Hoyer Secures Major Federal Funding for Southern Maryland

Washington, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) and the U.S. House of Representatives today approved a federal appropriations bill that begins to reinvest in the American people's priorities and provides critical support for projects and programs that will benefit Southern Maryland.  The Omnibus Appropriations bill, which consolidates 11 of the 12 appropriations bills for fiscal year 2008, will fund 14 of the 15 Cabinet departments, several independent government agencies, and the District of Columbia government. The funding for Southern Maryland projects was included at the request of Rep. Hoyer. The Senate is expected to vote on the legislation this week.

"I am pleased to announce that investments in this bill will support a variety of projects and programs that will benefit Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's Counties," said Congressman Hoyer. "Included in the omnibus appropriations bill are funds that will help to protect law enforcement officials and improve the overall safety of Southern Maryland, support Southern Maryland military installations, address needs in the regional economy and upgrade road and transit infrastructures to assist in easing the overwhelming traffic congestion in our region.

Congressman Hoyer helped secure funding for the following programs that will benefit Southern Maryland. 

Agriculture

University of Maryland Alternative Uses for Tobacco Program- $300,000 for research to develop new non-smoking uses for tobacco and explore the many valuable uses of the plant for the purpose of maintaining an agricultural base in Southern Maryland and devising a model for other tobacco-producing areas. For over 350 years tobacco production has been the heart of agriculture in Southern Maryland. As tobacco production for use in cigarettes becomes increasingly less profitable, farmers will require new crop options if agriculture is to remain viable in Southern Maryland and other traditional tobacco-growing regions. Since 2002, Congress has provided $1.08 million for the program which has made significant progress in identifying potential health, nutrition, commercial and alternative energy uses for tobacco.

First Responders and Law Enforcement

Calvert County Mobile Command Unit - $752,000 to equip the Special Operations Team with a command station capability from any disaster location. Calvert County faces unique homeland security and public safety issues as it is home to the only nuclear power plant in Maryland and the largest liquid natural gas docking facility in the nation, and the Calvert County Sheriff's Office is the primary responding agency for both facilities. Although this office has a Special Operations Team specially trained in HAZMAT, it does not have a mobile command unit from which to operate once their resources are on-site.  In fact, despite its proximity to the Nation's Capital and its location on the coastline of the Chesapeake Bay, Calvert County has no mobile command unit for any disaster, whether man-made or natural. 

St. Mary's County Mobile Data Terminals - $738,840 to allow interpoerability and "real-time" access to records between law enforcement agencies. The funding will be used for the continued integration and completion of a Mobile Data Computer (MDC) project, which was partially funded through a COPS Technology grant in FY06.

Education and Community Development

St. Mary's County Math and Science Academy - $487,000 to establish a Mathematics, Science, and Technology Academy as a specialized program of study at all three County high schools. Through the program, students with advanced skills and interests in these areas of study will receive instruction in state-of-the-art classrooms, research laboratories, and e-learning labs. The school system has been working with the Patuxent Partnership - a consortium of members and associates from industry, government, and academia - to develop mentorships for students. The Academy will be affiliated with the National Consortium for Specialized Secondary Schools of Mathematics, Science, and Technology.

College of Southern Maryland Nurse Training Program - $97,000 to increase nursing and allied health care resources and to procure the technology needed at all three campuses for hands-on training. A lack of resources has been faulted for limited enrollment in nursing programs in Maryland where the nursing shortage is projected to climb to 10,000 within the decade, according to hospital leaders and nursing educators. This funding will provide resources to help the College of Southern Maryland meet future community and hospital workforce needs.

College of Southern Maryland, Partnership for the Advancement of Construction & Transportation Training - $292,000 to enhance and provide an array of courses and programs that meet the growing demand for construction and transportation workers in Southern Maryland. Southern Maryland is the fastest growing region in the state with a projected growth of 33 percent by 2015. The tremendous growth in the residential and commercial building industries has resulted in an urgent workforce need. The workforce shortage in both the construction and transportation industries is reaching a critical point for employers in Southern Maryland, who depend on the College of Southern Maryland to attract and train workers throughout the region.

Best Buddies Maryland - $292,000 to support middle and high school chapters in Maryland. Founded by Anthony Kennedy Shriver in 1989, Best Buddies is dedicated to fostering the social integration of children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Best Buddies achieves this goal by organizing – and rigorously overseeing – volunteer-run chapters on middle school, high school, and college campuses. There are nine Best Buddies chapters in Southern Maryland.

