December 11, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
Researchers will spend the next thee years measuring the motion of video game systems thanks to $112,781 grant from the National Science Foundation click here to read more
Maryland county commission president credits spending public money to purchase and provide alcohol to officials at meetings for securing millions of dollars in federal funds click here to read more
National Science Foundation spends $119,660 for study measuring how housecats move in pursuit of food treats or feline toys click here to read more
Survey paid for with an $8,750 federal grant finds that most shoppers in Wenatchee, Washington, are not interested in living downtown click here to read more
Men tend to have more reddish skin and greenish skin is more common for women, according to federally funded study click here to read more
$100,000 Department of Transportation grant to pay for a 10-foot observation deck for bird-watching along the Mississippi River click here to read more
$400,000 federal grant will pay for a 10-foot-wide, all-weather bike trail along an Illinois river click here to read more
New high school football stadium paid for with a $200,000 congressional earmark click here to read more
Federal agencies’ research concludes plant seeds dispersed by birds benefit most quickly from landscape corridors; Researcher says this was an expected result click here to read more
Scavenger hunts to help train young journalists funded by the National Science Foundation click here to read more
$1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation pays to take North Carolina teachers on field trips to businesses that use math and science every day click here to read more
Federally funded study blames climate change for the decline of the Roman and Byzantine Empires more than 1,400 years ago click here to read more
December 10, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
Toledo uses federal grant to fight gang violence with a greenhouse and fresh produce
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$143,000 federal grant paid the salary of an HIV education prevention coordinator who is a convicted child rapist
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$114,800 federal grant will create an international gateway sign, an interpretive sign, and a recreational guide for an Idaho highway
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Small Pennsylvania airport trying just about anything, including offering free flyover flights, to claim it had enough passengers this year to qualify for a $1 million federal subsidy
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Anchor Yacht Club members and local officials receive $120,000 federal grant to develop a riverside plan for Pennsylvania town
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Through the help of a federal grant, six Russian teachers enjoy a three day trip to Washington, D.C.
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More than $1 million in federal funds spent for conferences, stipends for summer events, and substitute teachers for history teachers attending workshops on history
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$440,000 federal grant to transform a railroad bridge into “the Walkway Over the Hudson,” a 1.25-mile trail spanning the Hudson River
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Federal grants of up to $7,500 are available to promote new or existing farm stands or farmers markets in Pennsylvania
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More than $100,000 in federal grant money will be spent for recreation projects ranging from trails to playground projects and a skate park in Maine
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Tampa housing agency loses $2 million in federal funds due to poor management; Audit report calls the management “poorly devised and dysfunctional” and “inept”
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$300,000 National Park Service grant will pay for upgrades to water-powered cotton spinning mill in Rhode Island
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Lawsuit filed against the Department of Housing and Urban Development for approving Mississippi’s plan to divert half a billion dollars from hurricane housing aid to a port expansion project.
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Access to affordable housing for Katrina cross the Gulf Coast, FEMA still has 9,850 applicant households in temporary housing units
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December 9, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
From the Lobster Institute to the Woodstock Museum, TIME counts down the top 10 most outrageous congressional earmarks of the year click here to read more
Dance, Dance Revolution music video game consuls, rock walls, and fitness equipment purchased for Connecticut town’s public schools with a $314,212 federal grant click here to read more
$25,000 federal grant will support Newark, New Jersey’s effort to find a new, more artistically appealing, design for its low-rise housing click here to read more
Chamorro-English dictionary project funded by the National Science Foundation (The Chamorro are the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands of which there are about 177,000 worldwide) click here to read more
National Science Foundation funds the first complete dictionary for the Menominee language, which is spoken by only 40 of the tribe’s 8,800 members click here to read more
200-year-old building in Alaska is getting a makeover, thanks in part to a federal grant click here to read more
December 8, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
Three Pentagon executives received cash awards of about $30,000 for outstanding leadership even though their agency has a history of weak management and strained employee relations; “This level of management displays all of the malignant attributes attributed to entrenched bureaucracy,” according to one analysis
