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Appalachian Regional Commission: Difference between revisions
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The '''Appalachian Regional Commission''' ('''ARC''') is a [[United States]] federal–state partnership that works with the people of | 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. Congress established ARC to bring the region into socioeconomic parity with the rest of the nation. | ||
The Appalachian Region, as defined by Congress, includes all of [[West Virginia]] and portions of 12 other states: [[Alabama]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[Kentucky]], [[Maryland]], [[Mississippi]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[North Carolina]], [[Ohio]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[South Carolina]], [[Tennessee]], and [[Virginia]]. ARC serves 423 counties and 8 | The Appalachian Region, as defined by Congress, includes all of [[West Virginia]] and portions of 12 other states: [[Alabama]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], [[Kentucky]], [[Maryland]], [[Mississippi]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[North Carolina]], [[Ohio]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[South Carolina]], [[Tennessee]], and [[Virginia]]. ARC serves 423 counties and 8 independent cities that encompass roughly {{convert|205000|sqmi}}, with a population of more than 25 million people. | ||
The Appalachian Regional Commission has 14 members: the governors of the 13 Appalachian states and a federal co-chair, who is appointed by the president and confirmed by the [[United States Senate|Senate]]. A professional staff carries out the work of the Commission. | The Appalachian Regional Commission has 14 members: the governors of the 13 Appalachian states and a federal co-chair, who is appointed by the president and confirmed by the [[United States Senate|Senate]]. A professional staff carries out the work of the Commission. | ||
The current federal co-chair is | The current federal co-chair is Gayle Conelly Manchin. Manchin was appointed by President [[Joe Biden]] and confirmed by the Senate on April 29, 2021, by voice vote. The 2024 states' co-chair is Tennessee governor Bill Lee. Grassroots participation is provided through 73 local development districts, which are multi-county organizations with boards made up of elected officials, business people, and other local leaders. The ARC is a planning, research, advocacy, and funding organization. It does not have any governing power within the region. | ||
== Geography and sociology == | == Geography and sociology == | ||
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=== ARC boundaries versus cultural boundaries === | === ARC boundaries versus cultural boundaries === | ||
A study conducted in 1981 comparing the perceptions of Appalachia's boundaries and the ARC's definition, published in the academic journal ''Southeastern Geographer,'' asked respondents to draw an encircled area identifying what they considered to be Appalachia on a map. The study found less than 20% of respondents agreed that southern New York was part of Appalachia, as designated by the ARC, and that less than 10% of respondents agreed with the ARC's inclusion of northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama in Appalachia. Respondents residing outside of Appalachia were more likely to define the region broadly, in agreement with the ARC, and respondents from within the region were more likely to define it restrictively. The majority of responses defined Appalachia as an area encircling the locations possessing the highest amount of negative characteristics that the ARC was created to combat—flooding, | A study conducted in 1981 comparing the perceptions of Appalachia's boundaries and the ARC's definition, published in the academic journal ''Southeastern Geographer,'' asked respondents to draw an encircled area identifying what they considered to be Appalachia on a map. The study found less than 20% of respondents agreed that southern New York was part of Appalachia, as designated by the ARC, and that less than 10% of respondents agreed with the ARC's inclusion of northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama in Appalachia. Respondents residing outside of Appalachia were more likely to define the region broadly, in agreement with the ARC, and respondents from within the region were more likely to define it restrictively. The majority of responses defined Appalachia as an area encircling the locations possessing the highest amount of negative characteristics that the ARC was created to combat—flooding, environmental degradation, poverty, and geographic isolation, among others.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Ulack |first1=Richard |last2=Raitz |first2=Karl |date=1 May 1981 |title=Appalachia: A Comparison of the Cognitive and Appalachian Regional Commission Regions |url=https://artsandsciences.sc.edu/appalachianenglish/sites/default/files/Ulack%20and%20Raitz%201981%20.pdf |journal=Southeastern Geographer |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=40–53 |doi=10.1353/sgo.1981.0003 |s2cid=129102929 |via=University of South Carolina Department of English}}</ref> [[File:Counties included in Appalachia map.svg|thumb|Cultural definitions of Appalachia:{{legend|#550000ff|Always included in Appalachia}}{{legend|#aa0000ff|Usually included in Appalachia}}{{legend|#ff8080ff|Sometimes included in Appalachia}}{{legend|#ffd5d5ff|Rarely included in Appalachia}}{{legend|#ffffffff|Physically contains the Appalachian Mountains or associated features; not culturally Appalachian}} The blue dotted line encloses the counties included in the ARC definition]] | ||
