FY 2023, and the most ever earmarked for this program. Between FYs 2008-2010, earmarks went to individual states and congressional districts, but since then the program, which allows for the use of military personnel in domestic drug enforcement operations, has been funded in one bundle as a workaround to the earmark moratorium. Despite the transparency requirements for earmarks, there is still no information about where these funds are going or how they will be used.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, with a budget of $2.6 billion, is already responsible for these activities. Since FY 2001, there have been 83 earmarks costing taxpayers $1.6 billion for the National Guard Counter-Drug Program. Members of Congress who have inserted earmarks for this program in the past include Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House appropriator Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), the late former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), and the late Sens. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Ted Stevens (R-Alaska).

$53,000,000 for the Starbase Youth Program, which teaches science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) to at-risk youth in multiple locations at or near military bases around the country. The amount supplied in FY 2024 is a 6 percent increase from the $50 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the largest ever earmark for Starbase.

Since FY 2001, legislators have added 16 earmarks costing $375.1 million for Starbase, including an earmark worth $1.9 million in FY 2010 by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and then-Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.). But, like the National Guard Counter-Drug Program, there is no information about which members of Congress will be receiving the money for the Starbase earmarks.

An April 2018 GAO annual report on program duplication, overlap, and fragmentation found that $2.9 billion was spent in FY 2016 across 13 agencies for 163 STEM programs. Former President Obama proposed the consolidation or elimination of 31 STEM programs in FY 2015, and a further 20 STEM programs in FY 2016. Former President Trump’s FY 2021 Major Savings and Reforms recommended eliminating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Office of STEM Engagement, saving $120 million.

IV. ENERGY AND WATER

Legislators once again flooded the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act with pricey pork. While the number of earmarks declined by 19.1 percent, from 356 in FY 2023 to 288 in FY 2024, the cost went in the other direction, increasing by 10.5 percent, from $1.9 billion in FY 2023 to $2.1 billion in FY 2024. The increase in the cost of earmarks is the third highest in all of the FY 2024 appropriations bills.

$1,488,596,000 for 217 earmarks for the Army Corps of Engineers, a 24 percent increase from the 175 in FY 2023, and a 48.9 percent increase in cost from the $1 billion in FY 2023. Former President Trump’s FY 2018 Major Savings and Reforms recommended reducing the Corps of Engineers’ budget by $976 million. The FY 2021 version of his Major Savings and Reforms proposed reforming Army Corps of Engineers Inland Waterways Trust Fund financing by establishing an annual fee paid by commercial navigation users, saving $180 million annually. The report also recommended divesting the federal government of the Washington Aqueduct, which services Washington, D.C., and several Virginia suburbs, saving $118 million over five years.

The Army Corps of Engineers earmarks in FY 2024 contained four projects worth at least $100 million: $236,800,000 for the Chickamauga Lock on the Tennessee River by House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Chuck Fleischmann (the largest non-anonymous earmark in FY 2024, earning Rep. Fleischmann CAGW’s May 2024 Porker of the Month award); $120,000,000 for a project on the Upper Mississippi River and Illinois waterway system by Senate Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee members Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and Reps. Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.), Garret Graves (R-La.), Darin LaHood (R-Ill.), Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.), and Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.); $103,170,000 for the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System by Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ariz.); and $100,000,000 for a project on the Sabine-Neches Waterway System by Rep. Randy Weber (R-Texas). These four projects account for 37.6 percent of the $1,488,596,000 in Army Corps of Engineers earmarks.

Legislators have long treated the Army Corps of Engineers as a prime repository of pork, and it is among the most heavily earmarked areas of the federal budget. Since FY 1996, members of Congress have added 7,566 earmarks for the Corps, costing taxpayers $20.9 billion. The earmarks in the FY 2024 bill and all other Energy and Water appropriations bills with earmarks since 2014 contravene the provisions of the Water Resources Development Act of 2014, which excluded earmarks for any water projects, including the Army Corps of Engineers.

$36,000,000 for two earmarks to combat underwater pests, including $20,500,000 million for the aquatic plant control program, a 46.1 percent decline from the $38 million earmarked in FY 2023.

Since FY 1994, there have been 30 earmarks worth a total of $207.6 million for aquatic plant control, meaning the amount provided in FY 2024 represents 9.9 percent of the total over the past 30 years. Legislators who have requested earmarks in the past for the aquatic plant control program include Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who requested three, and one each by then-Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.).

