Kaine Leads Push to Direct Millions of Dollars toward Southeast Crescent Regional Commission
SCRC would bring much-needed investments to economically distressed communities throughout Virginia
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine led his colleagues Senators Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and Jon Ossoff (D-GA) in an effort to push for the inclusion of $33 million in the Fiscal Year 2023 budget for the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission (SCRC) to improve economic conditions in communities lacking access to capital and adequate public infrastructure. While the SCRC was created in 2008, it has lacked the funding authorizations from Congress it needs to effectively direct resources toward communities.
“The SCRC is an independent federal agency dedicated to promoting economic development in the Southeastern United States – specifically Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. Established in the model of other regional commissions, such as the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) and Delta Regional Authority, the SCRC, if appropriately funded, will serve as a significant federal resource for jobs and businesses, particularly in distressed and underserved communities,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter to Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and John Kennedy (R-LA), the Chairwoman and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee with jurisdiction over SCRC funding.
“Commission investments to grow business and job development opportunities include basic public infrastructure, workforce training, and telecommunications, among other key assets… Additional federal resources will be critical to promote sustainable economies, job and business development, and improved quality of life throughout the Southeast United States,” they continued.
All Virginia counties east of those in the Appalachian region of Virginia—which are already part of the Appalachian Regional Commission—are included in the SCRC, and are given an economic status assessment based on how they compare to national averages of various economic measures. Counties that are the most severely and persistently economically distressed and underdeveloped, as well as those who have recently suffered from high rates of poverty, unemployment, or outmigration, are more likely to be eligible for funding. For a map of SCRC counties in Virginia and their respective economic statuses, click here.
Full text of the letter is available here and follows below.
Dear Chairwoman Feinstein and Ranking Member Kennedy:
As you begin work on the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill, we respectfully request inclusion of funding for the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission (SCRC) at the currently authorized level of $33 Million.
The SCRC is an independent federal agency dedicated to promoting economic development in the Southeastern United States – specifically Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. Established in the model of other regional commissions, such as the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) and Delta Regional Authority, the SCRC, if appropriately funded, will serve as a significant federal resource for jobs and businesses, particularly in distressed and underserved communities.
The SCRC was created through the 2008 Farm Bill alongside the Northern Border Regional Commission and Southwest Border Regional Commission to address and improve economic conditions in communities across the nation lacking access to capital and adequate public infrastructure. Commission investments to grow business and job development opportunities include basic public infrastructure, workforce training, and telecommunications, among other key assets. The SCRC is led by governors of the region’s seven states and a presidentially-appointed co-chair.
We urge your consideration of fully funding the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission at the authorized level in the Fiscal Year 2023 Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. Additional federal resources will be critical to promote sustainable economies, job and business development, and improved quality of life throughout the Southeast United States. Thank you for your consideration of this request.
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