Richard G. Lugar, United States Senator for Indiana - Federal Spending in Indiana
Richard G. Lugar, United States Senator for Indiana
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Federal Spending in Indiana

Introduction
The State of Indiana received $43,766,000,000 in federal funding for the last year tallied (2006).

By contrast, Senator Lugar requested and received earmarks for Indiana in 2008 totaling $87,487,250, two-tenths of one percent of the federal expenditures in the state. This represented approximately 12 percent of the projects Senator Lugar forwarded to the Appropriations Committee from Indiana requestors.

Congressionally requested funding is the least likely and most difficult method for obtaining funding for a project. Funding from local revenue, state and federal grants, and existing government funding programs represent the bulk of funding for projects.

The Congressional Research Service also offers three reports on the general appropriations/budget process:

Indiana’s federal funds
Federal expenditures in 2006 to Indiana were $43,766,000,000 (according to the Consolidated Federal Funds Report for Fiscal Year 2006 by the U.S. Census Bureau). Of this, $15.6 billion were Social Security and other retirement and disability payments. Medicare payments totaled $6.8 billion.  There was another $5.2 billion in direct payments to people including: $960 million in farm payments (10 times larger than earmarks), $726 million in excess earned income tax credits, $668 million in unemployment compensation and $648 million in food stamp payments.

Nearly $5 billion of the $8 billion in grants to Indiana are for family Health and Human Services assistance. Other large grant programs include: $1.4 billion in transportation and highway funding, $632 million in education funding, $322 million in Housing and Urban Development grants, and $400 million in Department of Agriculture grants.

A pie chart depicting the federal spending in Indiana

Indiana’s economy has been traditionally less dependent on federal government expenditures than the nation as a whole. In 2006, Indiana was 2.1 percent of the nation’s population and received 1.8 percent of federal government expenditures, and only 1.1 percent of federal wages and salaries. Of the $2.6 billion in federal wages and salaries in the state, the majority go to the Postal Service ($1.1 billion) and the military ($803 million). 

Indiana’s percentage of retirement, disability and other direct payments to people match its percentage of the nation’s population. The state receives 1.6 percent of the nation’s grants. States with larger welfare and urban infrastructure payments tend to have grant percentage payments larger than their population percentage.

Indiana receives 1.3 percent of federal procurement dollars. On a per capita basis, the state has significantly more procurement than Michigan, Illinois or Ohio, and less than Kentucky. The correlations of procurement to population are: Michigan 0.42, Illinois 0.40, Ohio 0.58, Indiana 0.62 and Kentucky 1.29.

Indiana does better than its neighbors on military procurement. Of Indiana’s $5.4 billion in federal procurement expenditures, $4.6 billion are from the military. That is higher than each neighboring state except Ohio, which had $6 billion in military contracts.

The Fiscal Reform Working Group
In early 2008, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell asked Lugar to chair a working group of five Republican Senators with the range of views on earmarks. On March 11, they provided the Majority Leader with a consensus report.The Adobe Reader logo

The report stated that Republicans recognize and respect the Constitutional responsibility of each Member of Congress to make decisions on the appropriation of federal taxpayer funds. It concluded that an open and accountable amendment process and absolute transparency on every Member request successfully inserted into legislation is essential to the integrity of federal spending. All earmarks should be written in a clear and transparent manner.

The report recommended that successful amendments striking earmarks result in savings being applied to the national debt.

It recommended that all earmarks in appropriations, authorization and tax bills be placed in the bill text. Information about earmarks successfully inserted into a bill should be placed on the requesting member’s website. This disclosure should include a requesting letter with name and address of the intended earmark recipient, justification for the request, information regarding possible conflict of pecuniary interest, The Adobe Reader logo and whether the earmark is open to competition.

Finally, the report requested that the executive branch have greater transparency in the budget formulation for their earmarks and that agency prioritization be transparent.  

The Lugar Process
Senate and Congressional offices help guide officials from Indiana entities, cities, towns, and counties through federal funding options and seek to identify the appropriate programs that can provide funding for the project.

Though the Senate Republican Caucus has not yet formally adopted the recommendations of the Fiscal Reform Working group, Senator Lugar is following the guidelines regarding his requests.

As part of the process to be evaluated for consideration, Senator Lugar requires several pieces of information. First, a formal letter of request is written to Senator Lugar and signed by the highest ranking official of that particular entity (mayor, county commissioner, college president, etc).

After the letter is received, the entity is contacted by Senator Lugar’s staff and is emailed an internal form to be completed and returned. This form helps in the evaluation process and provides an opportunity to illustrate a fuller picture of the project. After receiving these documents, Senator Lugar and staff have meetings with requesting entities.