The bill also included $15,500,000 for aquatic nuisance control research, 32.3 percent less than the $22.9 million earmarked in FY 2023. Since FY 1992, members of Congress have added 13 earmarks for aquatic nuisance research, costing $99.4 million.

There is no indication as to which member of Congress will receive the FY 2024 funding to wage underwater pest warfare.

$8,865,000 for two earmarks funding fish passages and fish screens, including $6 million added anonymously and $2,865,000 for the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe for a fish screen at the Numana Dam in Nevada by Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.).

The anonymous earmark is a 45.5 percent decrease from the $11 million added without attribution in FY 2023. Since FY 2000, members of Congress have added 26 earmarks costing $102.9 million for fish passage and fish screens.

V. FINANCIAL SERVICES

The number of earmarks in the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act declined from 252 in FY 2023 to 152 in FY 2024, a 39.7 percent decrease, while their cost increased by 0.2 percent, from $355.5 million in FY 2023 to $356.1 million in FY 2024.

$356,100,000 for 152 earmarks funding the Economic Development Administration (EDA), which provides federal funds to projects it considers critical to a region’s economic development. The EDA first received earmarks in FY 1991, when legislators provided 36 projects costing $2.2 million.

Since FY 1991, Congress has added 1,507 earmarks for the EDA, costing taxpayers $845.7 million.

The EDA is a duplicative program. The Trump administration’s FY 2021 Major Savings and Reforms recommended eliminating the agency, stating that it is “duplicative of other Federal programs.” The report also noted that the elimination of the EDA would save $1.1 billion over five years. Former President Obama targeted the EDA for a $16 million cut in his FY 2017 budget, stating the program was “unable to demonstrate that it [was] meeting its statutory objectives.”

VI. HOMELAND SECURITY

The number of earmarks in the FY 2024 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations Act increased by 12.3 percent, from 154 in FY 2023 to 173 in FY 2024, and their cost went up by 39.3 percent, from $653.7 million in FY 2023 to $910.4 million in FY 2024. The increase in the cost of earmarks is the fourth highest in the FY 2024 appropriations bills.

$456,000,000 for two earmarks for the National Predisaster Mitigation Fund, the largest amount ever earmarked for this purpose, and a 13.4 percent increase from the previous high of $402.2 million in FY 2023.

The amount earmarked in FY 2024 is 50.1 percent of the $910.4 million in the FY 2024 DHS Appropriations Act, and a 54.7 percent increase from the $294.8 million provided in FY 2022. The dramatic increase from FY 2022 is likely attributable to hurricanes and wildfires during FY 2023. Since FY 2008, there have been 36 earmarks costing taxpayers $3.4 billion for predisaster mitigation.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has administered the predisaster mitigation program since 2002, providing funding to state and local governments for projects intended to reduce risks prior to a disaster. The program also receives funding through the Disaster Relief Fund, which received $19.4 billion in FY 2022, meaning there is no need for earmarks.

$120,500,000 for 150 earmarks funding the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Emergency Operations Center Grant Program, an 84 percent increase from the $65.5 million provided for 91 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 12.3 percent increase from the $107.3 million provided for 92 earmarks in FY 2022.

Since FY 2008, legislators have added 2,143 earmarks costing taxpayers $1.8 billion for emergency operations centers. Although earmarks for emergency operations centers are often among the most numerous in the appropriations bills, the program could be eliminated in favor of competitive or merit-based awards that could allow states to prioritize critical needs in each area.

$87,000,000 for 11 earmarks funding the Firefighter Assistance Grants (FAG) program. This is a 138.5 percent increase in the cost from the $36.5 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the most ever earmarked for FAG.

Members of Congress have long abused the FAG program, which consists of the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grants, which pay for firefighter salaries, and the Assistance for Firefighters grants, which focus on equipment, training, vehicles, and other resources.

The FAG program has not been spared the criticism of former presidents. Former President Obama proposed reducing its budget by 17.1 percent in his FY 2017 budget, and the Trump administration called for reducing FAG spending by 23.7 percent in its FY 2021 Major Savings and Reforms.

Since FY 2001, Congress has added 2,668 earmarks for the Firefighter Assistance Grants program costing taxpayers $2.6 billion.

