Published: August 15, 2008 12:29 am            

OUR VIEW: Cuomo on target with pork-barrel rejections

The Associated Press this week reported that state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is following up his call for pork-barrel grant reform.

Cuomo’s office has take it upon itself to apply the most scrutiny ever on these frivolous grants that have plagued Albany for years.

Already Cuomo has rejected a number of rulings, but he hasn’t said any are fraudulent. Still, there are enough pork-barrel efforts in an election year to make your head spin.

For example, the AP found that state Sen. Charles Fuschillo, a Long Island Republican, was seeking a $5,000 grant to buy a walk-in refrigerator for a Massapequa Elks Lodge. It was rejected because of “insufficient information.” We’d say reject it because there’s much more pressing issues than a walk-in refrigerator for an Elks Lodge.

That type of purchase could be done through a benefit or some other fundraising effort the good senator could get behind in his district.

Let those who want to contribute to the refrigerator effort give, instead of passing the buck to the rest of us.

Look, some of this spending may seem worthwhile, especially to those on the receiving end. We’ll let you decide. If you visit our Web site: www.tonawanda-news.com we’ll have a link to Cuomo’s Project Sunlight Web site (www.sunlightny.com), where you can look up a local official’s name and see what he or she is up to.

        

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