With the return of earmarks, also known as pork barrel spending, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan is asking for money for projects for various Mahoning Valley organizations, including Mercy Health-Youngstown, Mahoning County High School, Gleaners Food Bank as well as road improvement work and bike trails.

House Democrats announced they would bring back earmarks that were banned in 2011 when Republicans took control of the House. Before the ban, opponents said earmarks were abused and had little oversight.

House Democrats changed the rules with the return of earmarks. Members had to make the projects public along with an explanation for each proposal, and the number of requests is restricted.

There are two types of earmarks: one for community projects and the other for what is called surface transportation projects.

House Republican rules include a prohibition on earmarks, but it didn’t stop several members — including U.S. Reps. Dave Joyce and Bill Johnson, who represent portions of the Mahoning Valley — from making requests.

The House Appropriations Committee — of which Ryan, D-Howland, and Joyce, R-Bainbridge, are members — will decide on funding for the community projects while the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will decide funding on those projects.

One percent of the $1.4 trillion in annual discretionary funding approved by the House will go toward community project earmarks. The money for the transportation projects will come from the federal Highway Trust Fund.

“These projects will revitalize our communities and help northeast Ohio not only survive, but thrive,” Ryan said. “They will create jobs, increase quality of life and give our kids a reason to live, work and raise their families right here at home.”

COMMUNITY REQUESTS

Six of Ryan’s 10 proposals are in Mahoning County with none directly in Trumbull County though some of the Mahoning projects would benefit Trumbull.

The other proposals from Ryan are in Summit and Portage counties, which along with a small section of Stark, make up his district.

Ryan’s Mahoning County requests are:

$2 million for the Youngstown Community Food Center, also known as Gleaners Food Bank, at 94 Pyatt St. in Youngstown. The money would be used to increase the size of its existing 15,000-square-foot location by demolishing a condemned structure across the street, and building a new facility to expand its distribution service and create a hub for weekly produce markets, as well as renovate the existing building.

$1.5 million for the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown for its community backyard project. The plan is to renovate and upgrade more than 200,000 square feet of property owned by the organization, located at 2105 Oak Hill Ave. in Youngstown. The project includes sports fields and a walking field that will benefit the city’s South Side.

$1 million to Mercy Health-Youngstown to renovate the former Veterans Affairs clinic at 2031 Belmont Ave. in Youngstown, a short distance from the Trumbull County line, to establish programs for pregnant women to get prenatal assistance and to help those with medicinal addiction programs.

$850,000 for Mahoning High School, a drop-out recovery and prevention school at 940 Bryn Mawr Ave. in Youngstown, to establish a community learning center that will include on-site medical services, child care, counseling and other resources.$549,600 for improvements to Lowellville’s wastewater treatment plant.

$312,744 for the Youngstown Business Incubator, 241 W. Federal St., to launch and help coordinate a training and entrepreneurial support program for Mahoning Valley manufacturers in cooperation with BRITE Energy Innovators in Warren.

Johnson, R-Marietta, requested funding for seven projects, including the Columbiana County Port Authority in Lisbon.

Johnson’s sprawling 18-county district includes all of Columbiana County and southern Mahoning County. There were no requests for funding for Mahoning County by Johnson.

The port authority proposal seeks $2,732,930 to complete an industrial park, including land acquisition, site work, utilities, engineering and building streets. The park could create about 300 to 500 jobs, according to Johnson’s request.

His largest request, by far, is $7.5 million for the second phase of a sanitary sewer project in his home county of Washington.

Joyce’s seven-county district includes communities in northern and central Trumbull. Trumbull makes up the smallest part of his district, and none of the requests from him are for projects in that county.

Joyce’s largest request was $5.84 million for an expansion of the Willoughby-Eastlake Water Pollution Control Center to have more capacity for raw sewage overflows.

He also requested $4.5 million for an infrastructure project to the Chagrin Falls wastewater plant to eliminate sanitary sewer overflows. That plant serves Chagrin Falls as well as portions of other communities, including Bainbridge, his hometown.

TRANSPORTATION REQUESTS

Of the 12 transportation requests made by Ryan, three are in Mahoning County, two are in Trumbull County, four are in Summit County, one in Portage County, one in Cuyahoga County (outside his district) and one is for northeast Ohio. The Cuyahoga request was for a $1 million road improvement in Shaker Heights, which currently doesn’t have a representative in the House.

The Mahoning requests are:

$4 million for a Mahoning Avenue industrial corridor upgrade to Mahoning Avenue, Bailey Road and Rosemont Road.

$3.75 million for the Western Reserve Transit Authority, 604 Mahoning Ave. in Youngstown, for administration and maintenance facility work.

$756,200 for the Stavich Bike Trail in Lowellville.

The Trumbull requests are:

$6.2 million to Trumbull MetroParks for a bike trail through Niles, Warren, Warren Township, Braceville, Newton Township, Newton Falls, Weathersfield, Champion, Bristol and Bloomfield.

$4 million to the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments to overhaul the intersection of state Route 46 and Warren Sharon Road in Howland, where he resides.

He also is seeking $2 million for electric vehicle charging stations throughout Northeast Ohio.

Joyce made four funding requests for transportation projects. Like the community projects, none were in Trumbull County.

Johnson didn’t make any direct funding requests to the committee for transportation funding.

dskolnick@vindy.com

dskolnick@tribtoday.com