A look at Congressionally Directed Spending requests from Sen. Manchin

Dec. 3—MORGANTOWN — Here is our second story on Congressionally Directed Spending, with the list of requests from Monongalia, Preston and Marion counties submitted by Sen. Joe Manchin to the Appropriations Committee.

As previously noted, grants are arranged into 12 categories reflecting the Appropriations subcommittees that review and approve — or disapprove — them for inclusion in spending bills.

No FY24 grant money has gone out yet. Awards await passage of FY24 spending bills. Not every request will be granted, as requests always exceed available funds. Awards are still going out for FY22 and FY23 requests.

You will notice some overlap in the lists — identical projects with identical funding or similar or identical projects with different funding numbers. This is not uncommon as there will be discrepancies between requests submitted to the two senators that they in turn submit to the Appropriations Committee.

Energy and Water Development West Virginia Public Energy Authority, researches the ability to extract clean hydrogen, rare earth elements and critical minerals from fossil fuels, $270, 000 ; Morgantown, design and purchase a trash wheel to remove trash collecting at the Morgantown Lock and Dam area on the Monongahela River, $375, 000 ; WVU, acquire advanced UAV remote sensing technology and develop methods to optimize cooperative climate change abatement research in West Virginia, $280, 000 ; WVU, acquire a liquid chromatograph / mass spectrometer (LC /MS) to support research on plant-and biomass-derived renewable bioenergy products, $233, 000 ; WVU, examine new opportunities posed by the transition to a less carbon intensive energy mix, $600, 000.

Military Construction and Veterans Affairs WV National Guard Camp Dawson and the 197th Regional Training Institute, WV Army National Guard, ensure all soldiers at Camp Dawson have access to meet physical fitness standards, $8.3 million.

Agriculture, Rural Development and FDA City of Mannington, replace aging work truck, $44, 000 ; Mannington, purchase a Bobcat skid steer for the Mannington Street and Water Department, $63, 000 ; Town of Reedsville, restore historic Town Hall, expand next to town hall, while making the new space ADA compliant, $234, 000.

Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Marion County: Marion County Schools, critical school safety equipment, $850, 000 ; Fairmont State University, upgrade campus security access system in residence halls and STEM building, $1.701 million ; Fairmont State University, renovate university library to centralize academic services, $2.13 million ; Sheriff's Department, car video cameras, body cameras, license plate reader cameras, and fingerprint scanners, $765, 000 ; High Technology Foundation, Cloud Data Analytics Fellows program that will conduct research on ways colleges and universities can promote innovation in the commercial climate and weather industry, $4 million ; City of Mannington, replace police cruiser, $39, 000.

Monongalia County: WVU Chestnut Ridge Research Center, equip a new WVU robotics center to support the creation of the proposed major in Robotics Engineering, $1 million ; WVU, a new laser system at the WVU Department of Physics and Astronomy for space plasmas and spacecraft applications, $465, 000 ; WVU, hardware for a high-performance computational cluster for research and education, $1.5 million ; WVU. suite of tools for sample preparation for electron microscopy-based research that range from materials science to neuroscience, $1.14 million ; Morgantown Police Department, lighting on the Morgantown rail /trail to improve safety for trail users and businesses, $1 million.

Financial Services and General Government Aspire Services Center, Morgantown, create a veteran-operated non-emergency medical transportation business supported by a recovery ecosystem of care, $206, 000 ; WVU, develop and expand the first-ever online portal bringing together congressional archives from repositories throughout the United States, $1.5 million.

Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Marion County, Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association, fund a series of wayside exhibits throughout the region, $61, 000.

Monongalia County: WVU, refurbish four Personal Rapid Transit System stations per Federal Transit Administration requirements, $6.4 million ; WVU, develop 12 miles of the natural surface trail master plan as well as plan and design three trailheads and install signage, $1 million ; Morgantown Development Services Department, create affordable housing and fund land and building acquisition while removing blighted buildings, $2 million ; Morgantown Arts and Culture, replace the remaining incandescent stage lighting with LED lights and begin the process to replace Met Theatre's current stage box speakers with a newer enhanced speaker system, $250, 000.

Monongalia County continued: Morgantown Municipal Airport, extend a runway, $7 million ; West Virginia Land Trust, fund a new public greenspace with safe access, signing and high-quality trails for a variety of uses including walking, running, and mountain biking, $304, 000 ; Mylan Park Foundation, build 14 additional cabins in the Mylan Park KOA RV Campground & Resort, $1 million ; Monongalia County Society for Disabled Children & Adults, build a fully inclusive and accessible playground, $955, 000 ; Monongahela River Trails Conservancy, repair a section of the Mon River-Caperton-Deckers Creek Rail-Trail system, $220, 000 ; Westover, install 6, 150 total feet of new track installation to create a fully intermodal business and substantially increase supply chain capacity, $2.851 million.

