Oregon Public Broadcasting

Washington Congressman Norm Dicks is angrily denying a story about a Congressional earmark for a high-tech buoy system on Puget Sound. The story was first published by the Huffington Post Investigative Fund. It suggests Dicks is trying to get around a self-imposed ban on no-bid earmarks for for-profit companies.

Dicks chairs the defense appropriations subcommittee. He says there's no truth to the accusation.

Norm Dicks: "This isn't an ethics question. It's a question about appropriations. And I have said we will not give earmarks to private companies and we won't. And I have banned it for the rest of the committee. And I will not let this happen and if it does happen we will rescind the money."

At issue is a $6.2 million earmark Dicks has requested on behalf of the University of Washington. It's for high-tech buoys to monitor the health of Puget Sound. They will join a network of buoys developed in part by a Port Townsend company called Intellicheck Mobilisa.

It's received previous earmarks. But Dicks says none of the money in the latest earmark would go to the company.