Brick Chapel Reconstruction in Historic St. Mary's City - $400,000 for reconstruction of the 1667 chapel in Historic St. Mary's City as a memorial to Maryland's pioneering experiment in religious freedom and the separation of church and state. This funding will be used to complete the final phase of the reconstruction.

Bel Alton Community Development Center - $400,000 to aid in restoring the former Bel Alton High School for use as a Community Development Center serving low-income populations in Charles County. When developed, the Center will house small businesses and community programs, including a day care center, Head Start Program, adult education, information technology training, youth mentoring, and a cafeteria. The project will give significant stimulus to an underserved target population in need of programs that promote jobs, self-help and self-sufficiency. The Community Development Center is expected to create 60 jobs, 51 of which will be for low-income individuals. These funds will be used to begin Phase II of reconstruction and renovation.  

Housing Partnership Network - $300,000 for a statewide initiative to develop rental and homeownership opportunities for low and moderate-income families throughout Maryland.

Military Construction

Advanced Energetics Research Lab at NSWC Indian Head - $9.45 Million
Innovations in energetics have provided America's military with new weapons - like the thermobaric ‘cave busting' bomb - to meet unforeseen military objectives, such as the assault on the al Qaeda caves in Afghanistan. The Advanced Energetics Research Lab facility is being funded specifically at the request of Rep. Hoyer who has long advocated a long-term investment at NSWC Indian Head to consolidate several facilities and provide modern laboratory workspace for the highly skilled personnel at the base. This project will significantly increase Indian Head's capabilities to support critical and emerging energetics requirements, including weapons for urban technology, WMD defeat weapons, high temperature and pressure weapons, and counter IED solutions.  Specifically, this lab will replace a 1940s-era wet-lab facility with an advanced laboratory, including vibration analysis, advanced computing and chemical and explosives storage units.  This lab will focus on novel and advanced concepts to address emerging threats, such as guided particle beams for improved lethality, breaching capabilities, and explosives neutralization.

Aircraft Prototype Facility Phase I at NAS Patuxent - $17.99 Million
The Aircraft Prototype Facility has been in the planning stages for Pax River for more than 10 years and is anticipated to add a significant capability that takes advantage of the existing investment in the Air Combat Environment Test & Evaluation Facility (ACETEF). The Aircraft Prototype Facility (APF) will provide a secure facility that will have the capacity to develop up to 14 classified projects annually.  Phase I will construct a secure hangar, machine shop, assembly area, and accredited work areas that will support up to five classified projects annually.  Stated Rep. Hoyer, "The Advanced Prototype Facility (APF) will augment our ACETEF and Anechoic Chamber capabilities, and we are excited to begin construction on this important National asset."

E-2 Advanced Hawkeye RDT&E Facility at NAS Patuxent - $13.65 Million
The Advanced Hawkeye RDT&E Facility is being built for the arrival of the new E-2D aircraft coming to Pax River for testing later this year. The funding provides for several years of testing and life cycle support for this critical program, one of the Navy's most important aviation initiatives.  Specifically, funding will result in the construction of a multi-story secure facility including engineering workspace, a secure aircraft data laboratory, and engineering analysis workstations.  Additionally this project will consolidate existing facilities by constructing a new Advance Hawkeye Test and Evaluation facility for E-2 and C-2 aircraft flight test operations, personnel, integration laboratories and equipment. 
 
Joint Precision Approach and Landing System (JPALS) at NAS Patuxent - $6.72 Million
This facility will house the Joint Precision Approach and Landing System (JPALS) program that will allow aircraft to land on any suitable land or sea-based surface worldwide, regardless of visibility and weather conditions. This next-generation approach and landing system will provide joint operational capability for U.S. forces to perform assigned conventional and special operations missions from fixed-base, tactical, shipboard, and other environments. 

Environmental Restoration and Conservation

St. Jerome Creek
St. Jerome Creek is located in St. Mary's County, Maryland, along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay between St. Jerome Neck and Fresh Pond Neck. The existing Federal navigation channel begins to shoal below the authorized depth two years after dredging and restricts the ability of local recreational boaters, watermen, charter boat operators, and others to exit and enter the waterways during periods of low tide.  The bill includes language directing the Corps to give priority to funding the construction of jetties to keep the channel clear and reduce the dredging need from a two year cycle to a ten year cycle. 

