Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) announced today that a $500,000 earmark he helped secure as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee for the University of South Dakota is on its way. The funding, from the Fiscal Year 2010 Omnibus Spending Bill, will be used to help disabled veterans transition back to college campuses.

“I was pleased to help secure this funding so that the University of South Dakota can continue to help disabled veterans who are returning to school,” Johnson said. “These individuals made great sacrifices for us and we owe it to them to provide them with a quality education.”

The funding, part of the Fides Student Veterans with Disabilities Quality Education Initiative, will be used to identify the educational needs for veterans with disabilities, develop a set of best practices for offering services while respecting privacy, and create comprehensive training programs that provide faculty, staff and administrators the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to ensure that student veterans with disabilities have full access to a quality post-secondary education.

Earmarks like this are federal funding secured by members of Congress, enabling them to support high-priority projects in their home states. Each member of Congress' ability to deliver earmarks for their state varies depending on their seniority, committee assignments, and other factors. As South Dakota's senior Senator with a seat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Johnson is exceptionally well-placed to deliver federal funding for South Dakota's priorities.

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