Last year I inaugurated the Golden Grab award. Just as the movie industry has the golden statue of the Oscar to commemorate excellence in its arena, and as the Golden Globe award honors excellence in the theater, the Golden Grab award marks especially creative efforts to cheat the taxpayer and breach the public's trust.

Buried in the depths of the legislation the Congress voted on yesterday to fund the operations of the federal government is an indefensible effort by two states to steal $645 million from the taxpayer.

These states -- Louisiana and New Hampshire -- used loopholes and accounting gimmicks to get their hands on money that is supposed to go to health care for the elderly and the poor under Medicaid. They were raiding the pockets of the federal taxpayer so that they could cut spending at the state level.

These kinds of scams cost the taxpayer as much as $10 billion during the Bush Administration. But in 1993 we acted to stop these abuses. That cost some states -- including Michigan -- some federal money. But it was going to cost Michigan one-eighth of what it was going to cost Louisiana -- a state less than half the size of Michigan. In short, Louisiana raised ripping off the taxpayer to a high art. And the simple fact is that if you're serious about balancing the budget, you're going to have to make cuts somewhere.

Well, we put an end to this rascality -- until we found buried in the legislation funding the government a little $600 million gift for Louisiana's thievery, and a $45 million present for New Hampshire's chicanery. They not only get to keep their ill-gotten gains of the past, but their bad deeds will now be rewarded. This isn't money that will go to care for people with real health needs. These states are going to use these federal funds for roads, for prisons, for balancing their own budgets because they've proven themselves unable to manage their own affairs.

Who in the Congress is responsible for these giveaways? Here are two names: Mr. Livingston of Louisiana and Mr. Dole of Kansas. Why should Mr. Dole care about New Hampshire? I can only ask whether he made a few promises to New Hampshire's governor around the time of their primary.

There are many culprits in this caper. They are all deserving of the Golden Grab award.

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