Published December 1989 — Download PDF of the original newspaper column
Byrd's-Eye View By U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd A Successful Federal Appropriations Year for West Virginia Upon becoming Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee one year ago, one of my top priorities was to obtain increased federal funds for projects and programs vital to West Virginia's growth and development. From that standpoint, especially in the face of needs to cut federal spending elsewhere and reduce the budget deficit, I can say that this has been a successful year for West Virginia. For example, I more than doubled the federal funds obtained this year for West Virginia's Appalachian Corridor Highways G and H over last year's total; $73 million this year opposed to $28 million last year. This funding is particularly significant because completion of the Appalachian corridor highway system is essential to our state's economic future, and yet, the Administration had requested zero funding for these highway projects. I was also able to secure $7 5 million to rebuild the collapsed radio telescope at Green Bank in Pocahontas County, which is a national scientific asset. In addition, I obtained continued funding for projects to stimulate tourism at Harpers Ferry and in the New River Gorge, and I succeeded in getting funds to establish West Virginia's first National Wildlife Refuge on the Ohio River Islands near Parkersburg and Wheeling. Further, I obtained $21.5 million for military construction in our state and approximately $11.7 million to build new facilities for the Fish and Wildlife Service, including funds for initial planning for a federal employee training center for the Fish and Wildlife Service in the Eastern Panhandle. Additionally, I obtained continued federal funds for several of my other economic-development initiatives for West Virginia, including a hardwood-products industry, my timber-bridge initiative, and the Clean Coal Technology program. Against the constraints of current federal deficit problems, I am committed to doing all that I possibly can in my role as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee to help improve West Virginia's economy and lay foundations for increased job opportunities in our state. December 6, 1989