Ehrlich on Washington column, June 25, 1995

MEWS FROM Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. Second Congressional District of Maryland 1407 York Road, Suite 304 Lutherville, Maryland 21093 315 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 205 1 5 EHRLICH ON WASHINGTON Week of June 25, 1995 By Congressman Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. TAXPAYER-FUNDED LOBBYING: JUST SAY NO It’s among the best kept secrets in Washington. Special interests lobbying for federal grants, and then improperly using this funds to lobby for next year’s appropriations or to further their own political agenda. And you— the American taxpayer--are paying for it. More than 100,000 private organizations receive an estimated $39 billion in grants from the federal government. These aren’t loans, but handouts with few strings attached. Because special interests do not open their books to public inspection, we may never know what percentage of the monies received by grantees have been or are being used in an inappropriate manner. This is a high stakes shell game which only the wealthy and powerful may play. A case in point is a $44,100 grant issued to The Nature Conservancy by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The grant’s stated purpose was to “support volunteer, outreach, and public affairs programs for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.” But according to a report issued by The Nature Conservancy, the funds were used instead for “developing and directing a plan to counter opposition’s push for a county- wide referendum against the Sanctuary.” The plan was “successful in blocking referendum . . . and generated many positive articles and editorials using many of the messages discussed in (the) plan.”