Lee seeking $3 million earmark for familiar firm
WASHINGTON — Rep. Chris Lee is seeking $3 million in federal funding for the Rochester operation of ITT Corp., the conglomerate that purchased the Lee family business two years ago.
The Clarence Republican said he is pursuing the earmark for ITT Industries Space Systems because its Rochester operation, while located in the district of Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, DFairport, employs nearly 700 people who live in his district.
When ITT bought the family company, it was “strictly a cash deal,” Lee said, and he has no financial stake in ITT.
Government ethics experts said that while the request might raise some eyebrows, it is not comparable to the kinds of congressional earmarks that have caused major controversies in recent years.
“It’s not great appearancewise, but it does not benefit him or his family, so he must believe it’s good for his district,” said Naomi O. Seligman, deputy director and communications director at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics. “I just don’t see where there’s any kind of scandal here.”
Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, agreed that there is a problem of appearance.
“It’s something where he would have been smart to steer clear of this,” Ellis said. “Even if there is nothing behind it, it doesn’t look good.”
The request is among the more than $220 million in funding requests Lee has disclosed on his Web site.
ITT purchased International Motion Control of Buffalo, which Lee helped run with his father, Patrick Lee, in the summer of 2007. The Lee family company had sales of $200 million and more than 1,000 employees, including 360 locally, at the time.
The younger Lee—who said he was not even contemplating a run for Congress when the company was sold — now is seeking federal help for an ITT operation that develops equipment for the military.
The $3 million in federal funds would be used for an ITT system that integrates real-time surveillance images from sensors on a battlefield.
“This is a big thing for a company that employs 700 people in my district and that protects troops,” Lee said, indicating that it made sense as an earmark and is worth pursuing to benefit constituents.
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