Since 2001, Rep. David Hobson (R-OH) “has directed millions of taxpayer dollars to two Ohio projects near real estate he owned,” according to an investigation by the Cleveland Plain Dealer. A senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, Hobson has secured roughly $32 million for the two projects:
Since buying into the building in 2001, records show, Hobson has used his position in Congress to obtain more than $30 million in federal transportation money to build the freight transfer station, part of a conversion involving the old Rickenbacker Air Force Base outside Columbus.
In a separate project, Hobson obtained nearly $2 million from Congress to widen a road in Beavercreek, near Dayton, in front of a condominium development in which he was an investor, the review of records shows.
Hobson says “he didn’t personally benefit from either project” and that the Plain Dealer is “trying to find something evil somewhere.” But other companies who own land near the Rickenbacker Air Force base say “there has been a real boom” since Hobson secured the federal funds:
Hobson’s building is directly across Alum Creek Drive from a bustling construction site where Indianapolis-based Duke Realty is building a 936,000-square-foot bulk freight distribution center. Duke Realty Senior Vice President Jim Clark says the value of properties near the airport quadrupled over the past decade. He attributes much of the rise to anticipated demand from the airport’s new freight transfer station.
Though Hobson’s earmarking is not illegal, watchdog groups say his use of tax dollars for projects near his real estate is a “terrible conflict of interest.” But Hobson is not alone in Congress when it comes to raking in big bucks off their legislative earmarks:
- In 2006, the Sunlight Foundation reported that $207 million in earmarked appropriations secured by then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) benefited real estate investments that ultimately helped he and his wife earn “about $1.8 million from land deals.”
- In 2005, Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) made a 79 percent profit on land he had purchased when he sold it after earmarking over $9 million for freeway and commercial development near the property.
- Between 1997 and 2006, Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-WV) directed $250 million in earmarks to five nonprofit organizations that he created and were staffed by his friends.
Hobson told the Plain Dealer that he thinks it would be “stupid” to ban members of Congress from real estate investments in their districts. He added that “as long as the projects don’t originate with the member for the member’s self-aggrandizement,” congressmen should be able to direct money to their districts that they believe will benefit the community.
Take a look at the proximity between Hobson’s properties and his earmarked projects:
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