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Speaker of the House earmarks $1,034,000 to combat public urination in San Francisco
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DC developer’s projects, paid for with tens of millions of dollars from HUD, marred by unchecked spending and dubious deals for family and friends
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Politicians’ Defense earmarks help lobbyists and campaign contributors, not combat troops, investigation finds
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Proposed $45 billion federal economic stimulus bill has “already succeeded in stimulating a stampede among” local governments seeking “free” money for local projects
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Rhode Island town seeks $1.5 million to replace six traffic lights as part of the proposed stimulus package
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Federal government spends $26.8 million to construct an arena in Youngstown, Ohio
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December 5, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
National Institute on Aging study finds that knowing someone who is happy makes you more likely to be happy yourself click here to read more
New Hampshire charges the federal government $67,000 for upgrades to a mobile command van that is in storage; Upgrades included a $5,800 television, a $1,200 satellite television antenna, and a $16,000 satellite television subscription that includes the Game Show Network and the Travel Channel click here to read more
Van’s total cost charged to the federal government will be $412,000; State Liquor Commission Chairman says “In my view, this represents a triumph of bureaucracy over common sense. … we probably spent $100,000 reviewing this.” click here to read more
City council pulls the plug on $2.3 million congressional earmark for a childcare center in an Illinois town that failed to get off the ground click here to read more
17 Missouri trail projects will receive $1,174,393 from the federal Recreational Trails Program click here to read more
Department of Education analysis finds that the $6 billion spent on its Reading First program had had “no impact” on kids’ reading comprehension click here to read more
Federal officials have frozen $25 million in transportation funds intended for North Carolina because the state doesn’t have a management plan showing where the money goes and how it’s spent click here to read more
The American Folk Festival has received $60,000, still organizers are concerned about fundraising for the 2009 festival click here to read more
$500,000 Federal Highway Administration grant will restore Michigan theater to its original 1882 Second French Empire design click here to read more
Delays in NASA’s Mars mission could add $400 million to the price tag, which is likely to top $2 billion click here to read more
Illinois grocery store receives a $10,000 federal grant to pay for its marketing efforts click here to read more
Seattle housing program used public funds to throw a private party that included a $700 tab for hot dogs and chips, $559 for chocolate truffles and alcohol, and nearly $400 for furniture rental click here to read more
December 4, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
National Science Foundation examines when people send e-mails; “During the day, you send e-mails, but then you go home, or go away for the weekend, and you don’t send e-mails,” researcher concludes click here to read more
California’s Walnut Commission, Apple Commission, Grape and Tree Fruit League, Fig Advisory Board, Pistachio Commission, and Blue Diamond Growers all receive federal funding click here to read more
Senator “strong armed” Missile Defense commanders to steer $18 million to the Alaska Aerospace Development Corporation for a rocket launch site click here to read more
$165,510 federal grant aims to create a pool of skilled upholstering and sewing workers and improve the image of high-end upholstered furniture manufacturing as a career click here to read more
Federal Title V grant will pay to send about two dozen teens on a trip to China click here to read more
FEMA is spending $28 million annually to store unused travel trailers and mobile homes that maybe scrapped click here to read more
While the government supports the ethanol industry through tax breaks, tariff protections and a production mandate, ethanol producers lobbying Congress for more federal assistance click here to read more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development had money left over at the end of the year so its giving it away, despite ongoing mortgage crisis click here to read more
National Endowment of the Arts releases $23 million for dance, workshops, performances, exhibitions, publications, festivals, and other arts programs click here to read more
December 3, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
More than $800,000 in federal transportation grant money directed towards the construction of a railroad museum in Tennessee
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$150,000 federal grant will pay to carry out the first state-wide census of Vermont’s barns
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New York road project that received a $4 million congressional earmark may have stalled for good
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Florida’s Marco Island City Manager is thankful for government grants that help pay for his local wish list, like bike paths and streetscape improvements
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With federal grants that “don’t cost anything” for localities, “the size and cost of local and state governments grows”
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Spat between Illinois Congressman and local officials over how to spend $2.3 million earmark
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$500,000 Federal Highway Administration grant will pay to restore the façade of an opera house in Michigan
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Investigation reveals biotech executive misspent $7.5 million grant from National Institutes of Health intended for cancer research
