U.S. Senator Calls Funding of Dodon Farm Vineyards ‘Wasteful’

With a heritage that begins in the 1600s, the nine-generation family-owned Vineyard at Dodon Farm is one of the most historic landmarks in all of Davidsonville.

However, a senator from Oklahoma recently labeled the local gem "a waste” of government money.

In his annual “Waste Book,” Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) said vineyards and wineries throughout the nation receive an estimated $1.5 million in federal taxpayer funds to help encourage grape-growing endeavors. Of that $1.5 million, he reported that The Vineyard at Dodon Farm received $299,974, earning the vineyard the No. 46 spot in his waste book.

Included in the book were “loopholes” for professional sports leagues, Moroccan pottery classes encouraged by the U.S. Agency of International Development, and Coburn’s claim that the Department of Agriculture (USDA) spent $300,000 promoting caviar.

Coburn also included other vineyards in Maryland and Virginia, claiming that federal support for local vineyards should be cancelled and go to more “essential projects.”

In August, the Anne Arundel County Council unanimously passed a bill that exempts certain buildings on farmland from adhering to mandated construction codes. The bill hopes to make it easier for farmers to add buildings for vineyards or other revenue bases to encourage growth.

Do you support federal funding of local wineries? What do you think of Coburn’s “Waste Book.”