Rep. Rick Larsen open on his earmark requests

Congress has started the process of deciding which earmarks will be included in the budget this year.

Requests are streaming in to the appropriations committees in each chamber, with some House panels considering specific requests in hearings this month.

Most members won't reveal what they are pursuing until they know if they are successful.

Not Rep. Rick Lar­sen, D-Wa. In April, he publicized the 59 requests he had submitted.

Here are a few:

$548.3 million for the U.S. Navy for repair of P-3 Orion patrol planes, some of which are based at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station and to accelerate development of P-8A multi-mission aircraft. This is the Navy's top priority not funded in President Bush's proposed budget.

$6 million for Intermec Corp. of Everett to modernize tracking of supplies on Navy ships;

$3 million for Diamond Nets, Inc. of Bellingham to develop high-strength, deck-edge netting to protect sailors on Navy ships;

$1.8 million for Washington State University for the National Potato Variety Deve­lopment Program;

$392,000 for Everett Community College for its Early College High Schools Program;

$2 million for the Tulalip Tribes for improvements at the interchange of I-5 and 116th Street NE;

$1.5 million for the state Department of Transportation for safety improvement projects on U.S. 2 between Snohomish and Skykomish;

$80,000 for Island County Sheriff's Department for patrol car laptop computers;

$50,000 for the Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force to purchase new equipment;

$2 million for the Washington State Methamphetamine Initiative.

The complete list can be found on Larsen's Web site, www.house.gov/larsen/.

-- Jerry Cornfield