VII. INTERIOR

In the FY 2024 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, the cost of earmarks increased by 34.2 percent, from $1 billion in FY 2023 to $1.3 billion in FY 2024, the second-largest increase in cost among the 12 appropriations bills. The number of earmarks increased by 3.3 percent, from 303 in FY 2023 to 313 in FY 2024.

$500,000,000 for 117 earmarks funding the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a 22.5 percent increase from the 99 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 30.2 percent increase from the $384 million provided in FY 2023. Since FY 2000, Congress has added 2,798 earmarks for the EPA, costing $4.8 billion.

The EPA earmarks include: $7,000,000 for Chesapeake Bay region watershed infrastructure projects by Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee member Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Senate Appropriations Committee member Mark Warner (D-Va.), Senate Environment and Public Works Committee member Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.), Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.), Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.), House Appropriations Committee member Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.), Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.), and House appropriator David Trone (D-Md.); $3,500,000 for stormwater management and flooding prevention projects at the American River Parkway in Sacramento, California by House appropriator Doris Matsui (D-Calif.); and $1,600,000 for the Storm Water Infrastructure Improvement Project in Westfield, New Jersey by Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-N.J.).

$236,127,000 for 52 earmarks for the National Park Service (NPS), a 21.4 percent decrease in cost from the $300.4 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the first reduction in cost since earmarks returned in FY 2022.

The largest NPS earmark, $48,960,000, went to the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation, which Congress established in 1972. The FY 2024 earmark is a 64 percent increase from the $29,880,000 earmarked in FY 2023, and the largest ever earmark for the organization.

The Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation has not been around since 1996, when its authority to issue notes or other obligations was terminated. The organization’s records were to be transferred to the National Archives and Records Administration and its property and obligations to the General Services Administration.

The earmark represents 20.7 percent of the $236,127,000 in NPS earmarks, and 37 percent of the NPS’s $132.2 million appropriation for this purpose in FY 2024. Since FY 2000, Congress has added 968 earmarks costing taxpayers $789 million for the NPS.

$99,705,000 for 27 earmarks funding the United States Forest Service (USFS), a 30.2 percent increase from the $76.6 million in FY 2023, and the most ever earmarked for the USFS.

The USFS earmarks include: $2,000,000 for infrastructure improvements at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Brevard, North Carolina by House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee member Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.); $1,200,000 for the State of Nevada for wildfire fuels management in Nevada by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.); and $1,000,000 for Lake Solano County Park in California by Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee member Alex Padilla (D-Calif.).

Since FY 1997, legislators have added 355 earmarks costing $467.7 million for the USFS.

$94,254,000 for 54 earmarks for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM ), a 94.9 percent increase from the $48.4 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the largest ever earmarked for the BLM. Since FY 1997, members of Congress have added 476 earmarks costing $428 million for the BLM.

The BLM earmarks include: $3,430,000 for the Nevada Conservation and Wilderness Fund for the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area Restoration and Protection project by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.); $2,500,000 for the Klamath Tribes for the Aquatic Restoration Initiative by Senate Appropriations Committee member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.); and $2,000,000 for Lassen County, California for the Central Lassen County Community Wildfire Protection Plan by House Appropriations Committee member Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.).

$90,208,000 for 63 earmarks funding the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), a 25.7 percent increase from the $71.8 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the most ever earmarked for the FWS.

The FWS earmarks include: $3,000,000 for the Concho River Water Conservancy District in Texas for the Concho River water conservation project by House appropriator August Pfluger (R-Texas); $2,995,000 for the State of Colorado for the Water Supply Security Project by Senate Appropriations Committee member Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.); and $2,800,000 for the City of Athens, Ohio for the Athens Area Watershed Reclamation Project by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio).

Since FY 1997, legislators have added 548 earmarks costing $523.5 million for the FWS.

VIII. LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION

The cost of earmarks in the FY 2024 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor/HHS) Appropriations Act increased by 22.3 percent, from $2.3 billion in FY 2023 to $2.8 billion in FY 2024. The number of earmarks increased by 32.1 percent, from 1,233 in FY 2023 to 1,629 in FY 2024.

$1,133,213,500 for 484 earmarks for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a 13.4 percent increase in the number of earmarks from the 427 in FY 2023, and a 14 percent increase in cost from the $993.8 million in FY 2023.

