After more than a decade, earmarks are back on Capitol Hill.
The practice, which allows members of Congress to request funding designated for specific projects back home, went away amid corruption scandals that sent some members to prison.
Now that they have returned, what are Upstate New York lawmakers asking for?
All told, from the Hudson Valley to Lake Ontario, upstate lawmakers are requesting funding for dozens of so-called “community projects,” totaling roughly $200 million overall, according to data compiled by Spectrum News 1.
Of upstate’s lawmakers, Rep. Elise Stefanik - now the third ranking Republican in the House - is leading the pack. Combined, her earmark requests total $46 million. That includes roughly $37 million for a new railhead and water supply upgrades at Fort Drum.
With $46 million in earmark requests, Stefanik also outpaces her downstate colleagues, as well.
Reps. Sean Patrick Maloney - who heads the House Democrats’ campaign arm - and Claudia Tenney round out the top three in upstate, asking for $42 million and $27 million, respectively.
Maloney’s biggest ask is nearly $13 million for sewer fixes in the City of Newburgh. Tenney wants more than $15 million for a development project in Rome, Oneida County.
Whether any of these requests will get added to this year’s spending bills is an open question.
What projects are Upstate NY lawmakers requesting?
Among the upstate delegation, water infrastructure spending is one of the top requests. If approved by Congress, tens of millions of dollars would flow to water and sewer systems from West Nyack to Seneca Falls.
Rep. Paul Tonko wants $1 million to upgrade a wastewater treatment plant in Rotterdam.
Rep. Tom Reed is looking for more than $5 million to update the water treatment facility in Portville, plus $2 million to replace contaminated wells in Mayville.
Lawmakers are also seeking money for rural broadband, mental health services, YMCAs and hospital equipment.
Rep. Mondaire Jones is asking for $1.5 million for an outpatient care facility for LGBTQ+ patients in Rockland County.
“Let's continue to create space for people who need gender-affirming medical care to be able to stay in Rockland County, rather than go many, many miles away to places like New York City, for example,” he said in an interview.
Also of note, Maloney and Rep. John Katko are each asking for money to purchase body cameras for local police.
Maloney wants $30,000 to buy them for the Deerpark police force, while Katko is requesting $140,000 for the Syracuse Police Department.
Among the delegations dozens of other requests, Rep. Brian Higgins wants nearly $7 million to upgrade hangars at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station. And he wants half a million dollars to repair the decommissioned USS The Sullivans, which is now part of a museum in Buffalo.
Tenney, meanwhile, is requesting $2 million for a pedestrian bridge to make it easier to access Utica Harbor.
Disclosure requirements
In light of the past scandals and abuse, earmarks received a series of reforms when they were revived this year. All lawmakers must certify that they and their immediate family have no financial interests in the projects.
To see a full list of the earmarks each lawmaker is requesting, and the certification letter for each request, click on the links below: