R.I. scores big in appropriations bill

WARWICK – The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2010, which provides $446.8 billion to fund “critical priorities and programs” in health, education and transportation, would bring more than $30 million to various organizations and programs in Rhode Island, according to U.S. Reps. Jim Langevin and Patrick Kennedy.
Langevin’s office issued a news release on behalf of the two Rhode Island Democrats, announcing that both voted in favor of the appropriations act when it passed the House Thursday. The act, formed after conferences between the two chambers, now moves to the Senate.
The bill would provide “immediate help for the hardest-hit Rhode Islanders, while investing in solutions to grow our economy for years to come,” Langevin said in Thursday’s release.
“This key piece of legislation will help Rhode Island families who continue to struggle during this economic crisis and will make critical investments in the most pressing issue facing our state and nation – jobs,” said Kennedy, a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
Langevin and Kennedy said they worked to secure funding for at least 37 different Rhode Island programs and projects, including these highlights:

• $2,266,200 for replacement of the Pawtucket River Bridge on Interstate 95.
• $779,200 to the city of Providence for street paving.
• $487,000 for the R.I. Transit Public Transportation Authority (RIPTA) for the purchase of fuel-efficient vehicles.
• $300,000 for the Institute for Study and Practice of Nonviolence to support street-workers in high-crime neighborhoods.
• $8.3 million for the JASON project, a nonprofit dedicated to ocean exploration coordinated by the University of Rhode Island Office of Marine Programs.
• $300,000 for the city of Providence for the planning and development of a feasibility study for the knowledge-industry Jewelry District.
• $150,000 to the Rhode Island School of Design and Brown University for technical assistance to small businesses.
• $116,000 for Brown University to renovate a medical-education building for its Warren Alpert Medical School.
• $8.5 million for Naval Station Newport to construct an addition to Perry Hall that provides training for the Naval Academy Preparatory School.
• $120,000 for Progreso Latino to provide assistance to existing businesses to retain and create jobs.
• $80,000 for the Newport County Chamber of Commerce to assist in the development of an industrial park on 77 acres of town-owned property in Tiverton.
• $400,000 for the Chamber Education Foundation’s mentoring program in Kennedy’s district, the First Congressional District.
• $487,000 for restoration of the Cliff Walk in Newport.
• $300,000 for RIPTA to purchase 16 passenger vans with wheelchair accessibility for North Providence and Woonsocket elderly residents.
• $1 million to Save The Bay for student-science programs.
• $500,000 for Bradley Hospital for construction of new space to house inpatient acute-care beds and renovation of an existing building.