The HRSA earmarks include: $3,000,000 for the Alexandria Neighborhood Health Services, Inc. in Virginia by House appropriator Don Beyer (D-Va.); $2,500,000 for Friends of the Children in Oregon by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.); and $2,000,000 for the Angel Flight West Hangar and Administration Building at the John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California by House appropriator Michelle Steel (R-Calif.).

The RSC’s FY 2024 budget proposed eliminating HRSA’s Health Workforce program, which would save $3.9 billion over 10 years.

Since FY 2001, legislators have added 3,261 earmarks for HRSA, costing taxpayers $1.9 billion.

$804,566,000 for 361 earmarks funding the Fund for the Improvement of Education (FIE), a 32.6 percent increase in the number of earmarks from the 272 in FY 2023, and a 30.8 percent increase in cost from the $615.3 million earmarked in FY 2023.

The FIE earmarks include: $2,000,000 for the George Washington University in Washington, D.C., for the Energy Innovation Initiative by House appropriator Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.); $2,000,000 for the Topeka Center for Advanced Learning and Careers in Kansas by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.); and $1,500,000 for the Social and Public Arts Resource Center in Venice, California, for the SPARC Youth Art Lab and Leadership Program by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.).

FIE earmarks have received criticism from across the political spectrum. The Bush administration tried to eliminate the FIE in its FY 2006 budget, noting that the program “has outlived its usefulness.” The administration’s FY 2008 Terminations, Reductions, and Savings proposed to eliminate the FIE because “the program has not demonstrated results.”

The FY 2012 version of Terminations, Reductions, and Savings also recommended eliminating the FIE, pointing out that the program “has not demonstrated clear results.”

On March 11, 2011, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee approved legislation introduced by Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) to eliminate 82 wasteful and duplicative programs. The bill, S. 446, included the FIE.

Since FY 2001, legislators have added 3,223 earmarks for the FIE, costing $1.8 billion.

$511,199,000 for 468 earmarks funding the Health Facilities Construction and Equipment (HFCE) program, a 30.1 percent increase in the number of earmarks from the 360 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 35.8 percent increase in cost from the $376.5 million in FY 2023.

The HFCE earmarks include: $2,000,000 for the Allegany County, Maryland, Public Schools Allegany High School, Community and Workforce Development Center by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Rep. David Trone (D-Md.); $1,000,000 for the Bassett Hospital of Schoharie County, Inc., for Bassett Healthcare Network Digital Connections in New York by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.); and $500,000 for the Mobile Infirmary Association for Women’s Wellness Center Mobile Services in Alabama by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Katie Britt (R-Ala.).

Since FY 2001, members of Congress have added 1,886 earmarks for the HFCE program, costing $1.6 billion.

$195,567,500 for 316 earmarks funding the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), a 46.3 percent increase in the number of earmarks from the 216 in FY 2023, and a 38.6 percent increase in cost from the $141.1 million earmarked in FY 2023.

The FIPSE earmarks include: $1,500,000 for Kent State University in Ohio for a Mental Health Scholars Program for Public School Counselors by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio); $1,000,000 for the University of North Carolina Wilmington for an Offshore Wind Workforce Training Center by House Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member David Rouzer (R-N.C.); and $1,000,000 for Syracuse University in New York for the Institute for the Study of Outliers in Education by Senate Labor/HHS Appropriations Subcommittee member Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).

The Trump administration’s FY 2018 Major Savings and Reforms recommended eliminating FIPSE, saving $30 million in FY 2018 and $165 million over five years. The report stated that FIPSE is “unnecessary and duplicative,” and “has supported activities that other agencies fund.”

Since FY 2001, Congress has added 1,725 earmarks for FIPSE, costing $1.5 billion.

IX. MILITARY CONSTRUCTION

The number of earmarks in the FY 2024 Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act decreased by 4.8 percent, from 42 in FY 2023 to 40 in FY 2024, while their cost increased by 37.5 percent, from $1.6 billion in FY 2023 to $2.2 billion in FY 2024. The increase in the cost of earmarks is the largest among the 12 appropriations bills.

$604,000,000 for two earmarks funding 12 barracks projects, including $299 million for three projects at Fort Hood in Texas by Senate Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member John Cornyn (R-Texas) and House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Roger Williams (R-Texas), and $192 million for four projects at Fort Campbell in Tennessee and Kentucky by Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Hal Rogers (R-Ky.), Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), and House Appropriations Committee member Mark Green (R-Tenn.).