Morgan State University Estuarine Research Center- Oyster Hatchery Economic Pilot Program -$500,000 to develop a pilot program at Morgan State University's Estuarine Research Center in St. Leonard, Maryland to help find market based solutions to replenish the oyster population. This vital program is a key part of the Center's two-fold effort to maintain the viability of Maryland's watermen while restoring the once plentiful oyster population in the Bay. By developing a means to produce a revenue source on a more predictable schedule, this project will help stabilize a declining industry and provide the means to stabilize the social and cultural foundation of many waterfront communities, not to mention significantly improve the overall health of the Bay.

Chesapeake Bay Programs – More than $40 Million

Transportation

Suitland Parkway and MD Route 4 - $2.5 Million for the design and construction of MD 4 and Suitland Parkway Interchange, and for upgrades to Suitland Parkway. The Suitland Parkway Interchange project would expand a major corridor from Calvert County to Washington, D.C. and improve access to the military bases in Southern Maryland. Funds would be used to acquire right-of-way for the construction of a roundabout diamond interchange and associated ramps connecting MD 4 and Suitland Parkway.   Congressman Hoyer has secured $9.75 million for this important project since 2004.

Southern Maryland Commuter Bus Initiative - $1.3 Million to construct Park-and-Ride lots at commuter bus service stations in Southern Maryland. Commuter bus service has grown rapidly in Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's Counties over the past sixteen years. This ridership is expected to increase dramatically as the region continues to experience economic expansion and BRAC-related growth. These important funds will be used to help accommodate the growing need for Commuter Bus service between Southern Maryland and our Nation's Capital.  Since 2004 Congressman Hoyer has secured $11.5 million for the Southern Maryland Commuter Bus Initiative. 

MD 237 - Pegg Road to MD 235 - $1 Million to upgrade and widen MD 237 - Pegg Road to MD 235, to a multi-lane highway near Patuxent River Naval Air Station in St. Mary's County. The current two-lane roadway is very narrow with periods of congestion. Chancellor's Run Road must be expanded to accommodate the local residential and commercial growth.

U.S. 301 - $1 Million to help address the transportation needs along U.S. 301 in Prince George's and Charles Counties. This highway is a major commuter thoroughfare from Southern Maryland to Washington, DC.  Due to the economic growth in this region, U.S. 301 is often very congested and is in desperate need of upgrades. These critical funds will be used to help ease the delays along this vital transportation corridor.

MD 246 - MD 235 to Saratoga Drive - $500,000 for streetscape construction of MD 246 - Great Mills Road from MD 235 to Saratoga Drive. Great Mills Road serves as a main artery through the community of Lexington Park in Saint Mary's County. The project will resurface the roadway, provide continuous sidewalk, improve drainage problems, consolidate and/or relocate the utilities, add medians from Coral Drive to FDR Boulevard (about 1250 ft), and enhance the landscaping of the town center.

MD Route 5 Pedestrian Overpass and River Center at St. Mary's College - $500,000 for two separate but related projects: (1) the final round of funding for the Route 5 pedestrian overpass to improve the safety of students crossing Route 5 – a major thoroughfare - from one side of campus to the other; and (2) the construction of a river boardwalk along the St. Mary's River and storm water runoff systems as part of the St. Mary's College River Center.

Disaster Preparedness

Calvert County Dam retrofit-- $187,500 to increase the holding capacity in the event of a major storm event.  The pipe intake and spillway were both constructed of corrugated metal material that has a design life of about 25 years.  The retrofit construction would replace the metal riser structure with concrete thereby extending its design life.
 
Generators for Emergency Shelters in Charles County, Maryland-- $106,500 to purchase three generators for emergency shelters in Port Tobacco, Nanjemoy and La Plata.  Each of these facilities provides temporary emergency housing for residents while supplying heat, water, meals and other basic necessities.  These much needed generators will enable the facilities to fulfill their roles as an emergency shelters.

Retrofitting Leonardtown High School in St. Mary's County-- $184,619 to enable the facility to serve as effective emergency shelter.  St. Mary's County eventually intends to retrofit all three high schools, but plans to begin the projects with Leonardtown High School due to its central location and proximity to those areas usually evacuated during hurricanes and tropical storms.  Retrofitting the high school with hurricane shutters and further augmenting the school with generators to power heat/AC, hot water, lighting, showers and kitchens will enable it to serve the community as an emergency shelter. 

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