©2026 League of Conservation Voters
1984 Scorecard Vote
148
196
89
Another pork barrel project, this dam on the Licking River in Kentucky would cost almost twice as much to build as it would supposedly provide in benefits, according to the Army Corps of Engineers. It would flood at least 25,000 acres, including 9,000 acres of prime farm land. It would also destroy a state park, ten cemeteries, and a lot of forest. 59% of the alleged project benefits were for recreation, yet the Kentucky State Senate passed a resolution opposing the project and declared that it did not intend to “support recreational expenditures in the foreseeable future for a Falmouth Lake of any scope.” The vote is on the Hopkins amendment, to require the state of Kentucky to pay for a share of the project cost, something it had already said it would not do. The dam was to be paid for entirely by the federal government, ignoring normal cost sharing requirements.
The Hopkins amendment was rejected 148-196; June 29, 1984. YES is the pro-environmental vote. (Hopkins amendment to the Water Resources Development Authorizations bill, H.R. 3678.) The Senate did not act on the Falmouth Dam in 1984, but the project is expected to come up again in 1985.
©2026 League of Conservation Voters