Fewer Earmarks in 2010 Spending Bill for Education

The appropriations bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives for education, health, and labor (HR 3293) for the 2010 fiscal year would spend 42 percent less on earmarks than the 2009 version did, according to an analysis by Citizens Against Government Waste. The bill contains 1,130 pork-barrel projects worth $357.4-million, the watchdog group says. Among the more “egregious” ones it singles out is a $12.6-million earmark sought by Rep. Edward J. Markey, Democrat of Massachusetts, for the University of Massachusetts Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the Senate.