Since FY 2000, members of Congress have added 89 earmarks for barracks projects, costing $5.7 billion.

$400,000,000 for a Medical Center Addition and Alteration project at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas by Senate Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas).

$250,000,000 for a housing project for unaccompanied soldiers at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii by Senate Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii).

Since FY 2000, members of Congress have added 37 earmarks for unaccompanied personnel housing projects, costing $1.4 billion.

$197,000,000 for six Child Development Centers (CDCs) projects, including $75 million for projects in Hawaii by Senate Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii), and $49 million for projects in Washington State by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and House Military Construction Appropriations Subcommittee member Derek Kilmer (D-Wash.).

The 2023 Military Construction FY 2023 Budget Overview stated that the Department of Defense (DOD) has a $2 billion backlog of critical CDC requirements. There have been 21 earmarks costing $699.8 million for CDCs added since FY 2000.

Former President Obama targeted the DOD for a 5 percent decrease in its military construction budget in FY 2017. The FY 2021 Trump administration Major Savings and Reforms called for a $686 million decrease in military construction spending.

X. STATE AND FOREIGN OPERATIONS

The FY 2024 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Act contained five earmarks costing $13 million, a 150 percent increase from the two earmarks costing $5.2 million in FY 2023. This is the second straight year that earmarks have been included in the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Act.

$8,000,000 for the Economic Support Fund for the Middle East Partnership for Peace Fund by House Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Barbara Lee (D-Calif.).

$5,000,000 for the United States Agency for International Development to fund a project that supports gender equity and women’s empowerment initiatives in Southeast Asia by Senate Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee member Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.).

XI. TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING, AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

The number of earmarks in the FY 2024 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD) Appropriations Act increased by 32 percent, from 1,141 in FY 2023 to 1,505 in FY 2024, while their cost increased by 41.6 percent, from $3.7 billion in FY 2023 to $5.2 billion in FY 2024. The increase in the number and cost of earmarks were both the second largest in the FY 2024 appropriations bills.

$1,180,000,000 for 423 earmarks funding transit projects, an increase of 33.5 percent from the 317 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 45.9 percent increase from the $808.6 million earmarked in FY 2023. The transit earmarks account for 22.8 percent of the $5.2 billion in FY 2024 THUD Appropriations Act earmarks.

The transit earmarks include: $8,500,000 for 42nd Street Development Corporation for the Jack and Catherine Farrell Ferry Terminal and Public Access Infrastructure project by House THUD Appropriations Subcommittee member Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.); $8,000,000 for the District Department of Transportation for the K Street NW Transitway project by House appropriator Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.); and $8,000,000 for the San Mateo County Transit District for the Peninsula Corridor Electrification project by Senate THUD Appropriations Subcommittee member Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.).

The funding provided by Congress for transit is especially wasteful in light of the vast amount of money provided in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, including $89.9 billion for transit systems and $66 billion for railroads, such as Amtrak, over 10 years.

The National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Finance Commission’s February 26, 2009, report stated that transit systems receive 20 to 25 percent of their operating budgets from fares, and that “while providing and expanding transit service may be essential public policy objectives, subsidy levels should be made more transparent, both to taxpayers in general and transit users in particular.”

One of the most egregious examples of wasting taxpayer dollars can be found in Nashville, Tennessee. Then-Mayor Karl Dean proposed the 7.1-mile Amp Bus Rapid Transit Project at a cost of $174 million, or $24.5 million per mile. Dean justified the boondoggle in part by claiming that it would create jobs. But a March 2014 Beacon Center report found that the project would destroy more jobs than it creates. Even the staunchest advocates for increased transit spending have grown frustrated with the poor performance of federally funded transit projects. A 2010 Transportation Research Board report concluded that the New Starts program, the source of most federal funding for transit projects, “lacks a coherent and consistent capital investment approach … has not demonstrated that its projects are the most cost-effective, and its performance is not based on systemwide multimodal evaluations, but rather on a series of projects.”

Since FY 1991, legislators have added 7,675 earmarks costing $19.9 billion for transit projects.

$1,075,000,000 for 341 earmarks for the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), a 29.7 percent increase from the 263 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 36.6 percent increase from the $787.4 million provided in FY 2023.

The AIP earmarks include: $10,000,000 for the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority for construction of the South Florida RTA Transfer Station by House THUD Appropriations Subcommittee member Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.); $8,000,000 for improvements to the main terminal facility at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Senate THUD Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), and House Appropriations Committee member Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.); and $8,000,000 for the Anchorage International Airport baggage system project by Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).

