§14526 Distressed, At-risk, and Economically Strong Counties

Summary

Each year the Appalachian Regional Commission must sort counties in the Appalachian region into four groups: distressed (the most badly and long-time struggling), at-risk (most likely to become distressed), competitive (getting close to the national average), and attainment (at or above the national average). The Commission must check every label every year and only keep a county in a group for another year if it still meets the rules. When planning programs and using money, the Commission must put counties labeled distressed first. For counties labeled competitive, the Commission normally may pay no more than 30 percent of a project’s cost. For attainment counties, the Commission normally may not fund projects. Exceptions include projects on the Appalachian development highway system, certain local development district administrative projects, or multicounty projects that include and help a distressed county. The Commission can also waive the funding limits if a project shows a serious pocket of distress inside the county or a big benefit outside it. Each year the Commission must report all waivers to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.