phonemarking
n.— «Within days, however, lawmakers including Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) began directly contacting the Energy Department. They sought to secure money for their favorite causes outside of the congressional appropriations process—a practice that lobbyists and appropriations insiders call “phonemarking.”…Phonemarking is another way lawmakers are trying to secure money for projects outside of the new congressional appropriations process by going directly to federal agencies.» —“In the Democratic Congress, Pork Still Gets Served” by John Solomon, Jeffrey H. Birnbaum Washington Post May 24, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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