For Immediate Release                                    Contact:  Leslie K. Paige 202-467-5334
August 23, 2007                                                          Alexa Moutevelis 202-467-5318

The Taxpayers Strike Back:
CAGW Applauds Florida County Agency for Refusing Earmark

Washington, D.C. - Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today hailed a local government agency’s decision to disavow a $10 million federal earmark placed by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) for an unnecessary road project in Florida. 

“This is a symbolic victory over wasteful spending,” said CAGW President Tom Schatz.  “While the declaration may not have any legal standing, Congress has been put on notice that backroom shenanigans and shady deals at the taxpayers’ expense will no longer be tolerated.”

In 2005, after the highway bill was approved by Congress, but before it was signed by the President, an earmark for Lee and Collier Counties in Florida was quietly changed from $10 million for “widening and improvements in I-75” to $10 million for the Coconut Road Interchange/I-75.  With more than 6,500 earmarks worth about $24 billion in the bill, this “minor” change went virtually unnoticed until an investigation discovered that the Florida earmark tweaking came from the opposite end of the country, in Alaska.  Developer Daniel Aronoff, who owns property along Coconut Road and stands to benefit financially from increased road access, helped then-House Transportation Committee Chairman Young raise $40,000 for his re-election campaign. 

The interchange was criticized by environmental groups for its close proximity to wetlands and by local officials for its low priority.  Many area residents felt the money was “tainted” by how it was procured.  On August 17, the Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization voted 10-3 to return the $10 million to the federal government and ask for the money to instead be spent for its original purpose, to widen I-75.

“This situation is a textbook example of what is wrong with earmarks: they are often unwarranted and unwanted expenditures that circumvent normal budgetary procedures, override the priorities of local authorities and reward special interests while corrupting their sponsors,” continued Schatz.

Rep. Young is no stranger to controversy.  He is most famous for another earmark in the highway bill the “Bridge to Nowhere.”  CAGW named him its April Porker of the Month for outrageous comments he made in defense of earmarks.  He had a meltdown on the House floor in July when one of his earmarks was challenged, screaming, “You want my money, my money!”  Rep. Young is also being investigated, along with other Alaskan politicians, for his ties to an oil company executive who has pleaded guilty to charges of bribing state lawmakers. 

“Congratulations to Lee County for not wanting to be associated with Rep. Young and for standing up against the powerful pork machine,” concluded Schatz.

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

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