Since FY 2005, Congress has added 2,196 earmarks for the AIP costing taxpayers $5.5 billion.

$1,007,000,000 for 205 earmarks funding highway projects, a 40.4 percent increase from the 146 earmarks in FY 2023, and a 55.3 percent increase from the $648.1 million in FY 2023.

The highway earmarks include: $16,000,000 for the State of Maine for highway and bridge construction and improvement projects by Senate THUD Appropriations Subcommittee member Susan Collins (R -Maine); $12,000,000 for the Delaware River Port Authority for the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority Southport Project by House appropriator Donald Norcross (D-N.J.); and $10,000,000 for the Omaha/Douglas County Building Commission for the Nebraska Department of Transportation and Metro Area Planning Agency’s Multimodal Center by Senate THUD Appropriations Subcommittee member Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.).

In a July 2022 report on the federal highway program, the Congressional Budget Office found that the revenue credited to the Highway Trust Fund has fallen short of spending by an average of $16 billion per year. The report noted that “project selection … is not guided by clear cost-benefit analyses” and that “there is little evidence that additional highway spending has consistently reduced congestion or enhanced economic activity.” The Trump administration’s FY 2021 Major Savings and Reforms recommended eliminating the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Grants Program, which provides funding for transit projects, saving $1.6 billion annually.

Since FY 1991, legislators have added 3,439 earmarks for highways costing $11.4 billion.

$825,000,000 for 178 earmarks funding Housing and Urban Development (HUD) projects, a 67.3 percent increase from the $493 million earmarked in FY 2023, and the largest amount ever earmarked for HUD projects.

The HUD earmarks include: $15,000,000 for the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center for the Mid-Region Council of Governments Comprehensive Transportation Safety Action Plan by House THUD Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-N.M.); $8,500,000 for the City of Denver for the East Colfax Corridor Bus Rapid Transit Project by House appropriator Diana DeGette (D-Colo.); and $8,000,000 for the City of Albany, New York, for the Pine Bush Intermodal Transportation Center by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).

Since FY 1991, members of Congress have added 1,437 earmarks costing $2.7 billion for HUD projects.

XII. OINKER AWARDS

After a careful review of the 8,308 earmarks in the 12 appropriations bills for fiscal year 2024, which represent a 39.6 percent increase in the number of projects from the 5,953 in fiscal year 2023, CAGW has developed its 2024 Congressional Pig Book Summary that exposes the biggest and most outrageous pork-barrel spending.

Unfunny Money Award – Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) for $30 million in earmarks for the United States Mint.

War on Waste Award – Senate Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) for $400 million in earmarks for the construction of three DDG-51 destroyers.

Porky Paddler Award – House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) for $236.8 million in earmarks for the Chickamauga Lock on the Tennessee River.

Multi-Platform Waste Award – Senate Appropriations Committee member Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) for $182.4 million in earmarks for five projects.

Pharmaceutical Folly Award – Senate Appropriations Committee member Patty Murray (D-Wash.) for $16 million in earmarks for the University of Washington School of Pharmacy.

Common ‘Cents’ Award – Senate Appropriations Committee member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) for $5 million in earmarks for a pedestrian bridge over U.S. Highway 101 in Newport, Oregon.

Goldfish Guzzler Award – Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) for $3 million in earmarks for the Gulf of Maine Research Institute to study the effects of climate change on lobster and shrimp populations in the Gulf of Maine.

Decades of Debt Award – House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-Texas) for $1.2 million in earmarks for the Fort Worth Housing Solutions Cavile Place redevelopment project.

Rash of Ridiculousness Award – House Appropriations Committee member Norma Torres (D-Calif.) for $650,000 in earmarks for the Pomona Wellness Community’s Community Youth Program.

Same Old Pork Award – Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-Texas) for $500,000 in earmarks for the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Interstate 5 bridge replacement project.

The Whole Hog Award – Senate Appropriations Committee member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) for $400,000 in earmarks for the Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute to study the impact of climate change on whale migration patterns in the Pacific Ocean.

As in previous years, the CAGW Congressional Pig Book contains more than enough to make taxpayers angry at the tens of billions of dollars in government waste that could have been avoided if Congress was not being driven by the culture of spending addiction.