In a purely political move to shore up his support in rural areas of the 24th District, Rep. Michael Arcuri commended the Farm Service Agency for keeping open two offices in Herkimer and Broome counties rather than consolidating them into a single, more efficient operation.

Talking to farmers across the 24th district, I know how valuable Farm Service Agency county offices are as resources for local farmers. I commend Director Humphrey for his decision to keep FSA offices in Herkimer and Broome Counties open and for listening to the input of local residents and their representatives. This is very good news for farmers and rural communities in Broome and Herkimer that depend on agriculture for jobs and business.

I recently sent a letter calling on the Farm Service Agency to halt plans to close local FSA offices and I strongly supported two pieces of legislation which would have prohibited FSA office closings for one-year. I strongly believe the FSA should halt all current closure efforts, and I am pleased that the agency has decided to discontinue such efforts in Herkimer and Broome.

There are benefits to being in the majority in Congress, and Rep. Michael Arcuri is taking full advantage of bringing home the bacon. There’s no better example of that than the $25,000 he secured for the Chenango County Agricultural Energy Steering Committee to study how to “turn cow manure into energy.”

The manure project is just one of many pork-barrel projects that Arcuri has trumpeted in recent weeks. Other examples include:

• A federal grant of $1.2 million for Broome County to purchase four new hybrid-electric transit buses. Arcuri had the help of Rep. Maurice Hinchey for this grant.

• Four fire departments in Arcuri’s district will get a total of $526,672 to improve their preparedness as first responders. They include $185,250 for the Pinders Corners Fire Department in Otsego County, $135,850 for the Coventry Volunteer Fire Company in Chenango County, $57,000 for the City of Norwich Fire Department in Chenango County, and $148,572 for the Westmoreland Volunteer Fire Department in Oneida County.

• Oneida County will get $243,600 from the U.S. Transportation Department to buy to buy “one support vehicle, a bus washer, and computer hardware and software.”

• Following in the footsteps of former Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, Arcuri has secured $1.7 million from the Federal Aviation Administration for “continued redevelopment efforts at the Griffiss Airfield in Rome.” This brings the total to $19.4 million for Griffiss over the past four years.