(Washington, DC) President Obama has signed the final nine appropriations bills for FY09 into law, and the omnibus bill includes funding for 16 Louisville projects requested by Congressman John Yarmuth’s (KY-3).

“With the economic challenges facing us, it’s critical that Louisville gets the federal support necessary to continue moving forward,” Congressman Yarmuth said.  “The programs funded in this bill will keep Louisvillians working, while improving health care, transportation infrastructure, education, and public safety and wellness.”

A list of Louisville projects Yarmuth secured in the omnibus—totaling $12.3 million— can be found below.

$1,995,000 — Louisville International Airport
The funding will support numerous capacity and safety improvements at the workplace of more than 40,000 people in Louisville.


$950,000 — Kentucky-Ohio River Bridges Project
The funding will be used for the two new Ohio River bridges as well as reconstruction of “Spaghetti Junction” in downtown Louisville.

$475,000 — TARC Clean Bus Program
The Transit Authority of River City (TARC) will use the funding to replace older, poor performing buses with new, clean-diesel buses. The new state-of-the-art buses will give TARC a top notch and environmentally friendly fleet of buses unrivaled by most major cities.

$285,000 — Home of the Innocents
The children’s village at Home of the Innocents provides a supportive home for children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected.  Residents receive regular counseling and education as well as a schedule of social events, offering them a well-rounded upbringing that empowers them to build strong, successful futures.

$ 235,000 — Woodlands Restoration in Iroquois Park, Olmsted Parks Conservancy
This restoration project will preserve the park by stemming invasive species growth, protecting wildlife, and preventing erosion in the woodlands area.

$190,000 — Simmons College of Kentucky
The 130-year-old institution will use the funding to address the education and workforces development shortcomings in the African-American community.  This program will involve community outreach and dialogues with Louisville's leading experts, research studies into the severity and causes for disparity, and the dissemination of the results of the research studies to local residents and agencies.

$390,000 — Kosair Children's Hospital
This funding will be used to expand and renovate the neonatal unit in order to decrease infant morbidity, the average length of stay, and costs to the hospital and patients .

$95,000 — Muhammad Ali Center
The Muhammad Ali Center will use the funds to develop an educational outreach program. The program will target local students and incorporate a broad range of educational initiatives, including exposure to other cultures, lessons in leadership, and community service.

$95,000 — Gilda's Club
This funding will provide free education and peer-based counseling to youths and their families regarding cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.  By combining a multidisciplinary team representing a local network of cancer support and awareness, this project will increase awareness of each participating organization’s resources, enhance education of the disease and treatment, and provide support to pediatric cancer families.

$196,514— Louisville Central Community Centers, Small Business Incubator
LCCC’s Small Business Incubator will help aspiring entrepreneurs in the Russell neighborhood in West Louisville open businesses in the facility at a low cost and offer support services, including a shared business center, for the emerging companies.  LCCC will use this funding to complete the project, which is expected to host 12-15 new businesses in the initial phase with about 35 full-time employees.

$6,270,000— McAlpine Locks and Dams, Army Corps of Engineers
This funding will finalize construction of a 110ft x 1200ft lock and an access bridge to Shippingport Island located in the Ohio River.  Shipping on the river is still the most cost, time, and energy efficient method of moving goods, as the cargo of a single barge tow is equal to that of 870 semi-trucks or 225 jumbo hopper train cars.  After falling behind schedule due to lack of funding in FY06, the project got back on track in 2008 and is expected to be completed on schedule, next year.

$190,300 — Energy Efficient Lighting Project, City of Louisville
This funding will allow for the installation of solar powered lights in areas where no electric infrastructure exists, but poses safety problems.  The project will include the installation of lights at school bus stops, where children currently have to wait on the street in the dark, early morning hours.

$142,725 — Energy Conservation Initiative, City of Louisville, Louisville Zoo
This program will work with partners to design and implement energy conservation measures, including green roofs.  This project will provide an opportunity to create an environmental education program and will serve as demonstration projects of best practices.

$375,000 — Mobile Data Computers, Louisville Metropolitan Police Department
Louisville Metro Police Department will use this funding to replace mobile data computers that are outdated and unable to be repaired.  LMPD depends heavily on these machines, but the outdated models have been failing and are not compatible or upgradeable to use with current programs.  The funding will be used to support the continuation of this replacement program which is already underway.

$225,000 — Crime Prevention Services for the Elderly, ElderServe, Inc.
ElderServe offers a network that coordinates existing services to help prevent elder abuse and neglect and offer care to seniors who are victims of crime.  This funding will be used to expand the programs, giving them the ability to provide seven day-a-week preventative services and crisis intervention requests to homebound elderly, as well as a “safe house” for crime victims.  Last month, Congressman Yarmuth introduced legislation to expand Louisville’s ElderServe program to a national level.

$150,000 — Second Chance Veterans Transitional Program, Volunteers of America. 
In three years as a pilot program, the Second Chance Veterans Transitional Program  has been remarkably successful, cutting recidivism by 90 percent.  This funding will provide critical services to veterans transitioning out of prison, who are at high risk of homelessness upon their release.  The program costs $700-$1,200 per veteran and matches them with mentors to help them acquire the tools need to get jobs, find housing, and reintegrate into civilian life.  By contrast, the taxpayer cost to incarcerate individuals is $18,000 per year.  Kentucky, which has the fastest growing prison population in the country, saved about $2 million per year through the Second Chance pilot program, which served 328 veterans in three years.

The FY09 budget also includes $75 million for Louisville’s VA hospital, $1.6 million for University of Louisville’s research into minimizing health effects of air toxics on military personnel, $1.7 million for UofL’s Digital Directed Manufacturing research, and $1.6 million for Composite Tissue Allotransplantation at the National Foundation to Support Cell Transplant Research in Louisville.  All four projects were signed into law last year.