By D.M.Livingston|The Waterbury Times|Published Feb 19, 2026

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The Claim

Congresswoman Jahana Hayes says that since taking office, nearly $90 million in federal awards have come to Waterbury — with an additional $165.7 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

Waterbury Gets 1.7% of $10Million from Congresswoman Jahana Hayes ( Don’t worry we did the math for you )

At first glance, that sounds like over $250 million delivered.

But a closer look shows those numbers combine three very different types of funding — and only one of them is directly controlled by a member of Congress.

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🔍 The Three Buckets of Federal Money

To understand what’s real impact vs. political framing, you have to separate the funding into three categories:

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1️⃣ Directly Secured by Congress (Earmarks)

These are the funds a member of Congress personally requests and secures in federal spending bills.

👉 This is the clearest measure of direct action.

✔️ Hayes’ Total Earmarks for Waterbury:

roughly-

➡️ $7,562,000

Examples:

• Fulton Park Pool Replacement — $4,000,000
• Hamilton Park Safety & Streetscape — $850,000
• Waterbury PAL Youth Programming — $175,000 + $172,000
• Food Pantry Program — $100,000

Watchdog takeaway:
This is the most direct and verifiable funding Hayes can claim responsibility for.

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Competitive Federal Grants (Shared Credit)

These are funds where:

• The city or a local organization applies
• Federal agencies award the money
• Congressional offices may support the application

Major examples cited:

• $23.1M RAISE Grant (W.A.T.E.R project)
• Brownfield cleanup funds
• Workforce and environmental training grants
• Health program funding to Staywell and Health360

📊 Watchdog takeaway:
Hayes can support and advocate, but she does not control who wins these grants.

Credit is shared between:

• City officials
• State partners
• Federal agencies
• Congressional support

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3️⃣ Formula Funding (Automatic Money)

This is where the biggest numbers come from — and also where political messaging can be most misleading.

🚨 ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act)

• $165.7 million to Waterbury
• Passed by Congress during COVID
• Distributed automatically based on population and need

No application.
No competition.
No earmark.

Every qualifying city in America received funds.

📊 Watchdog takeaway:
While Hayes voted for ARPA, she did not individually deliver this money to Waterbury.
It came as part of a nationwide federal formula.

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📊 The Reality Behind the Headline Numbers

( roughly numbers as provided by Hayes sites)

Let’s put everything in perspective:

Hayes Earmarks $7.56M✔️ Hayes directly

Competitive Grants Tens of millions Shared credit

Automatic ARPA Funding$165.7M Federal formula law

Total Claimed Impact$250M+Mixed sources

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⚖️ Why This Matters for Waterbury Residents

When residents hear “$90 million secured”, it creates the impression that all of that money was:

• personally negotiated
• individually delivered
• or uniquely brought home by one elected official

That is not how federal funding works.

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🧠 The Bottom Line

✔️ Congresswoman Hayes has secured real funding for Waterbury, particularly through $7.56 million in earmarks

✔️ She has also supported and advocated for major grant applications

❗ But the largest portion of money cited — ARPA and formula funds — would have come to Waterbury regardless of who held the seat in Congress

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🗣️ The Watchdog Standard

At The Waterbury Times, our responsibility is simple:

Separate political messaging from financial reality.

Waterbury residents deserve to know:

• what was fought for
• what was applied for
• and what was automatically allocated

Because in an era of big numbers and bigger headlines…

Clarity is accountability.

Waterbury CT Local News