WASHINGTON --- Tired of watching more federal money go to powerhouses such as Los Angeles and San Francisco, Sacramentans will be all a-twitter as they head to Washington en masse to lobby for billions of dollars in economic stimulus money.

In one of the largest citizen-lobbying efforts in the nation, the Sacramento Metro Chamber organized a trip for 283 Sacramento area residents who plan to make their case in more than 250 meetings with members of Congress and other government officials.

The annual five-day trek, now in its 39th year, is called Cap-to-Cap, and this year's effort is aimed at cashing in on the $787 billion stimulus package signed into law by President Barack Obama in February.

With billions of stimulus dollars yet to be distributed, chamber officials say it's an urgent trip and they hope to better their chances of winning money by pressing the flesh in person.

"The advocacy effort truly makes a difference for the region," said Matt Mahood, president and chief executive officer of the chamber.

If you're wondering why members of Congress are under intense pressure to deliver earmarks, all you have to do is look at the chamber's lengthy wish list of projects. Earmarks may be under attack by many politicians, but chamber officials are not being shy in requesting them.

Their list includes money for more than 1,000 road and other projects, 1,000 subsidized summer jobs for kids, and requests ranging from $8 million for a 480-space parking garage in Woodland, $5 million for a railroad technology museum in Sacramento's railyards and more money for the "K Street Streetscape Project" to revitalize Sacramento's historic Main Street.

"The Metro chamber understands what earmarks are," Michael Faust, the chamber's senior vice president of public policy and economic development, said Friday. "It's simply members of Congress deciding where the money is going to be spent as opposed to people in federal bureaucracies."

Chamber officials are not putting a price tag on their requests.

"We haven't tallied it up," Faust said. "The reality is that Sacramento wants its fair share."

For the first time, Cap-to-Cap delegates this year will be communicating with each other through social networking sites Facebook and Twitter. The chamber is providing delegates with detailed instructions on how to sign up for the sites and post messages.

They should have much to talk about.

After attending a reception at the Mayflower Hotel on Sunday hosted by Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and Yolo County Supervisor Helen Thompson, delegates will meet with, among others, Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, Democratic Reps. Doris Matsui and Mike Thompson and Republican Reps. Dan Lungren and Tom McClintock.

And two of their scheduled luncheon speakers are big names in Washington: Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Lawrence Summers, chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers.

This year's group represents business, civic and government leaders from a six-county region. Delegates will be divided into 12 policy teams for their lobbying, but they'll concentrate on four priorities: getting more money for economic development, health care, transportation and flood protection.

Here's a sampling of the chamber's other requests:

> $900,000 for emergency communication improvements for Yolo County.

> $418 million for flood protection projects for the American River, Sacramento River, Folsom Dam, Notomas and South Sacramento streams.

> $336,000 for the Los Rios Community College District to serve veterans returning from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with education and job training.

> $330,000 for a young guardian scholars program that would match 90 eighth- and nine-grade youths in foster care with mentors who are former foster-care youths now attending Sacramento State University.

> Reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind education law, with new provisions that would make it easier for schools to avoid "unnecessary punitive actions" if they fail to meet current standards.

> Certification for Sacramento City College to become part of the FAA's air traffic collegiate training program.