Letters to the editor, June 14
Joshua Sewell • Washington, D.C. Policy Analyst, Taxpayers for Common Sense
It is disappointing to see U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., promoting earmarks while spreading misinformation on Missouri's levees ("Blunt concerned over levees," June 8).
Earmarks are not the solution; they are the problem when it comes to protecting communities from flooding. Earmarks are doled out by political power, not need. They stretch dwindling tax dollars to too many projects, siphoning funding from the most critical projects. When spending is based on political power, communities that can't afford high-powered lobbyists are left vulnerable while tax dollars are wasted on projects less critical to protecting lives and livelihoods. This helps explain why, despite spending billions on flood protection in recent decades, losses averaged $6.2 billion annually from 1995 to 2004 — more than double of what they were in the first half of the 20th century.
Besides, earmarks never had anything to do with levee maintenance. Taxpayers cover 65 percent of construction costs for federal levees, but maintenance is a local responsibility. With a $1.65 trillion deficit and $14 trillion debt, taxpayers cannot afford to expand the federal government even further into levee maintenance.
As a fifth-generation Missourian, I saw firsthand the devastating power of our riverways in 1993 and 1995. We cannot afford to let politicians use this year's potential flooding as an excuse to bring back earmarking. Instead, Congress must manage the needs of our river communities in a way that saves taxpayers from economic and physical devastation while also saving taxpayer dollars.
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