Bringing home the bacon - it's Job 1 (or at least very close to the top) for any politician who cares about staying in the good graces of his or her constituents.

So it's no wonder North Carolina's representatives in Congress from both sides of the aisle are touting their efforts to help secure funding for local projects contained in the spending bill that passed Congress on Wednesday.

Of course, they have different takes on the bill. Rep. David Price, D-Chapel Hill, says on his Web site that because of spending limits President Bush insisted on, the bill "does not adequately invest in the priorities of the country," while a news release from Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole has nothing bad to say about the bill.

But one thing Price and Dole agree on is that the bill, which the president is expected to sign, contains good things for the Triangle. Among them:

* $984,000 for Durham to upgrade its aging water and wastewater infrastructure and for Cary, Apex, Morrisville and Holly Springs to construct a new regional water treatment facility to keep pace with growth.

* $3.7 million for road and highway projects in the Triangle, including funding for the southwestern portion of Interstate 540, separations of grade crossings at Walker Street in Cary and Hobson Road in Durham and statewide upgrades in bus service.

* $2.3 million for law enforcement agencies in Wake, Durham and Orange counties to expand forensic investigative capabilities and improve emergency response abilities using satellite technology.

* Money for area universities, including $4.7 million supporting textile research at N.C. State and $1 million for medical research at UNC-Chapel Hill.

* $545,000 for a study on improvements to flood plains in the Neuse River Basin. The study will investigate in-stream water quality, environmental restoration and flood damage reduction.