• Four senators leaving Congress at the end of the year secured more than $1.7 billion combined in funding for pet projects and initiatives through earmarks in the $1.7 trillion spending bill Congress was rushing to pass this week.
• Sen. Richard Shelby, the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, secured the most of any departing lawmaker. The Alabama Republican will bring home more than $666 million across nearly 20 earmarks if the bill passes.
• Much of that money will go to boosting Alabama’s infrastructure and educational institutions.

Tagged: Capitol Hill