Lincoln & Pryor Votes To Protect Millions in Taxpayer Funds for Little-Used Murtha Airport

NRSC: In a remarkable vote on the Senate floor this afternoon, U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) [and Mark Pryor (D-AR)] made clear that despite rising federal deficits and a record national debt, she still stands firmly on the side of more wasteful Washington spending.

Lincoln helped defeat an amendment, offered by U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), to the annual transportation appropriations bill that would end taxpayer subsidies for the John Murtha Airport, a little used 650-acre facility in Johnstown, Pennsylvania that has received at least $200 million in taxpayer funding. U.S. Congressman John Murtha (D-PA), who the airport was named after and who has been the subject of a number of ethics-related stories in recent months, has personally directed $150 million in federal funds to the facility even though it only has 3 flights daily to one destination: Washington, D.C.

The waste of taxpayer dollars at the Murtha airport has received a great deal of media scrutiny in recent months including from ABC News, CNN and the Wall Street Journal, which reported just last week, “The airport has an $8.5 million, taxpayer-funded radar system that has never been used. The runway was paved with reinforced concrete at a cost of more than $17 million . . . Airport Director Scott Voelker admitted in an interview that having a never-used unmanned radar system is ‘dumber than dirt.’”

The widespread media reports of waste at the Murtha airport make Lincoln’s vote in support of allowing millions in taxpayer funds to continue flowing to Murtha’s pet project all the more remarkable, the NRSC said today.

“This vote was a basic test of Blanche Lincoln’s commitment to fiscal discipline and she failed with flying colors,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokeswoman Amber Wilkerson. “At a time when too many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, unemployment is at a near-record high, and Congress is saddling taxpayers with a record level of debt, why does Blanche Lincoln believe this little-used airport should continue to receive millions of taxpayer dollars? Why did she vote to protect Congressman Murtha’s interests instead of the interests of the taxpayers in Arkansas she was elected to represent? We look forward to hearing Senator Lincoln’s explanation for this vote today.”

BACKGROUND ON THE JOHN MURTHA AIRPORT
Named the John Murtha Airport, 650-acre state-of-the-art facility in Johnstown, PA;

• Received $200 million in federal funds over 20 years, $150 million steered by Murtha himself, who uses the airport for campaign stops;
• Only 3 flights daily, to only one destination: Washington, D.C. (Dulles airport);
• Averages just 20 passengers daily;
• Received $800,000 in stimulus funds this year to repave a backup runway, even though the airport manager says there are no safety issues with the current runway;
• Has an $8.5 million radar system paid for by taxpayers, that remains unstaffed and unused;
• Airport passenger count has fallen by 50% in the past 10 years, yet federal funds continue to pour in;

BUDGET DEFICIT FACTS AND PROJECTIONS:
- “Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Estimates That the Federal Budget Deficit for 2009 Will Total $1.6 Trillion, Which, at 11.2 Percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Will Be the Highest Since World War II.” (“The Budget and Economic Outlook: An Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- “Deficit Has Been Boosted by Various Federal Policies Implemented in Response, Including the Stimulus Legislation & Aid for the Financial, Housing, & Automotive Sectors.” (“The Budget and Economic Outlook: An Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- “[C]BO’s Economic Forecast Anticipates a Relatively Slow & Tentative Recovery.” (“The Budget And Economic Outlook: An Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- Expansion of the Deficit in 2009 has “Largely Been The Result of the Severe Economic Downturn & the Fiscal Impact of Federal Policies Enacted in Response.” “The dramatic expansion of the deficit in 2009 (up from 3.2% of GDP in 2008) results from a projected rise in outlays of 24% (the largest percentage increase since 1952) and a drop in revenues of 17% from last year’s levels (the largest percentage drop since 1932). Those changes have largely been the result of the severe economic downturn and the fiscal impact of federal policies enacted in response.” (“The Budget and Economic Outlook: an Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- “Since March, Projected Deficits Over the 2010–2019 Period Have Risen By $2.7 Trillion.” (“The Budget and Economic Outlook: An Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- “Over the Long Term (Beyond The 10-Year Baseline Projection Period), The Budget Remains on an Unsustainable Path.” (“The Budget and Economic Outlook: An Update,” Congressional Budget Office, August 2009)
- White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) Projects 10-Year Deficit for 2010-2019 will be $9.05 Trillion. (Peter R. Orszag, “Mid-Session Review,” White House Office of Management and Budget Blog Post,(8/25/09)

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