Letter to Lamar Alexander, Chairman of the Appropriations Committee; to Dianne Feinsten, Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee - On Federal Funding for the Northern Border Regional Commission

Letter

Dear Chairman Alexander and Ranking Member Feinstein:

As you begin consideration of the Fiscal Year 2017 (FY16) Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill, we write to express our strong support in providing $10 million for the Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC). We appreciate previous efforts you have made to make this a successful economic development effort along the Northern Border.

The NBRC is a joint federal-state economic development effort that includes some of the most economically distressed counties of central and northern New York, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. For decades, this region have faced tough economic circumstances brought about by a dwindling number of economic and employment opportunities. The Great Recession has only deepened these troubles.

Even as available funds for the program have increased, demand in funds requested and total applications has far exceeded the available resources. In FY15, for example, the percentage of awarded funds compared to the amounts requested was only 36 percent. For this same grant cycle, NBRC funds leveraged on average 2.6 dollars in matching funds for each federal grant dollar that was awarded. Projections show that these efforts will result in thousands of new jobs created and more than a thousand jobs retained.

Since economic opportunities cut across state lines, it is essential that our region address these obstacles to economic recovery in a meaningful and targeted way. By utilizing local and regional development plans, the commission will be able to effectively infuse federal funds into projects with a broad economic benefit all across the region. As Congress continues to work to revive our economy, we should allocate federal resources to programs like the NBRC that will promote economic development efforts in the most effective way possible. Given the significant return on investment and need for additional resources, it is critical we support the NBRC with the requested modest increase in funding.

Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer

United States Senator

Kristen Gillibrand
United States Senator

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