Staff often make onsite visits, arrange conference calls and communicate further with Hoosiers throughout the request process. Senator Lugar also welcomes letters of support from interested parties in the community. While a specific number of letters is not required, it provides an opportunity for citizens to express their views on the project.

Senator Lugar requests a comprehensive project description, a detailed itemization of how money would be spent, the purpose of the project, other sources or contributions of funding, and the impetus for the project. In addition to Senator Lugar’s form, each Appropriations Subcommittee has different forms to be completed and it is the responsibility of the entity to complete these to the best of its ability. Other supporting information is often included, such as maps, photos and other supporting materials.

Project requests are then forwarded to the appropriations committee for consideration.

Approved requests
Following is information on items requested by Senator Lugar that have been included in appropriations bills. Each item must still survive compromise consideration with the House equivalent legislation, and the legislation must be signed into law by the President.

Commerce, Justice & Science (CJS) Appropriations
Passed Senate Appropriations Subcommittee June 18, 2008
Passed Senate Appropriations Committee June 19, 2008

The Johnson County Commissioners, on behalf of the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, received $850,000* to acquire Public Safety Communications System Equipment. Funding will be used to install an additional radio tower for the county’s public safety communications system and for equipment necessary to upgrade the public communications system to allow for simultaneous communications among public safety officials. The system allows police, fire or EMS to communicate more freely and safely during emergency situations. Johnson County estimates the cost to construct a fourth radio tower and acquisition of radio frequency equipment to be $900,000. The County has already constructed three radio towers without federal assistance and further improvements cannot be completed without federal assistance, leaving a portion of the county without interoperability service. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the Johnson County Sherriff’s Office and for this project.

The Wells County Sherriff Department received $200,000* in conjunction with the City of Bluffton Police Department, the City of Bluffton 911 Center, and the Town of Ossian Police for Emergency Interoperability Communications Equipment. Funding will be used to acquire interoperable technology to share among the four entities. Multiple law enforcement agencies within Wells County would benefit from records management software, computer aided dispatch software, mobile data terminals, and jail booking software that allows for real time information sharing. The various agencies have come together to reduce cost and make the program most efficient for all users. Wells County estimates the cost to acquire the software and hardware to be $1,001,236. The County, in conjunction with the Town of Ossian and the City of Bluffton, have combined resources and will pay for the operation and maintenance of the system after seeking federal assistance to acquire the system. A system of this magnitude would exceed the ability of their budgets. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for these entities for use on this project.

The City of Shelbyville received $900,000* for a Public Safety Interoperability Communication System. The city is requesting funding to assist with the purchase of 800MHz radios and construction of radio towers to create an interoperable network that allows public service departments to communicate more freely and safely during emergency situations. To construct and acquire a system of this size exceeds the ability of their budget. The City and County are combining resources to significantly reduce the implementation costs. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the City of Shelbyville’s Public Safety Interoperability Communication System and for this project.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, in conjunction with the City of Indianapolis received $150,000* to acquire Public Safety Equipment Enhancements for police officers and inside patrol cars.  This technology will allow officers to send and receive a wide-range of data while they remain in their patrol areas. Officers must currently return to centralized locations to enter a report, therefore removing officers in patrol cars from the community. Acquisition of additional equipment is an expense that would exceed the annual operating budget. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and for this project.

The City of Beech Grove received $100,000* to acquire Public Safety Communications Equipment.  To enhance public safety, the city seeks to provide its public safety personnel with an integrated wireless system. Specifically, the city plans to install 25 cameras in police cars and at various locations throughout the city, and to equip 22 police cars with laptop computers. Acquisition of this equipment exceeds the annual operating budget for the city. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the City of Beech Grove and for this project.

*These congressionally directed funding requests have been included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations bill by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several steps remain in the determination of the level of funding or if funding will be maintained in the final bill. These funding requests must pass the scrutiny of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate, the House – Senate Conference, final passage by both bodies of Congress, and signed into law by the President. At any of these steps, funding may be deleted or decreased.

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Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (LHHS) Appropriations
Passed Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on June 24, 2008
Passed Senate Appropriations Committee on June 26, 2008

The Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis received $200,000* to continue to provide programming and support to the Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) in the City of Indianapolis. NORC is a demographic term to describe neighborhoods or buildings in which a large segment of the residents are 65 years of age and older and have "aged in place" over time. The funding provides health and supportive services delivery model to help the elderly maintain their independence, dignity and quality of life. These types of projects have been authorized by the Administration on Aging Reauthorization Act as methods to provide an alternative system of long-term care for retirees to "age in place" in the hope that these alternatives will provide an improved quality of life and a decreased cost burden on the Medicare system. The Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis seeks grant funding and solicits private contributions to continue operation of the existing NORC. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the Jewish Federation of Great Indianapolis and for this project.

