Highlights from the President's FY 2018 Budget Request: Regional Commissions

Unless otherwise noted, all FY 2018 figures are from the other independent agencies’ budget proposal, and all FY 2017 figures are from committee reports for the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2017.

The president’s FY 2018 budget proposal includes requests for four regional commissions with the funds appropriated only for the purposes of closure of these commissions, including:

• $31 million for the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC);
• $7.3 million for the  Denali Commission;
• $2.5 million for the Delta Regional Authority (DRA); and,
• $850,000 for the Northern Border Regional Commission.

These new funds and unobligated balances appropriated prior years will be available for the ongoing administration, oversight, and monitoring of grants previously awarded by the Commissions.

In the FY 2017 approved budget, Congress showed strong bipartisan support in the appropriations for these four commissions including: $152 million to ARC (the commission’s largest appropriation in its history); $25 million to DRA; $15 million to the Denali Commission; and, $10 million to the Northern Border Regional Commission. The $152 million to ARC included funding for the ARC’s contribution to the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) grants program.