Appalachian Regional Commission

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Areas included within the Appalachian Regional Commission's charter

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a United States federal-state partnership that works with the people of Appalachia to create opportunities for self-sustaining economic development and improved quality of life. The mission of ARC is to be a strategic partner and advocate for sustainable community and economic development in Appalachia. The ARC is a planning, research, advocacy and funding organization; it does not have any governing powers within the region.

The ARC was established by Congress in 1965 to support economic and social development in the Appalachian Region. The Commission is a unique partnership of 406 counties, and the governors of West Virginia, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, a presidential appointee representing the federal government, and Grassroots participation is provided through local development districts—multi-county organizations with boards made up of elected officials, businesspeople, and other local leaders.

The ARC's geographic range of coverage was defined broadly to cover as many economically underdeveloped areas as possible; it extends beyond the area usually thought of as "Appalachia". For instance, parts of Alabama and Mississippi were included in the commission because of similar problems with unemployment and poverty. The ARC's wide scope also [grew] out of the "pork barrel" phenomenom as politicians from outside the traditional Appalachian area saw a new way to bring home federal money to their areas.

ARC projects

ARC undertakes projects that address the four goals identified by ARC in its strategic plan:

Increase job opportunities and per capita income in Appalachia to reach parity with the nation.
Strengthen the capacity of the people of Appalachia to compete in the global economy.
Develop and improve Appalachia's infrastructure to make the region economically competitive.
Build the Appalachian Development Highway System to reduce Appalachia's isolation.

To meet these goals, ARC helps fund such projects as education and workforce training programs, highway construction, water and sewer system construction, small business start-ups and expansions, and development of health care resources.

How ARC works

Each year Congress appropriates funds, which ARC allocates among its member states. The Appalachian governors submit to ARC their state spending plans for the year, which include lists of projects they recommend for funding. The spending plans are reviewed and approved at a meeting of all the governors and the federal co-chair.

The next step is approval of individual projects by the ARC federal co-chair. After the states submit project applications to ARC, each project is reviewed by ARC program analysts. The process is completed when the federal co-chair reviews a project and formally approves it.

External links

"[Appalachian Regional Commission]." Accessed March 22, 2006.
["Appalachia: Hollow Promises"], a comprehensive 1999 series of articles on the region and the ARC published in the Columbus Dispatch

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