The Delta Grassroots Caucus (DGC) is a broad coalition of grassroots leaders in the eight-state Delta region. DGC is also a founding partner of the Economic Equality Caucus,
which advocates for economic equality across the USA.

Praise for Rep. Ross' Work on Infrastructure/Jobs Investments & Success of DRA Funding

Posted on March 15, 2012 at 12:19 PM

We would like to give our enthusiastic support to two excellent statements this week regarding the Delta’s economic development: One from Delta Regional Authority Federal Co-Chairman Chris Masingill about the impressive accomplishments of DRA investments in the region based on a report from the USDA Economic Research Service, and the other from Congressman Mike Ross on his efforts to increase investments in infrastructure improvements to create jobs and strengthen the economy.

We include excerpts from the two newsletters below to give credit where it’s due. The DRA statement focused on a report from the USDA Economic Research Service finding that for each DRA dollar invested in nonmetropolitan counties and parishes in the Delta, per capita income increased $15. That is a remarkable level of return for every dollar invested.

The DRA does a lot of good with their relatively small budget, and that budget needs to go up as the continuing evidence of their success mounts all the time.

In a general, broad-based call for greater investments in highway, rails, ports and other infrastrucuture, we would also like to call your attention to and give all of our support to Congressman Ross’ support for job creation through infrastructure investments:

Rep. Ross said; “I believe there is no better way to create jobs and put our local economies on a path to long-term economic growth than to focus on the development of first-class roadways, rail opportunities, ports, and inland waterways. Similar to how President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) Program helped create jobs during the Great Depression, we need a modern-day WPA-type investment in our infrastructure now.”

(FOOTNOTE: Space is filling up for the Delta Grassroots Caucus conference on May 3-4; for registration and schedule see the website at www.mdgc.us)

Many other Members of Congress and executive branch officials are also doing excellent work, of course, but these two recent messages from Congressman Ross and Chairman Masingill this week came to our attention as being right on target. We know the economy is still struggling, but we just wanted to point out that along with the challenges there are some very constructive activities going on. Lee Powell, Delta Grassroots Caucus (202) 360-6347

STATEMENT FROM DRA FEDERAL COCHAIRMAN CHRIS MASINGILL’S NEWSLETTER

“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others…he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope…those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.” Those words from Robert F. Kennedy, during a speech at Cape Town University in South Africa in 1966, actually ring true for today’s Delta Regional Authority on a regular basis. As a small agency, the work that we do every day to improve the lives of the people in the Delta region often feels like it is only making a “tiny ripple.”

But the report below gives me hope. The study from our colleagues with the Economic Research Service at the US Department of Agriculture actually determined that for each DRA dollar invested in nonmetropolitan counties and parishes in the Delta region, per capita income increased $15.00. This is perhaps the greatest evidence, in nearly two years as Federal Co-Chairman, that our tiny ripples have the power to become a mighty current.

Enjoy, Chris Masingill Federal Co-Chairman Delta Regional Authority

Per Capita Income Grows Faster in Delta Regional Authority Counties

Rise in incomes in counties receiving funding from the Delta Regional Authority stemmed largely from investments in the health and social services sector.

The Delta Regional Authority invested $75 million in the Mississippi Delta region from 2002 to 2009.

Growth in personal income per capita averaged $600 higher in DRA-funded nonmetropolitan counties in 2002-07 than in similar counties outside the DRA region.

Each $1 of additional DRA funding was associated with an additional $15 in growth of personal income, mainly from increased health and social services sector earnings and increased medical transfer payments. John Pender Richard Reeder

END OF DRA STATEMENT EXCERPT

EXCERPT FROM CONGRESSMAN ROSS’ MARCH NEWSLETTER:

As our economy continues to recover, one of our top priorities should be to help people find a job or keep the one they have. By ensuring that every Arkansan looking for a job has one, we can work to keep families in their homes, small businesses open and our economy growing.

I believe there is no better way to create jobs and put our local economies on a path to long-term economic growth than to focus on the development of first-class roadways, rail opportunities, ports, and inland waterways. Similar to how President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) Program helped create jobs during the Great Depression, we need a modern-day WPA-type investment in our infrastructure now.

We can no longer ignore our nation’s deteriorating infrastructure or our state’s growing need to expand the current infrastructure system. It is estimated that for every billion dollars we spend on road construction, nearly 35,000 new jobs are created. As we work to position Arkansas as a national leader in business and as a global economic player, we must first ensure that our state’s infrastructure is top-notch.

Since first taking office, I have pushed for funding to expand U.S. Highway 82 and 167 to four lanes, to complete the Hot Springs Expressway and to build Interstate 49 (I-49), Interstate 69 (I-69), and Interstate 530 (I-530).

In fact, on November 9, 2011, I joined a coalition of public officials and business leaders in Drew County to break ground on the Arkansas portion of Interstate 69 – an interstate that will span over 2,700 miles from the Canadian border in Michigan to the Mexican border in Texas running through Arkansas.

Construction will create many much-needed jobs and, once it’s built, it will boost commerce to the region and usher in new economic opportunities for many of our towns and businesses. Much like I-40 and I-30 have helped communities all along its corridors grow and prosper, I-49 and I-69 will help do the same.

Strong waterways are also a bridge to economic growth and an improved standard of living throughout our state. Arkansas’s waterways play a key role in economic development here at home and across this nation ensuring we are able to transport goods, maintain access to water supplies, and take advantage of our state’s recreational and tourism opportunities.

Adequately funding our waterway infrastructure in Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District has been a priority of mine during my time in Congress. We have vital waterways in our district that serve as critical transportation routes including the Red River, the Ouachita-Black Navigation System, the Arkansas River and the Mississippi River, which forms the eastern border of our state and is the main trade corridor for goods produced in the northern part of the U.S. traveling to gateway ports near the Gulf. Investing in and maintaining these waterways will enhance manufacturing and distribution opportunities and create jobs here in Arkansas.

In addition to our roadways and waterways, rail continues to be an important part of the economy throughout Arkansas, particularly in our district. It is critical to almost every industry in our state, from manufacturing to agriculture and timber. By improving our rail infrastructure, we not only make transportation safer, but also more efficient. This investment will help businesses throughout Arkansas strengthen and grow their operations, boosting our economy and creating more jobs.

Repairing and rebuilding our roads and bridges, and developing, ports, inland waterways, and rail opportunities will be key to our continued economic recovery. These projects not only create jobs in the short term, they also strengthen our infrastructure, helping to boost commerce and economic development in the long term. We need to start rebuilding America again.

While we must cut spending, we simply cannot ignore our nation’s infrastructure, which is key to boosting commerce and growing our economy. As the Congressman for Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District, I will continue fighting for critical federal investments that will help boost our state’s infrastructure development and put people back to work.–Congressman Mike Ross