[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 3]
[House]
[Pages 2911-2912]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1745
      LEGISLATION ESTABLISHING DELTA BLACK BELT REGIONAL AUTHORITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. PEARCE). Under a previous order of

[[Page 2912]]

the House, the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Davis) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. DAVIS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight on behalf of the 
635,000 citizens in my congressional district, which is one of the 
three poorest congressional districts in the United States of America. 
As we focus on this budget and all the pressing economic needs in our 
country, we ought to remember that there is a class of Americans whose 
needs often go unaddressed in this body and elsewhere. It is the 
millions of Americans who live in the Black Belt of the South, or the 
Delta Region of the South.
  Just yesterday, I introduced legislation that I hope will crystallize 
attention on this problem that has gone for too long without a voice. 
We have a Delta Regional Authority in this country that is very ably 
led by Pete Johnson of the State of Mississippi. I seek to expand that 
authority to create a Delta Black Belt Regional Authority, and I seek 
that this body make a commitment that would be unprecedented in terms 
of its investment of resources in the southern and central parts of 
this country.
  This legislation, if enacted, would ask that $100 million be 
appropriated in the first fiscal year to 552 counties and 14 States in 
this country of ours. I recognize that I come before this Congress 
asking that this commitment be made at a time when the priorities of 
the President are very different. Across the South we see economic 
development programs being cut. We see the enterprise communities and 
the empowerment zones that have been so critical in my State and so 
critical in the States of so many of my colleagues zeroed out, 
eliminated from funding. We see funding for rural hospitals cut back. 
Our priorities, I would submit, are firmly and fundamentally wrong on 
all these issues.
  Too many people are losing their jobs. Too many companies are closing 
in the South. And I would submit that at this point we have two Souths. 
We have one that is prosperous, we have one that is growing, one that 
is in touch with the modern economy that we have. We have another one 
that is languishing; we have another one that has lagged behind. It is 
the second South that I represent in the seventh district of Alabama.
  We need to make a commitment that when 40 percent of the people in 
various counties live in poverty, we need to make a commitment that 
when too many children in the South live in school districts that are 
underfunded, that we put their concerns at the top of our agenda. We 
can talk all we want about economic development, but until we find ways 
to grow the physical infrastructure of the South and, more importantly, 
capitalize and build the human infrastructure of the South, we will see 
two Souths. We will see the South that I represent lag behind.
  When the President talks about compassionate conservatism, he does it 
with great eloquence. But his budget-makers need to meet his speech-
makers. We need to make a commitment that we will put resources and 
that we will give these resources a chance to work in a part of our 
country that has gone ignored.
  This legislation, and I have circulated ``Dear Colleague'' letters to 
many of the Members of the House, has a chance of passage if we 
remember two priorities: First of all, that this entire country is 
anchored and weighted down if the rural South continues to lag; and 
second of all, that no country can be strong when too many of the 
people who live in its borders are weak. No country can be strong when 
too many of the people who live in its borders are weak. There is too 
much weakness in the South tonight. There is too much poverty in the 
South tonight. And it is time that we make an unprecedented national 
commitment in this area.
  This legislation would do one final thing. It would give local 
communities, through a constituent representation board that I would 
put in this legislation, it would give them an opportunity to control 
20 percent of the funding that would be allocated to this new 
authority. It is important that the people who live on the ground, who 
do the work in our community and faith-based organizations have a 
chance to control and direct resources. It is important that they have 
an opportunity to control the way Federal funds are spent. Too many 
people are locked out of this process. Too many people are in 
situations where their voices go unheard as we think about how we spend 
economic development dollars.
  So I speak tonight on behalf of the rural South. I speak on behalf of 
the millions of children who live in poverty in that region, and I call 
for a national commitment beyond any that we have made.

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