The Southern - Bost talks jobs, economy in Cairo

News Article

By Molly Parker

Some of the constituents who came to Cairo City Hall on Monday to chat with U.S. Rep. Mike Bost talked about economic declines in the southernmost regions of the state.

Cairo Mayor Tyrone Coleman said it's not only important to invest in job growth but also re-training.

"I think the average person is not equipped for the type of jobs that really pay good money today," he said.

Coleman also suggested government needs to step in and help people with felonies on their records re-enter the job market. He expressed concern to the Congressman that some in his community want to work, but are not being accepted for jobs because of mistakes they made 20 years ago or more.

Bost visited Cairo as part of a "listening tour" that he's sponsoring throughout the district. He previously made stops in Belleville and Mount Vernon, and said he hopes to visit every community in the expansive 12th Congressional district before year's end. One of Bost's chief criticisms of former Rep. Bill Enyart was that he wasn't in touch enough with constituents in the district.

"We have a niche of that right here in our community," the mayor said of people with felony convictions searching for jobs and coming up short. "It's not that they don't want to work. They're out here hustling every day. But they just can't break loose from that legal document."

Bost responded that he understood the mayor's concerns and that of people being denied jobs because of a record. He said the government has to balance helping people into the workforce with allowing employers to make decisions they feel are best for their business. For example, Bost said it might be important to know if someone applying for a banking job was convicted for embezzling funds.

"Yes, you want to give them the opportunity to work," Bost said. "But you want to be careful, because it's a double-edged sword. If you loosen the restraints on them, where do you draw the line?"

Bost did not offer any specific examples of how to solve the problem, but said he was glad to discuss it.

While the economy weighed heavy at the meeting, the majority of the 12 people who showed up -- seven of them -- were there to lobby the Congressman for his help in opening up the Shawnee National Forest to all-terrain vehicles such as four-wheelers.

Keith Benefield, of McClure, said opening up the forest to ATVs would bring tourism dollars to a region in need of a financial boost. Though certain to be a controversial proposal, Bost said he would research the issue and was sympathetic to their interests without giving a direct opinion on the matter.

Benefield argued that riding four-wheelers on trails causes less damage to the forest than horse-back riding.

"People will pay to play on the weekend," he said.

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