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More money on way to Texas

 

by Mary Scott Nabers

CEO of Strategic Partnerships, Inc.

. . . continued from page one

Many transportation projects will receive funding. Some of the transportation dollars to be spent in Texas include:

  • $1.42 million to the City of Houston for advanced transit program solutions and bus expansion. This money is intended to provide funding for expansion of the Park & Ride system and to purchase replacement buses for the METRO fleet;
  • $750,000 to Fort Worth's Alliance Airport runway extension program which could bring even more international cargo traffic to the facility;
  • $2 million to Austin's Capital Metro for bus and bus facilities;
  • $500,000 for Alpine's airport runway and terminal improvements;
  • $400,000 for a multi-modal transit terminal and parking facility in Bryan, and
  • $200,000 to the city of Abilene for paratransit buses.

Entities that provide health care or health research will also benefit from earmarked funding. Some of the funded projects include:

  • $4 million for the Alliance for Nanohealth at Rice University;
  • $250,000 for facilities and equipment for the Children's Medical Center of Dallas; and
  • $100,000 to the Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston for facilities and equipment.

Higher education gets a share of earmarked funds for research projects, building construction and technology. Some examples include:

  • $200,000 to the Alamo Community College in San Antonio to develop an associates degree program for air traffic controllers, which may include equipment and technology;
  • $480,000 to Texas Tech University to be spent on facilities and equipment;
  • $650,000 to Texas Wesleyan University for costs related to facilities and equipment;
  • $400,000 to Laredo Community College for its Terrorist Interdiction Law Enforcement Training Center; and
  • $1 million to Sam Houston State University for its Regional Crime Laboratory.

Local governments will get funding for park projects, community building construction and infrastructure projects. Examples of funding include:

  • $500,000 for facility renovation at Cassell-Boykin County Park in Angelina County;
  • $300,000 to the City of Alpine for construction of a public library;
  • $200,000 for renovation and expansion of the City of Bastrop's visitor center;
  • $400,000 to the City of Beaumont for a sewer line rehabilitation project;
  • $150,000 for communication technology upgrades for the City of Cleburne;
  • $2.5 million to the cities of Brownsville and El Paso for water and wastewater infrastructure;
  • $1 million to the City of Joshua for purchase of land and construction and equipment for local parks; and
  • $300,000 for construction of a new shelter in Hondo for women who are victims of physical abuse.

There is a continuing emphasis on homeland security and many of the funds earmarked for Texas are related to security and communications interoperability. Here are some examples:

  • $1.1 million to the City of San Antonio for police technology improvements;
  • $1 million for a public safety training facility in the City of Denton;
  • $250,000 for Victoria County for emergency communications equipment;
  • $700,000 for first responder equipment, technology and interoperability upgrades for the City of Belton; and
  • $3.5 million to the City of El Paso for an airplane hangar and offices for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Private sector firms interested in government contracting opportunities should check on these opportunities throughout Texas.

For a complete listing of the congressional earmarks, click here.