Giffords seeks about $16M for Cochise County projects

Friday, March 21, 2008
The Sierra Vista Herald
By Bill Hess

WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is seeking more than $117 million in next year’s federal budget to support a number of agencies in her congressional district.Of the 48 projects Giffords is seeking funds for, 20 projects with a value of slightly more than $16.6 million are either in or partially part of functions in Cochise County.

As part of establishing accountability, transparency and openness in the appropriations process, the freshman Democratic congresswoman said, “I enthusiastically support these reforms and believe that our government must be accessible to all Americans.”

This is the second year that the openness of the appropriations process has led her to list what projects she is supporting for Congressional District 8.

The 110th Congress adopted the procedure that requires the identification of the recipient of the project, stating the purpose of the project, subjecting all funding requests to full disclosure before a vote is taken, certifying the congressional member, or spouse, has no financial interest in the project and making all approved projects available after each appropriations bill passes the House of Representatives.

“I am going beyond the new requirements and disclosing my fiscal year 2009 (which begins Oct. 1) district funding requests prior to their considerations,” Giffords said. “In selecting funding projects for our region I was extremely selective, submitting fewer than half of the requests that were sent to my office. I believe it is part of my job to bring the hard-earned tax dollars of Southern Arizonans home to our communities in meaningful ways.”

Four of the projects have to deal with the San Pedro River area.

The Nature Conservancy is seeking $285,000 for its San Pedro River Ecosystem Project. This funding will be used by the U.S. Forest Service’s Forest Legacy Program to acquire conservation easements on three tracts that total 166 acres. All of the private owners are willing to participate in this program to put their lands into permanent conservation protection with the state of Arizona.

Three of the other proposals will support the Upper San Pedro Partnership, a consortium of federal, state and local agencies, as well as environmental groups and businesses.

One seeks $115,000 for San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, Section 321 Watershed Protection and Restoration. This funding will be used to enhance the health of the San Pedro River Watershed by removing invasive species that absorb more water than native species. After removal is completed, areas will be reseeded with desirable native grasses.

The second seeks $252,000 for the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area Section 321 Monitoring and Verification requirements. This funding will be used by BLM to produce and analyze objective scientific information necessary to satisfy the annual reporting requirements of Public Law 108-136, Section 321.

The third is a request for $750,000 monitoring and reporting on the Upper San Pedro River Monitoring and Reporting. This funding will be used by the U.S. Geological Survey to monitor the flow of the San Pedro River and the conditions of the regional aquifer of the Sierra Vista Subwatershed.

Sierra Vista Mayor Bob Strain, the partnership’s chairman, said the money is needed to help a number of federal agencies, who are members of the partnership, do work that will address the water woes in the area’s basin.

The previous U.S. representative for the area, Jim Kolbe, a Republican who retired after serving more than 20 years in Congress, was able to obtain earmarks ranging up to more than $3 million a year for the partnership to do a great deal of work, including scientific studies, he said.

But, Strain noted, earmarks are no long favorably considered by many in Congress, and there are a number of moves to eliminate them all together.

The Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting, U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., also has told the partnership members on many occasions that while he supports their efforts, the federal treasury is not unlimited. McCain also has made known his dislike for earmarks and has promised, if elected to the nation’s highest office, to veto any bill with earmarks.

He prefers that funds are debated in the open and go through the legislative process for approval.

Strain said that by asking for the funds to be part of a federal agency’s budget, the process will be open. Strain also noted county and city leaders have budgeted tens of thousands of dollars toward the partnership over the years.

With Giffords’ support, Strain said, “This is only but a step in a long process, a very promising step.”

In her release of her appropriations requests, the congresswoman warned many of the requests will not be approved due to the nation’s economic problems, which will force reductions.

“But I believe they deserve strong considerations by my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee,” Giffords said.

For a detailed list of Giffords’ appropriations requests for fiscal year 2009, visit giffords.house.gov.

---

Other requests tied to Cochise County

The following are other project that U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has requested that involve Cochise County. Four requests that involve the San Pedro River are not seen, but are mentioned in the main story. Projects are listed by the name of the subcommittee that will review them.

Agriculture, Rural Development,

Food and Drug Administration

• $120,000 for scientific support for the Upper San Pedro Partnership to fund the organization’s ongoing participation in the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, Southwest Watershed Research Center.

Defense

• $5 million for the Asymmetric Threat Response and Analysis Project. The funds are requested for a joint University of Arizona/Fort Huachuca Battle Lab research effort that is developing computerized tools for the Army that will predict and prevent insurgent attacks.
• $4 million for the Silver Fox and Manta Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) to fund further development and deployment of high-tech sensors on the Silver Fox Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). Research and development of the Silver Fox is a joint effort spearheaded by the Fort Huachuca Battle Laboratory and Tucson contractor Advanced Ceramics Research.

Energy and Water Development

• $183,534 for a rooftop solar electric system for the Bisbee City Hall. The funding will be used to install a 30 kilowatt solar array. Current energy costs for the building are about $21,000 per year and this project would reduce that amount by approximately 47 percent.

Financial Services and General Government

• $150,000 for Cochise County Entrepreneurial Education and Development at Cochise College. The funding will be used to create comprehensive education programs that provide small business owners and entrepreneurs with skills to create strengthen businesses particularly in rural area of Cochise County and among underserved populations.

Homeland Security

• $750,000 to be used to conduct flood plain studies of areas that FEMA has recently placed, or proposes to place, in the new Zone A category.

Military Construction and Veterans Affairs

• $2 million is being sought to upgrade and expand the air traffic control radar operations building on Fort Huachuca. The existing facility is more than 20 years old and was not designed to accommodate equipment expansion and additional personnel. The money will provide the resources necessary to construct a 4,446-square-foot addition to the existing air traffic control facility.

Transportation, Housing and Urban Development

• $366,000 for the renovation of the Grand Theatre in Douglas. The funding will support the Douglas Arts & Humanities Association to continue ongoing structural and functional work on the historic theater, focusing on building safety, security, structural integrity and weatherization.
• $160,000 to construct a senior citizen center. The center will serve up to 300 people at a time in this remote, culturally-unique community. It will help to keep seniors active and serve as a food pantry for those in need.

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education

• $300,000 to build an electronic health record system for the Benson Hospital. This funding will be used to deploy an electronic health record system at the health facility, which is a critical access hospital.
• $500,000 for the construction and renovation of health and mental health service areas of domestic violence shelters in Sierra Vista and Douglas operated by Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona. The funds being requested are for the construction and renovation of the health and mental health service areas of the Sierra Vista Forgach House and the Douglas House of Hope.
• $400,000 to continue supporting the Midwestern University Sierra Vista Postgraduate Nursing Program as part of the Sierra Vista Regional Health Center. The funding will be used to continue the development and implementation of the Postgraduate Nursing Educational Program at the rural Sierra Vista Regional Health Center.
• $500,000 to remodel and expand the emergency department at the Northern Cochise Community Hospital in Willcox. The funds also will be used to upgrade emergency equipment at the medical facility.
• $250,000 for a health clinic construction and renovation project at the Copper Queen Community Hospital in Bisbee. The funds will be used to acquire a modular building to house medical services for the Palominas/Hereford Rural Health Clinic.
• $125,000 for health clinic renovations at the Southeast Arizona Medical Center in Douglas. Funding will be used by the hospital to renovate a donated facility in Douglas to establish a new rural health clinic within the city limits.
• $400,000 for a rural pediatric center of excellence for the Chiricahua Community Health Centers. The funding will be used to support the establishment of a special center in Douglas.

Click here to read the article on the Sierra Vista Herald website