Lists of forthcoming state capital budget earmarks are being passed from office to office in the capitol building as regional legislative delegations try to squeeze totals down to something manageable.
The earmarks will be a mixture of major regional and local projects and small earmarks personally allocated by the two House members and one Senator that make up a Senate District.
Projects will vary widely from large to minor grants for things like neighborhood schools, parks, sports organizations, cultural groups and nonprofits. Some will meet a high measure of public interest, while others will be of questionable public justification.
In 2007 Gov. Sarah Palin vetoed many capital projects, although many argued it was done without much pattern and direction.
Now many of the vetoed projects have turned up in a supplemental spending bill, and if passed early, the governor has 15 days to exercise her veto or let the bill become law. If the Legislature is still in session, it can override Palin’s vetoes immediately, although budget line-item vetoes require a hard-to-get three-quarters vote.
