Regional development programs. --The sum of $29,000,000 is included in the accompanying bill to provide for the development programs and administrative expenses of the regional commissions and for regional research and coordination. This amount is $16,000,000 less than the total requested but is $5,361,000 more than the comparable funds available for the current fiscal year. There are currently five regional commissions-Coastal Plains, Four Corners, New England, Ozarks, and Upper Great Lakes-covering all or parts of 20 States. Appropriation 1970 (enacted to date)...... Cost of within-grade step increases.. Additional amount in FY 1971 to provide Assumption by State of 50% of the Admin- Subtotal, adjustments to base and Program changes (see detail below by activities).. Total, increases requested and allowed.. Total, appropriation requested and allowed, 1971... (base for 1971), as Requested Pos. Program Changes: Inc. (+) or Dec. (-) Application of: House Perm. House Amendment Perm Pern. 1970 Adjusted 1970 adjusted (base for 1971) and program changes Perm. Four Corners...... 3,239 +4,151 +1,381 -2,770 +2,730 +3,397 941 Upper Great Lakes.. Regional research... 431 -14 -205 +5,753 -191 -15,751 The House allowance of $29 million is an overall increase of $5,708,000 above the 1971 adjusted base of $23,292,000. The allowance would provide an additional $5,958,000 for the Development Programs authorized by Sections 505(a)(2) and 509(a) of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended. The increase would continue the Regional Commissions' on-going programs of technical assistance and would provide a greater number of supplemental grants to assist the tax-drained communities within these regions in meeting the local share of Federal grant-in-aid programs. The House amount would allow an average of only $1,305,000 for the twenty member States of the five Regional Commissions or slightly more than 60 percent of the average per State in the President's request. The reduced amount will sharply curtail the Commissions 'use of the new demonstration and "first dollar" authorities enacted in P.L. 91-123 during the first session of the Congress. Section 505(c) of the Public Works and Economic Development Act limits expenditures for Regional Research and Administrative Expenses to 10 percent of the amount appropriated for any fiscal year. The House allowance falls $250,000 short of providing the base costs of $3,150,000 for these activities. In order to stay within the $2,900,000 that would be available from the House allowance, the Regional Research program must be kept at the 1970 level, a level already curtailed by $205,000 from the amount approved for 1970. The balance of the $250,000 reduction required to operate within the House amount ($45,000) would be obtained by cutting back the Federal share of the support of the staffs of the Regional Commissions. This cutback doubles to a $90,000 total reduction when the State contributions are considered and will likely require staff reductions in the Commissions operating at their base levels. Inasmuch as the States have approved and appropriated funds to supply their half of these costs, the reduction threatens the concept of cooperative Federal-State regional economic development. JUSTIFICATION OF AMENDMENTS REQUESTED Development Programs--Appeal is made for the full $42,077,000 budgeted for this activity requiring an increase of $15,751,000 over the amount allowed by the House. The increase includes $205,000 to restore the base for Regional Research, as outlined above, and $15,546,000 for program increases. The House reduction would force all the Regional Commissions to cut back severely the proposed development programs in human resources, especially vocational education centers, industrial site development in key communities, access roads to serve new and expanded industry, and eliminate programs in recreation and tourism development and health facilities. As noted above the House allowance will allow a cutting into the inventory of supplemental grant projects, but it will not permit funding of a sufficient number of demonstration and first dollar public facility projects to test these new and unique economic development tools before the legislation expires next June. These new economic development tools offer much promise to these five large concentrations of economic dis tress. Administrative Expenses--Restoration to the amount budgeted includes $45,000 to maintain the base level of Federal support of the Commission's administrative expenses; and $162,000 to provide an additional Staff Assistant for each Federal Cochairman; and expansion of the support grants to the Coastal Plains, Four Corners and New England Commissions, to equal the matching amounts which the States have in good faith already appropriated towards the approved budgets of the Commissions. In addition to the above, $42,000 are also required for the Four Corners Federal Cochairman ($12,000) and the Special Assistant to the Secretary for Regional Economic Coordination ($30,000) to meet ongoing costs that cannot be absorbed in the base budget. TITLE V REGIONAL ACTION PLANNING COMMISSION FUNDS RECOGNITION OF FEDERAL COCHAIRMEN Senator MCCLELLAN. I should like to welcome Mr. Ralph S. Rhoades, Special Assistant to Federal Cochairman, Ozarks Regional Commission; Mr. G. Fred Steele, Jr., Federal Cochairman of the Coastal Plains Regional Commission; Mr. L. Ralph Mecham, Federal Cochairman of Four Corners Regional Commission; Mr. Stewart Lamprey, Federal Cochairman of the New England Regional Commission; and Mr. Alfred E. France, Federal Cochairman of the Upper Great Lakes Regional Commission. Our principal witness is Mr. James E. Hawkins, Special Assistant to the Secretary of Commerce for Regional Economic Coordination. Mr. Hawkins, you may proceed to tell us why this $16 million should be restored. Mr. HAWKINS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Senator MCCLELLAN. You may read your statement, if you wish. STATUTORY AUTHORIZATION Mr. HAWKINS. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, the Federal Cochairmen and I are here today to support the full 1971 budget request of $45 million for the regional development programs of the Department of Commerce. These programs are authorized by title V of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended, and were formerly budgeted in three other appropriations: "Development Facilities"; "Planning, Technical Assistance and Research"; and "Operations and Administration." APPEAL ALLOCATION Full restoration of the $16 million reduction made by the House would provide an additional $3.2 million for the Coastal Plains; $2.8 million for the Four Corners; $3.4 million for New England; $3 million for the Ozarks; and $3.4 million for the Upper Great Lakes. We are also requesting restoration of $221,000 for coordination of the national regional economic development effort through the Office of the Special Assistant to the Secretary for Regional Economic Coordination. With your permission, Mr. Chairman, I would like to submit as part of this statement a comparison of the 1971 base, the House allowance, and the 1971 estimates. Senator MCCLELLAN. The material may be received and printed in the record. (The table follows:) |