TRUMP PLAN defunds Delta aid provider.
Closing it would be a blow, say governor, 3 in Congress
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration wants to cut funds for the Delta Regional Authority, a government agency that promotes economic development in eastern Arkansas and other portions of the Mississippi Delta.
The move faces opposition from some members of the Arkansas congressional delegation.
The Delta Regional Authority is one of 19 independent agencies marked for closure under a 2018 budget blueprint released Thursday by the White House Office of Management and Budget.
If President Donald Trump’s budget passes, the economic development agency would go out of business.
“It would no longer exist,” said Chris Masingill, the authority’s federal co-chairman. “It’s one thing to have a budget reduction, to have your resources cut down. What the president is recommending is a complete elimination. That’s the first time that that’s ever happened.”
Lake Village Mayor JoAnne Bush said she hopes the agency survives.
Delta Regional Authority dollars helped restore a vacant century-old building on
Main Street. It now serves as City Hall.
The authority also helped the town obtain a new firetruck and extend to waterlines a new business.
In each instance, the authority’s dollars were combined with other funds, providing an important boost to the effort, she said.
“It would really be devastating if it were terminated,” she added. “They’ve been a great help to our area, and they’ve been a great help to every area that they serve.”
The authority, which was created in 2000 with the support of then-President Bill Clinton, covers portions of Alabama and seven states that border the Mississippi River.
It serves 252 counties and parishes, many of them with high rates of poverty.
Since its inception, the authority says it has distributed $163 million in aid to the region and helped retain or create more than 26,000 jobs.
After the White House announcement, U.S. Sen. John Boozman said it would be a mistake to close the agency.
“The Delta Regional Authority has done good work. It’s been a tremendous resource,” the Republican from Rogers said.
Lawmakers who represent the Delta region will fight to keep the agency alive, he said.
“The president’s budget is not binding. That’s just their recommendation,” Boozman said, adding, “Congress will have the final say.”
Nearly all of the states affected by the move lean Republican. Other than Illinois, they all sided with Trump in the November election.
In a written statement, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson called the Delta Regional Authority “a very important partner in economic development in Arkansas.”
Delta Regional Authority “funding has been a crucial factor in attracting industry, building infrastructure and meeting the needs of our communities in the Arkansas Delta. I am confident that Congress will take a second look at the budget,” he said.
“Whether those needs are met through the [Delta Regional Authority] or another vehicle, it is important not to shift additional cost burdens to the state.”
Although some Arkansas officials voiced concerns about the proposal, Trump’s budget announcement drew cheers from Citizens Against Government Waste, a Washington-based organization that targets federal programs it considers inefficient or unnecessary.
The group’s president, Tom Schatz, issued a written statement praising the White House for seeking to shut down the Delta Regional Authority and other groups.
“Every wasteful and duplicative program or agency has a constituency that will fight tooth and nail against any change in how bureaucratic business gets done,” it said. “[U]tilizing his private sector experience, President Trump has boldly challenged this status quo, brought private sector disruptors into his cabinet, and proposed a thoughtful and fiscally
conservative budget.”
David Ray, state director of Americans for Prosperity Arkansas, said it’s appropriate to take a hard look at the Delta Regional Authority and other taxpayer-funded groups.
Belt-tightening is overdue, he said.
“The president’s budget eliminates wasteful programs and bureaucracy. That’s something we support,” he said.
In addition to targeting the Delta agency, the Trump administration also hopes to close the Denali Commission, which promotes economic development in Alaska, and the Appalachian Regional Commission, which works to stimulate economic development in a 13-state region stretching from New York to South Carolina.
Trump carried 10 of the 13 states as well as Alaska in last November’s election.
U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, a Jonesboro Republican who represents counties up and down the Mississippi River, said closure of the Delta Regional Authority would be a blow to eastern Arkansas.
“That’s a tough, tough pill to swallow,” he said.
The Delta Regional Authority has been “pretty important to economic development in rural areas, so I’m a little surprised [by the move],” Crawford said.
While federal spending needs to be curtailed, it’s a mistake to eliminate a program that has been so successful, he said.
“I think it’s important to recognize the value that these regional authorities bring to rural communities. … These agencies are key enablers for rural economies,” he said.
Crawford said he would encourage his colleagues to oppose the move.”Hopefully we can form an alliance and maybe get the president to reconsider that.”
U.S. Rep. Steve Womack said he’ll also work to keep the Delta Regional Authority alive.
“I know it’s a very important program that serves an extremely useful purpose and I will work with my colleagues in Arkansas to ensure that it is not zeroed out,” the Republican from Rogers said.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman said he’s still examining the proposal and hasn’t decided whether he’ll support it.
But the Republican from Hot Springs said it’s time to re-examine federal budget priorities.
“When we look at the overall picture of the deficit spending, we have got to make cuts somewhere,” he said. “This administration is trying to look at how they can best take care of the spending problems that we’ve got.”
U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton was traveling and hadn’t yet read the document, spokesman Caroline Rabbitt said. The office of U.S. Rep. French Hill did not respond to numerous requests for comment.