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National Science Foundation grant used fund a five-year personal shopping spree, paying for foosball tables, a watercraft, a popcorn machine, a wide-screen TV and football tickets, and 3,800 other items valued at more than $316,000
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National Science Foundation pays for researcher’s Central America junkets to collect ants
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December 2, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
Federal government is now willing to spend more than $7 trillion to “rescue the economy,” that’s about $23,000 for every American and more than half of U.S. annual gross domestic product
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$500,000 in federal grants intended for the promotion of democracy in Cuba misspent on illegitimate purposes
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Federal funds paying to create a native vegetation rain garden, an ocean-themed splash pad, and a new comfort station for Massachusetts towns
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100 fluorescent green bike path signs costing $148,773 placed in New York town have drawn the ire of local residents who say they are dangerous and mar the scenery
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Medicare could go bankrupt within the next decade, according to new estimates
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$200,000 federal grant will pay to construct a flood memorial plaza in an area that is often under water when the Mississippi river floods
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The federal government has spent billions of dollars to amass 112,000 alternative-fuel vehicles, yet more than 92 percent of the fuel used in the alternative-fuel fleet continues to be standard gasoline
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A $62,000 federal grant will fund the production of an “exhaustive travel guide” of sites on U.S. Highway 40
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Iowa will receive $177,760 to help restore and preserve a steam powered stern wheel towboat
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December 1, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
Federal deficit “could easily exceed $1 trillion” this year click here to read more
Only 27 percent of Americans believe federal government agencies are doing a good job click here to read more
Collaborative effort to establish a “state-of-the-art museum” in Iraq will be funded with a $13 million grant from the U.S. State Department click here to read more
With unemployment in Chautauqua County, New York, rising, U.S. Senator announces his plan to direct federal funding to the Grape Heritage Discovery Center that he believes “could be a good economic boost for the region” click here to read more
Most of the $328,300 earmarked by Congress to construct a Montana baseball stadium wasn’t needed after all, but parks director plans to keep it anyway click here to read more
$4 million congressional earmark is the key to preserving what’s left of Michigan’s Tiger Stadium click here to read more
$216,276 federal grant pays to restore steam engine locomotive that hasn’t operated since the early 20th century click here to read more
Federal grant pays for Honolulu Symphony to tour Hawaii click here to read more
Coalition seeks to halt effort to widen a section of a New York biking and walking trail paid for with a $619,000 grant from the Federal Highway Administration click here to read more
California congressman says local governments have squandered earmarks for transportation click here to read more
$376,300 federal National Scenic Byways grant to pay to construct a concrete stairway in Vermont click here to read more
Department of Housing and Urban Development spends $600,000 to demolish a Michigan mall click here to read more
November 24, 2008 the pork report -- how Washington politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists are spending your tax dollars
As Indianapolis police run out of tickets to write citations… click here to read more
Indianapolis spends a federal crime grant to write warning tickets to motorists who leave valuables inside their vehicles and pay for youth soccer programs click here to read more
Columbia, South Carolina Department of Homeland Security force, created to receive federal funds, responsible for searching for fallen tree limbs and damaged street signs, reserving parking spaces for City Council members, and directing traffic at city-sponsored events, but does not carry guns or issue tickets click here to read more
Texas sent nearly $5 million in border security grants to two sheriffs’ departments in which officers were recently indicted on drug trafficking charges click here to read more
Homeland Security Department criticized for lax oversight of programs worth billions click here to read more
National Science Foundation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency developing computer programs that can interpret data from videos of football plays click here to read more
Incoming chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, promises no changes in its operations, squashing hopes for more openness in the way tax dollars are spent click here to read more
Proposed “train to nowhere” in Minnesota would cost over $400 million to build, cost millions more each year to operate, and would take significantly more time to travel by then if passengers drove a car click here to read more
Milwaukee Medicaid patients abused the program by charging hundreds of thousands of dollars in cab rides to go shopping or do laundry to taxpayers click here to read more
Medicaid has paid $200 million for medications that have never been reviewed by the government for safety and effectiveness click here to read more
Washington, D.C. mismanaged tens of millions of Medicare dollars click here to read more
$9,695,705,076,370.00
$31,664.43 Per Citizen