St. Mary’s College received $200,000* to expand the College Academy of Tutoring (CAT) Program. This program provides tutoring and mentoring to disadvantaged students in Title I K-8 elementary schools in the South Bend area. The CAT Program finds innovative ways to deliver assistance to students at the Title I elementary schools in South Bend, where more than half of all enrolled students are eligible to participate in free or reduced-price lunch programs. Through the CAT Program, the College coordinates a variety of tutoring-related outreach services. Saint Mary’s College students volunteer as tutors for at-risk students. CAT Program volunteers also help with the Read-to-a-Child program where volunteers spend a set amount of time each week reading to/with a specific child during normal school hours. Other CAT Program volunteers work with Spanish-speaking children in English Language Learner (ELL) classrooms, or serve as aides for children with developmental disabilities. Finally, the CAT Program coordinates donation drives to help meet the material needs of the children being served. The College is leveraging a variety of resources to expand and continue this program that started in 2006. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required, and this funding is exclusively for the Saint Mary’s College Academy of Tutoring Program and for this project.

*These congressionally directed funding requests have been included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Senate Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations bill by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several steps remain in the determination of the level of funding or if funding will be maintained in the final bill. These funding requests must pass the scrutiny of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate, the House – Senate Conference, final passage by both bodies of Congress, and signed into law by the President. At any of these steps, funding may be deleted or decreased.

Senator Lugar joined with other Senators to support funding for these national, non-profit programs that differ slightly from other congressionally directed spending requests or projects:

  • $24 million for Reading is Fundamental for literacy programs. This program gives paperback books to children in poverty.
  • $3.9 million for Reach Out and Read. Reach Out and Read (ROR) is a national non-profit organization that promotes early literacy by giving new books to children and advice to parents about the importance of reading aloud in pediatric exam rooms across the nation.
  • $3 million for the Excellence in Economic Education Program, as reauthorized in the No Child Left Behind Act. This program promotes economic and financial literacy among all students in kindergarten through grade 12. Of the $1,473,000 appropriated nationally, $11,625 went to Indiana in Fiscal Year 2007.
  • $23.5 million for the National Writing Project. The National Writing Project (NWP) is a professional development network that serves teachers of writing at all grade levels, primary through university, and in all subjects. The mission of the NWP is to improve student achievement by improving the teaching of writing and improving learning in the nation’s schools.
  • $24.5 million for the We the People Programs and Cooperative Education Exchange Programs, as authorized in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
  • $4.4 million for the National Council on Economic Education for the Cooperative Education Exchange Program, as authorized in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

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Transportation and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations
Passed Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on July 9, 2008
Passed Senate Appropriations Committee on July 10, 2008

The Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana received $300,000*  to complete the renovation of the Second Harvest Food Bank in Muncie, Indiana. Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana provides food to charities serving low-income people. 109 organizations with pantries and meal programs in the eight-county service area provide food assistance to 63,900 needy people each year, 35% of which are children. 49,000 people in this region live in poverty and another 72,000 live between poverty and 185% of poverty. The Second Harvest Food Bank is leveraging a variety of resources to expand and continue this renovation of a repurposed building after their previous location had a wall collapse. This funding is exclusively for the Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana and for this project. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required.

The Flagship Enterprise Center in Anderson received $500,000* for technology and building infrastructure improvements. Federal funds will be used for technology and building infrastructure improvements, enhancements and laboratory development for the Flagship Enterprise Center campus of buildings which include the following: 1) 40,000 square foot Incubator; 2) 8,000 square foot Professional Development Educational Center; 3) 70,000 square foot Accelerator; and 4) 20,000 square foot Anderson Business Incubator.  Specifically, such funding will establish a state-of-the-art laboratory for plug-in hybrid electric vehicle technology and acquisition of high-tech dynameters and electronic device equipment infrastructure. A non-federal cost sharing match is not required. This funding is exclusively for the Flagship Enterprise Center and for this specific purpose.

Ball State University, in conjunction with the City of Muncie, received $1 million* for safety improvements to McKinley and Riverside Avenues. The project seeks to continue to improve pedestrian and vehicular safety and reduce traffic congestion on streets that cross through the heart of Ball State University.  These streets are used heavily by the community at large as they travel to and from destinations within the City of Muncie. The existing configuration of the street lacks design features that organize and control the daily flood of pedestrian, bicycle, bus, automobile, commercial, and service-related traffic. The resulting intermodal mix has resulted in increased congestion and complex safety issues. The project area for the third phase is generally Riverside Avenue (from Meadow Lane on the west to Dicks Street on the east) and McKinley Avenue (from Riverside Avenue on the north to University Avenue on the south). A non-federal cost sharing match of 20 percent is required. This funding is exclusively for Ball State University and the City of Muncie and for this specific purpose.

