A look at local Congressionally Directed Spending requests from Sen. Capito

Dec. 3—MORGANTOWN — The federal 2024 fiscal year began Oct. 1 and announcements of Congressionally Directed Spending grants — what used to be termed earmarks — will eventually be rolling out from Sens. Shelley Moore Capito and Joe Manchin. The requests come from the various local governments, agencies and institutions.

In a couple stories we'll give comprehensive lists of requests for Monongalia, Preston and Marion counties. Some of them will have been mentioned in previous stories during this year, but here will be the full lists. We start today with Capito.

The Senate Appropriations Committee says, "Congressionally Directed Spending items can promote economic development, education, health care initiatives, and other worthy investments in communities across the country." Grants are arranged into 12 categories reflecting the Appropriations subcommittees that review and approve — or disapprove — them for inclusion in spending bills.

Senators must certify that neither they nor their immediate family members have any financial interest in the requests.

No FY24 grant money has gone out yet. Awards await passage of FY24 spending bills. Not every request will be granted, as requests always exceed available funds. Awards are still going out for FY22 and FY23 requests.

You will notice some overlap in the lists — identical projects with identical funding or similar or identical projects with different funding numbers. This is not uncommon as there will be discrepancies between requests submitted to the two senators that they in turn submit to the Appropriations Committee.

Energy and Water Development Pittsburgh District Army Corps of Engineers, Increase efficiency of waterborne cargos traveling northbound from West Virginia and Southbound from Ohio River Valley states, $41 million ; Pittsburgh District Army Corps of Engineers, design and purchase wheel to remove trash at the Morgantown Lock and Dam, $750, 000 ; WVU, research on carbon footprint management in animal agriculture, $1.5 million ; WVU, research and analyze energy sources and location feasibility for energy resiliency and carbon management, $300, 000.

Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA Arnettsville Community Association, replace rubber roof on Arnettsville Community Center, $150, 000 ; Reedsville, restore and make ADA compliant the historic town hall, $234, 000.

Financial Services and General Government WVU, to further develop the National Endowment for the Humanities-funded American Congress Digital Archives Portal project, $1.5 million.

Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Marion County: Greater Paw Paw Sanitary District, to upgrade pump stations that are at the end of their useful life, $4.88 million ; Valley Falls PSD, replace water lines and other system upgrades, $4 million ; Ice's Run Route 250 PSD, rehabilitate sections of the existing water distribution system that are undersized and dilapidated, $4 million.

Monongalia County: Morgantown Utility Board, increase capacity of the Cheat Lake wastewater treatment plant and the Whites Run Pump Station, $14 million ; Westover, correct failing sanitary sewer collection and stormwater sewer systems, $3.875 million ; WV Botanic Garden, improve the Jones Run watershed and create enhancements for environmental health, $528, 000.

Preston County: Preston PSD 1, improve water treatment plant and booster pump stations, $400, 000 ; Preston PSD, install a new metals removal system and other upgrades to bring the plant into compliance with the state discharge permit, $4.32 million ; Kingwood, remove 13 grinder pumps from the system and provide new sewer service to 138 households, $7, 283 million ; Preston PSD 4, expand water treatment plant capacity, $13.526 million.

Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Marion County: Marion Sheriff, implement new technology, $980, 000 ; Fairmont State, campus safety upgrades, $1.701 million.

Monongalia County: WVU, establish robotic education labs, $1 million ; WVU, procure hardware for a high-performance computational cluster for research and education, $1.5 million ; WVU, equipment to develop a new diagnostic technique, $465, 000 ; WVU, research equipment, $1.14 million ; purchase a liquid chromatograph mass spectrometer, $233, 000 ; WVU, procure and integrate advanced drone-based remote mapping technology, $350, 000 ; WVU, security cameras and integrated online locks, $439, 000 ; Morgantown, safety equipment, $1 million.

Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Marion County: Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association, highlight coal mining heritage, $62, 000 ; Fairmont State, renovate the library to centralize academic services, $2.13 million.

Monongalia County: WVU, refurbish four PRT stations and improve guideway, $6.4 million ; WVU, support natural surface trail master plan, $1 million ; WV Land Trust, restore and develop Airport Park, $304, 000 ; Westover, install new track at Vance River Terminal, $2.851 million ; Morgantown, extend 18-36 runway, $7 million ; Mon River Trails Conservancy, upgrades to Star City's Caperton Trail, $22.000 ; Morgantown, theater upgrades, $250, 000 ; Morgantown, create low-to-moderate housing and blight removal, $2 million ; Stepping Stones, infrastructure to support children and adults with disabilities, $500, 000.

Preston County: Arthurdale Heritage, stabilize the historic Arthurdale High School, $1.73 million.

Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Preston County, WV National Guard, support the Army Combat Fitness Test standards for annual throughput of more than 100, 000 through Camp Dawson, $1.55 million.

Homeland Security Preston County, West Virginia Emergency Management Division, repair approximately 2, 500 linear feet of storm sewer to protect the residents and businesses, $1.6 million.

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Monongalia and other counties, Charleston Area Medical Center, provide an integrated clinical communication strategy through a healthcare communication tool, $4.5 million ; CAMC, equipment upgrades, $2.6 million ; CAMC, access to minimally invasive surgical technology, $15 million.

Marion County: Game Changers, address the statewide overdose crisis, $50, 000 ; Disability Action Center, expand the Wilfong Wellness Center, $700, 000 ; Fairmont State, support the Nursing Simulation Center and upgrade Skills Lab, $3.059 million.

Monongalia County: WVU Research Corp., purchase equipment and technology to establish an Advanced Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Unit, $791, 000 ; WVU Research Corp., procure equipment and software to support the Engineering Technology degree program, $1.1 million ; WVU Research Corp., purchase mobile clinical trials unit to facilitate clinical trial access, $153, 000 ; WVU Research Corp., expand the WVU Inhalation Facility, $1.5 million ; WVU Research Corp., provide training to increase addiction knowledge and reduce stigma, $370, 000 ; WVU Research Copr., expand and renovate School of Dentistry, $12.6 million.

Monongalia County: WVU Hospitals, establish a Center for Neuromodulation and Brain Therapeutics, $11.933 million ; WVU Hospitals, build out additional inpatient shelled areas, $6.428 million ; Morgantown Community Resources, construct an addition to Hazel's House of Hope Day Services Center, $500, 000 ; WV Women Work, provide skilled trades training, job placement, and mentorship services, $572, 000 ; Hope Hill Sobering Center, enhance public health and safety by providing recovery services, $300, 000 ; Libera, provide job training, employment and support services, $520, 000 ; Libera, space for clients seeking treatment for substance use disorder, $500, 000 ; Libera, provide critical mental health resources for adolescent girls, $464, 000 ; Morgantown, convert current office space into a city employee and family onsite medical clinic, $300, 000 ; Lauren's Wish Addiction Triage Center, provide space for clients seeking treatment for substance use disorder, $838, 000 ; Monongalia County General Hospital Co., construct a hybrid operating room, $2.564 million ; Aspire Services Center, support veterans with substance use disorder, $206, 000.

Preston County: Jacobs Ladder Assistance Fund, provide education and training to individuals in substance use treatment, $127, 000.