Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has named Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) Porker of the Month for attempting to use the tax code to earmark a $2 billion subsidy for a commuter rail line between Manhattan and JFK Airport. Sen. Schumer has sought to take advantage of the New York Liberty Zone (NYLZ) tax credits, which were intended to stimulate the redevelopment of downtown Manhattan after 9/11, to finance a rail project that has been under consideration since well before 2001. This use of the tax code to provide a grant to a locality to fund a specific infrastructure project would be unprecedented and could potentially invite a flood of similar maneuvers from members of Congress who want to earmark funds for infrastructure boondoggles. For manipulating the tax code to push for a $2 billion earmark unrelated to the original purpose of the NYLZ tax credits, CAGW names Sen. Schumer the May 2008 Porker of the Month.
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