Chet Edwards For Congress

Hillsboro Reporter: Spending Bill Provides For Projects In Hill County

Dec. 30, 2007

An omnibus spending bill was signed by President George W. Bush Wednesday, December 26, aboard Air Force One on his way to Texas.

The $515 billion bill included 8,993 earmarks costing nearly $10 billion, according to the White House.

Included in the earmarks that President Bush chastised congress for are some that will benefit projects in Hill County.

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison secured $140,000 for improvements to the City of Hillsboro’s downtown streetscape.

“This funding will help revitalize Hillsboro’s downtown while attracting new businesses and more jobs for Hillsboro’s families,” Sen. Hutchison said.

Congressman Chet Edwards secured funding for improvements to Hillsboro’s water and wastewater systems, the Lake Whitney Dam powerhouse and Farm Road 933 near White Bluff, along with funds for the GEAR UP Program in Hill and Bosque counties.

An earmark of $492,200 will add to the City of Hillsboro’s efforts to upgrade its aging water-delivery and wastewater-collection systems.

Hillsboro City Manager Jack Harper said that the funding will primarily be used to replace parts of the system that are in desperate need of repair.

The city has made significant improvements to its wastewater-treatment plant with an expansion that nearly doubled the capacity.

It has used funds left over from that project to address inflow and infiltration problems in the wastewater-collection system, but still has a long way to go in replacing some of the old, clay sewer lines in the city.

“Improving water pipelines and infrastructure are important for Hillsboro’s families and businesses and for the community’s future growth,” said Edwards. “I want to salute Mayor John Erwin, former Mayor Will Lowrance, City Manager Jack Harper and community leaders for their vision and hard work on this project. It was a privilege to work with them.”

Edwards earmarked $4.42 million to replace two turbines and upgrade generators at Lake Whitney Dam.

“By replacing turbines and upgrading hydropower capacity at the Lake Whitney Powerhouse, we will be able to provide electricity to 1,500 more area homes on average each year,” the congressman said. “It will also help lower the cost of electricity for cities and families throughout Central Texas by lowering the purchase price of energy during the high demand periods.”

The planned improvements will increase the powerhouse’s generating capacity to 42-megawatts.

Farm Road 933 at the entrance to White Bluff will benefit from $196,000 that will pay to add a left-turn lane.

Edwards said that the federal funding will jumpstart the project with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), which will fund the project on the state level.

He said that improving the roadway will ease traffic congestion, reduce the risk of serious auto accidents and help encourage economic development.

Edwards also secured $97,000 for the GEAR UP Program.

Administered through the Region 12 Education Service Center, the program prepares at-risk junior high and high school students academically and socially for college.

School districts in Hill and Bosque counties, along with Hill College, McLennan Community College and Texas State Technical College, provide programs that are designed to increase the number of students who will continue their education beyond high school.

The President included a signing statement criticizing congress for failing to cut back on earmarks. He wrote that “these projects are not funded through a merit-based process and provide a vehicle for wasteful government spending.”

He said that the funding passed for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan included in the bill were good down payments and called for congress to take action quickly in 2008 to provide the remainder of the needed funding.