Greater Lafayette Public Transportation Corporation (Lafayette Citybus) received $2.1 million* to acquire five new hybrid buses.  This funding will allow Lafayette Citybus to retire buses that are 125% or more past the Federal Transit Administration advised replacement age.  Getting the older, less reliable buses with older diesel technology off the road would be a major boost to the area’s attempt to keep the air quality within limits established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  Along with the improved fuel efficiency, the hybrids emit fewer green house gases than the best stand alone diesel technology.  With the cost of diesel up 50% in one year, the added cost is limiting the amount of service Lafayette Citybus can provide to the public. A non-federal cost sharing match of 20 percent is required. This funding is exclusively for Greater Lafayette Public Transportation Corporation and for this specific purpose.

Boone County Commissioners received $500,000* for construction of the 146th Street corridor from CR500 to CR650 to Interstate 65. As part of an overall highway plan centered on the I-65/SR267 interchange in Boone County, the County is pursuing the extension of the 146th Street Corridor from the Hamilton County line to I-65. This road borders an industrial park, where there are already several significant economic development projects that are currently in development, including an Amazon.com distribution warehouse and Medco mail order pharmacy.   As part of a fast growing area of the state, Boone is implementing a highway plan to ease congestion, improve safety, and increased mobility. A non-federal cost sharing match of 20 percent is required. This funding is exclusively for Boone County and for this specific purpose.

The City of Fort Wayne received $500,000* for the reconstruction of the Clinton Street (Route 27) Bridge.  Funds will be used toward the construction of an arched, truss-style bridge that can comfortably handle the increased traffic volume requirements and will eliminate the current impending structures in St. Mary’s riverbed, improving river flow and eliminating debris traps. As the main gateway from the north, Clinton Street (Route 27) is a major one way southbound street as it enters downtown Fort Wayne.  The City seeks to improve major corridors, like Clinton Street, to manage traffic flow and for safety.  A non-federal cost sharing match of 20 percent is required. This funding is exclusively for the City of Fort Wayne and for this specific purpose.

YMCA of Randolph County in Winchester, Indiana, received $500,000* for the construction of a new licensed child care facility.  This new facility will provide quality care for 93 children by using an accredited preschool curriculum which meets State of Indiana licensing standards.  The YMCA seeks to meet the need of expanded licensed child care opportunities. Currently only 25% of 4,164 children, ages birth to five, have access to licensed care in Randolph County. The existing YMCA Child Care program has a continuous waiting list because the current facility is too small to meet the ever increasing demand for quality child care. The current YMCA Child Care program also participates in the State child care voucher program for low income families.  Thirty-two percent of the families served by the YMCA’s existing child care program are in the low income bracket (income at or below 185% of the poverty level).  A non-federal cost share is not required. This funding is exclusively for the YMCA of Randolph County and for this purpose.

*These congressionally directed funding requests have been included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Senate Transportation and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several steps remain in the determination of the level of funding or if funding will be maintained in the final bill. These funding requests must pass the scrutiny of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate, the House – Senate Conference, final passage by both bodies of Congress, and signed into law by the President. At any of these steps, funding may be deleted or decreased.

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Agriculture Appropriations
Passed Senate Appropriations Committee on July 17, 2008

Purdue University received $200,000* for for the Midwest Center for Bioenergy Grasses through U.S.Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CREES) Program. The Midwest Center for Bioenergy Grasses will apply genetics, genomics and systems biology, augmented by cellular and biochemical technologies, to provide a national research and education for the improvement of crops used in biofuels production.  The Center’s research could lead to suitable feedstocks that do not impact food production and can be produced using agriculturally sustainable and cost-effective methods. A non-federal cost share is not required. This funding is exclusively for Purdue University and for this specific project.

Purdue University received $200,000* for the Integrated Economic, Environmental, and Technical Analysis of Sustainable Renewable Energy Systems Project to determine the most environmentally sustainable and economically profitable strategy of providing renewable energy from biomass.  This research aims to determine how Indiana and the Midwest can contribute to the national goal of generating 25 percent of our energy from renewable sources by 2025 and to examine how biomass production and conversion would affect the economy and environment. In particular, this research will study the economic and environmental consequences of feasible alternative energy sources and determine the most sustainable and profitable strategy to provide renewable energy from biomass.  A non-federal cost share is not required. This funding is exclusively for Purdue University and for this specific project.

*These congressionally directed funding requests have been included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Senate Agriculture Appropriations bill by the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several steps remain in the determination of the level of funding or if funding will be maintained in the final bill. These funding requests must pass the scrutiny of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, the Senate, the House – Senate Conference, final passage by both bodies of Congress, and signed into law by the President. At any of these steps, funding may be deleted or decreased.