Washington, D.C. – The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today expressed its opposition to a bill introduced by Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) to rename the Rio Grande American Canal System near El Paso, Texas after a private citizen who has contributed $13,500 to his campaign since 1996.  Rep. Reyes’s bill, H.R. 6041, would rename the six-year-old canal after El Paso resident Travis C. Johnson, a lawyer and member of the Board of Directors of Southwest Airlines, who had a hand in the resolution of disputes between Mexico and the United States over Rio Grande water rights and the development of the Canal. 

“A review of the public record shows that Rep. Reyes has introduced this bill to rename the Canal for Mr. Johnson three times since 2004,” said CAGW President Tom Schatz.  “Americans are paying more than $4 a gallon at the pump for gasoline, the nation has no coherent energy policy, not to mention a plan to address the nation’s critical infrastructure needs, and the Natural Resources Committee is spending its time and staff resources worrying about renaming a federally-funded public works project after a campaign contributor to Rep. Reyes.  How does this bill not qualify as a quid pro quo?”

The bill, which was introduced on May 13, 2008 and had 20 co-sponsors at one time, has seen the departure of several original co-sponsors over the last week as word spread that the Canal honoree, Travis C. Johnson, had made significant financial contributions to Rep. Reyes’s campaign coffers.  “Astute members of Congress are peeling off this bill because they grasp that it is an inappropriate use of congressional power.  Congress is held in very low esteem by taxpayers because they believe the institution has become a playground for pork-barrel politicians using taxpayer money to line the pockets of their cronies.  This sort of bill reinforces that notion,” said Schatz.

“The Natural Resources Committee has more critical matters to address than passing this bill.  If the state of Texas wants to honor Mr. Johnson for contributions to the history of the Canal and the community of El Paso, then by all means, CCAGW urges state and local officials to find a suitable way to honor him using state and local resources,” concluded Schatz.

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.