Homeland Security Town of Tunnelton, replace and install storm sewer infrastructure in the areas of North Street, Berry Street, and Bonafield Street, $1.6 million.

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Preston County: Jacob's Ladder at Brookside Farm, implement an Improving Access to Substance Use Disorder Treatment in West Virginia's Communities of Color program, $260, 000 ; Preston County Senior Citizens, purchase seven replacement meal delivery vehicles for the Older Americans Act Senior Nutrition Program, $475, 000.

Marion County: Disability Action Center, create an all-inclusive, accessible health and recreation facility for individuals with disabilities, $700, 000 ; Game Changer, provide production, editing, and distribution of age-appropriate (grades K-2, 3-5) opioid and substance misuse prevention education videos for students and parents, $50, 000 ; Pierpont Community & Technical College, offer adult learners and workers simulated workforce training in aviation, healthcare, manufacturing, public safety, and welding, $1.5 million ; City on a Hill Christian Academy, fulfill enhanced classroom and instructional needs for a new micro-school, $110, 000 ; Fairmont State University, relocate and expand Nursing Simulation Center and update Skills Lab, $3.059 million ; Marion County Local Emergency Planning Committee, provide substance abuse prevention education to K-12 students, $134, 000.

Monongalia County: Libera, provide mental health support programs for middle school girls, $500, 000 ; Libera, provide critical mental health resources for adolescent girls, $464, 000 ; Libera, provide job training, employment and support services to young adults with barriers to employment, $520, 000 ; Morgantown Sober Living, expand current residential options for individuals in recovery with a focus on those utilizing medication-assisted treatment, $426, 000 ; West Virginia Women Work, provide skilled trades training, job placement, and mentorship services to approximately 300 West Virginia Women, $572, 000 ; WVU Hospitals, establish a Center for Neuromodulation and Brain Therapeutics, $11.933 million ; WVU Hospitals, build out three additional inpatient shelled areas between the NICU, Birthing Center and PICU, inclusive of the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and Epilepsy Monitoring Unit, $6.427 million.

Monongalia County continued: Hope Hill Sobering Center, maintain a safe and healthy space for individuals seeking substance use disorder treatment, $600, 000 ; Hope Hill Sobering Center, support administrative and operational costs, $300, 000 ; Morgantown Community Resources, construct an addition to Hazel's House of Hope Day Services Center to expand its current space, facilities, and programming, $500, 000 ; PACE Enterprises, provide a living space for those with disabilities, $2 million ; Mon Health Medical Center, construct a state-of-the-art hybrid operating room, to create operational efficiencies, $2.564 million.

WVU: Expand and renovate the existing School of Dentistry dental clinic space, consolidating all postgraduate programs on the Health Sciences Center campus, and procurement of state-of-the-art dental equipment, $12.6 million ; expand and equip the Inhalation Facility so it has the space and resources necessary to evaluate acute, chronic, and future adverse toxic threats in West Virginia, $1.5 million ; purchase industrial scale manufacturing equipment, material testing equipment and automation equipment and software for student use, $1.1 million ; procure Mobile Clinical Trials Unit, $153, 000 ; deliver a suite of training programs in addiction to K-12 teachers, middle and high school students, and community members in high-need areas, $370, 000 ; equip a new Advanced Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Unit within the School of Pharmacy, $971, 000.

Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Preston County: Preston County PSD 1, Arthurdale, replace chemical feed pumps in the water treatment plant, upgrade the booster system, and purchase a new portable generator, $400, 000 ; Preston County PSD, Bruceton Mills, install a new metals removal system for the Hazelton wastewater treatment plant and upgrade other system components, $4.32 million ; Preston County PSD 4, Bruceton Mills, expands water treatment plant capacity and improve water intake systems, $13.526 million ; Friends of the Cheat, identify and replace undersized and at-risk stream and private and public road crossings to improve flood resiliency, $500, 000.

Marion County: Barrackville, restore the Barrackville Covered Bridge, $400 ; The Orange Goat, upgrade the mechanical and electrical systems, $200, 000 ; Ice's Run Route 250 PSD, performs water system improvements, $4 million ; Valley Falls PSD, replace and upgrade elements of the existing water system to improve system efficiency, $4 million.

Monongalia County: Morgantown Utility Board, increase the capacity of the Cheat Lake wastewater treatment plant to meet population growth, $14.359 million ; Star City, replace undersized storm water infrastructure within the Fenwick Drainage Area to alleviate severe flooding, $5.759 million ; Westover Sanitary Sewer Board, rehabilitate a sanitary sewer lift station and replace sanitary sewer and storm sewer lines along Holland Avenue, $3.875 million.