Rio Grande Foundation Calls Attention to Unnecessary “Pork-barrel” Spending in New Mexico

For further Information, Contact:
Paul Gessing 505-264-6090

(Albuquerque, New Mexico) In cooperation with the Washington, DC-based grassroots organization Americans for Prosperity, the Rio Grande Foundation is calling for New Mexico’s elected officials in Washington to stop abusing earmarks. The “Ending Earmarks Express,” sponsored by Americans for Prosperity and is stopping in Albuquerque to highlight the need for Congressional earmark reform. The Wheels Museum received a $225,000 earmark in the FY 2004 Omnibus Appropriations Bill and a $300,000 earmark in the FY 2000 Veterans Affairs / HUD Appropriations Bills.

“Museums are certainly nice things, but just as New Mexicans shouldn’t be forced to pay for useless bridges in Alaska, taxpayers in other states, some of whom may never step foot in New Mexico, should not be forced to pay for our museums. Ideally, the costs of such museums should be borne by those who actually attend them or charities with an interest in promoting cultural advancement,” said Rio Grande Foundation President Paul Gessing.

As Gessing noted, “Our elected officials and those who support rampant earmarking, would love to convince us that through the hard work and leadership positions of our elected officials, that New Mexicans come out ahead in Congressional ‘earmark-wars,’ but that is not the case. Not only do New Mexicans lose out when we have to foot the bill for similar projects in other states, but as the Rio Grande Foundation publicized earlier this year, despite receiving $2 for every $1 it sends to Washington, New Mexico is a relatively poor, undeveloped state,” Gessing argued.

While failing to help New Mexico’s economic situation, federal spending on earmarks has caused the national budget picture to worsen. The national debt is nearly $8.5 trillion and each citizen’s share of this debt is more than $28 thousand and growing daily. The number of earmarks rose from 958 in 1996 to 15,877 last year, tallying up to $47.4 billion in the 2005 budget, according to the Congressional Research Service.

The goal of the “Ending Earmarks Express” tour is to educate taxpayers about the problem of earmarks and mobilize them in support of more transparency and accountability in the appropriations process. Such reforms would also build momentum for the larger goal of reining in all forms of wasteful government spending. Find out more about the “Ending Earmarks Express” and the earmarks being highlighted nationwide at www.EndingEarmarksExpress.com.