Object
Appropriations Line — Appalachian Transportation Institute ($12,000,000) (line item, S01E06)
A single printed appropriation line embedded in the stapled Appropriations bill packet: the agency name 'Appalachian Transportation Institute,' a terse program title, and a bold, column-aligned dollar figure — '$12,000,000.' The entry sits on standard 8.5x11 paper in a tabular budget layout, visually mundane until staffers flip to it, jab a finger at the number, and let voices sharpen. Characters skim, highlight, and weaponize the line as tangible proof of earmarking; its physicality — a penciled margin note, a slightly dog-eared corner — anchors frantic strategy and pointed gestures during meetings.
2 appearances
Purpose
To allocate $12,000,000 in discretionary appropriations to the Appalachian Transportation Institute as a specific funding line within the Appropriations bill.
Significance
Functions as a concrete example of 'pork' and a bargaining chip that crystallizes the political stakes. The line propels tactical planning, fuels rhetorical attacks in negotiations, and helps convert abstract budget arithmetic into immediate leverage that shapes the vote strategy and moral framing around the bill.
Appearances in the Narrative
When this object appears and how it's used