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Dutchess County

Congressman Hinchey at Work in Poughkeepsie

Congressman Maurice Hinchey has a proven record of getting results for the communities he represents. Since 1995, he has delivered nearly $4 billion for the 22nd Congressional District, including more than $66 million for the parts of Dutchess County he represents. In the last two years, Hinchey has secured more than $13 million for projects in the City of Poughkeepsie.

These federal investments in our region have created jobs, helped communities provide the infrastructure for economic growth, have made low-cost capital available for business startups and expansion, strengthened our schools and health care systems, promoted our tourism industry and lured new businesses to the area.

Hinchey's efforts in the 109th Congress include:

Transportation and Infrastructure Improvements

Hinchey has fought to increase the federal government's investment in our transportation infrastructure, which improves public safety, increases economic development opportunities and alleviates the burden of expensive repairs on local taxpayers.  Among the projects for which Hinchey secured funding are:

  • Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge:  The transportation bill included an $874,000 earmark to assess the status of the Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge, make necessary stabilization repairs and begin construction on phase one of the project.  Phase one is the stabilization of the walkway onto the bridge from the western shore of the river (Ulster County side), and the construction of an observation deck.  Completion of the project will yield a trail spanning the Hudson River that will link trail systems in Ulster and Dutchess counties.  The project is currently awaiting review by the NY State Department of Transportation in order for the funds to be released.
  • Expanded Bus Routes, Poughkeepsie:  Hinchey secured a $50,000 earmark for the City of Poughkeepsie's Jobs Access Reverse Commute program in transportation appropriations legislation for 2005 and a second earmark of $148,000 was awarded in 2006.  The funding will allow Poughkeepsie to provide expanded bus service targeted to bring low-income workers to job centers.  The current grant is supporting a bus route from the City of Poughkeepsie to the Galleria and South Hills malls in the Town of Poughkeepsie.
  • Poughkeepsie Waterfront Renovations:  In the November 2004 Transportation spending bill, Hinchey earmarked $750,000 for a waterfront pedestrian project in Poughkeepsie that will create access to the Hudson River, linking the City's, Main Street, with the waterfront and expanding economic activity along that corridor.  The first phase of construction included a conference center and restaurant.

Health, Education and Public Safety

Hinchey has taken advantage of his position as a member of the House Appropriations Committee to increase the federal government's investment in the Hudson Valley's health care providers, educational institutions and public safety facilities, including: 

  • Poughkeepsie Police Department:  At Hinchey's request, the Appropriations Committee approved $150,000 to the City of Poughkeepsie to enhance its law enforcement mobile command center.
  • Vassar Brothers Hospital Heart Institute:  Vassar Brothers has received $250,000, earmarked by Hinchey, to outfit a cardiac catheterization/angioplasty suite at its expanded cardiac care center.
  • Mid-Hudson Children's Museum: Hinchey earmarked $200,000 in appropriations legislation enacted in November 2004 for the Mid-Hudson Children's Museum.  The federal funding allowed the museum to expand its interactive exhibits targeted at the museum's youngest visitors.  Hinchey also arranged for a traveling exhibition from the Museum of Natural History to visit the Museum last year, drawing hundreds of local students to visit its dinosaur exhibit.
  • "Weed and Seed" Programs:  Working with the U.S. Department of Justice, Hinchey has announced federal funding from the Weed and Seed Program for the City of Poughkeepsie.  The Weed and Seed program focuses on "weeding out" violent crime and gang activity while "seeding" the community with youth services.  Poughkeepsie has received $400,000 from 2004-2006.  The program was expanded from the Main Street corridor to the North Side community within the City.
  • Bardavon Arts-in-Education Program:  In November 2005, Hinchey set aside $50,000 in appropriations legislation for Bardavon 1869 Opera House's Arts-In-Education Workshop Program.  The program will bring six diverse artist-in-residence projects, which provide workshops and master classes with culminating performances, to more than 2,000 children and teens in the Mid-Hudson Valley, including the Cities of Poughkeepsie, Beacon and Kingston. 
  • Dutchess County YMCA At-Risk Youth Program:  In order to allow the Poughkeepsie facility to remain open after normal hours on Saturday nights, Hinchey secured a $40,000 appropriations earmark.  During these extended hours, the Dutchess County YMCA will turn the facility into a teen center for middle school, at-risk youth.  The teens will have complete access to all activities in a safe and supervised environment.  The program is currently underway, benefiting hundreds of teens from throughout the City.

Historic and Environmental Preservation

As a national leader in environmental and historic protection, Hinchey's efforts have always started in his own backyard.  The Hudson Valley's most important assets are its natural resources and historic treasures, but Hinchey knows that it takes hard work and smart planning for communities to preserve the quality of life in our region.  He has supported these efforts, and his key projects in the 109th Congress include:

  • Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area:  As the creator of the Heritage Area, which is tasked with protecting, promoting and interpreting the Hudson Valley's rich historic, cultural and industrial importance, Hinchey has continued to champion the program and provide it with federal funds, garnering more than $1 million in 2004-2005, with an additional $500,000 pending this year.  In 2004, Hinchey hosted a day-long Heritage Area summit at the Wallace Center in Hyde Park, resulting in recommendations to increase signage for historic sites, identifying revenue sources for ongoing restoration work, using the Internet to create virtual tours and coordinating operating hours of sites.
  • Land Use Law Center:  Hinchey succeeded in earmarking $200,000 for Mid-Hudson Pattern for Progress and Pace University's Land Use Law Center to provide land-use training to local leaders in upstate New York.
  • American Revolution Anniversary Legislation:  Hinchey's legislation to commemorate the 225th anniversary of the American Revolution was enacted and he set aside $200,000 in an Interior Appropriations earmark to fund the implementation of this commemorative project, which will highlight the Hudson Valley's role in the founding of the nation.
  • Bardavon Opera House:  At Hinchey's request, the Transportation-Treasury Appropriations bill for the 2005 fiscal year provided $250,000 to fund improvements to the Bardavon 1869 Opera House.  The funds will be used toward the improvement of the electrical system in the theater, improvements to the dressing room, and enhancements to the lighting on stage and in the gallery, as well as overall restoration of the interior and lobbies, including restoration of the proscenium mural.

PCB Cleanup

For decades, Hinchey has led the fight to begin the cleanup of PCB contamination in the Hudson River and hold General Electric accountable for its pollution.  When GE and the Bush Administration's Environmental Protection Agency have tried to stall the process, Hinchey pushed harder.
When GE inserted a provision into legislation in 2005 that would have stalled the cleanup while another National Academy of Sciences (NAS) dredging study was conducted, Hinchey negotiated a deal to ensure that the study could not delay dredging in the Hudson River.  In addition, Hinchey also negotiated changes in the direction of the study to make it more balanced.

In April 2006, Hinchey met with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Stephen Johnson to lobby for the agency's support of a real-time monitoring system that would continuously track the levels and locations of PCB contamination in the Hudson River throughout the clean-up process.  He secured a promise from Johnson that the agency would look for ways in which they could possibly fund a real-time monitoring system. 

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