=== Socioeconomic characteristics of ARC boundaries === | === Socioeconomic characteristics of ARC boundaries === | ||
The ARC does not precisely correspond to what is considered Appalachia by the general public. For instance, parts of Mississippi were included in the commission because of similar problems with unemployment and poverty. In 2008, the [[Youngstown, Ohio]] region was declared part of Appalachia by the ARC | The ARC does not precisely correspond to what is considered Appalachia by the general public. For instance, parts of Mississippi were included in the commission because of similar problems with unemployment and poverty. In 2008, the [[Youngstown, Ohio]] region was declared part of Appalachia by the ARC due to the collapse of the steel industry in the region in the early 1980s, and the continuing unemployment problems in the region since.<ref>{{Cite web |date=8 October 2008 |title=S.496 - Appalachian Regional Development Act Amendments of 2008 |url=https://www.congress.gov/bill/110th-congress/senate-bill/496 |access-date=18 July 2023 |website=Library of Congress}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gatta |first=John Patrick |date=1 September 2007 |title=Youngstown, Appalachia? |url=https://metromonthly.wordpress.com/2007/09/01/youngstown-appalachia/ |access-date=18 July 2023 |website=Metro Monthly}}</ref> Additionally, certain regions generally considered to be part of Appalachia, such as most of Virginia's portion of the Shenandoah Valley, are not included in the ARC's charter. | ||
The inclusion of northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama in the ARC's charter was additionally in part based on an altered [[Rand McNally]] map submitted to Congress and the governor of Mississippi at the suggestion of local developer George Thompson Pound, depicting mountains in the two states that did not exist. This was done for two main reasons—to undermine the direct funding of [[African Americans|black]] communities in the affected areas in favor of preserving [[White supremacy in the United States|white supremacy]], and to engage in [[historical negationism]], made possible due to the method which the ARC used to fund communities within its charter. An area home to a large number of black Americans with an extensive history was effectively forced into a region known for its predominantly [[White Americans|white]] culture and lack of slavery within American history, in spite of the protest of black residents. As part of the scheme, attractions were to be built in the area with ARC funds celebrating the history of white settlers, with no attention paid towards the native [[Chickasaw]]s who had once inhabited the region or the current black residents.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-01-20 |title=The Making of Appalachian Mississippi |url=https://www.southerncultures.org/article/the-making-of-appalachian-mississippi/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Southern Cultures |language=en-US}}</ref> | The inclusion of northeastern Mississippi and northwestern Alabama in the ARC's charter was additionally in part based on an altered [[Rand McNally]] map submitted to Congress and the governor of Mississippi at the suggestion of local developer George Thompson Pound, depicting mountains in the two states that did not exist. This was done for two main reasons—to undermine the direct funding of [[African Americans|black]] communities in the affected areas in favor of preserving [[White supremacy in the United States|white supremacy]], and to engage in [[historical negationism]], made possible due to the method which the ARC used to fund communities within its charter. An area home to a large number of black Americans with an extensive history was effectively forced into a region known for its predominantly [[White Americans|white]] culture and lack of slavery within American history, in spite of the protest of black residents. As part of the scheme, attractions were to be built in the area with ARC funds celebrating the history of white settlers, with no attention paid towards the native [[Chickasaw]]s who had once inhabited the region or the current black residents.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-01-20 |title=The Making of Appalachian Mississippi |url=https://www.southerncultures.org/article/the-making-of-appalachian-mississippi/ |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=Southern Cultures |language=en-US}}</ref> | ||
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=== County economic classifications === | === County economic classifications === | ||
The ARC uses an index-based system to classify counties based on economic status, with five categories: distressed, at-risk, transitional, competitive, and attainment. In addition to county classifications, the ARC additionally classifies specific census tracts within non-distressed counties as distressed if they meet the standards of economic distress set by the ARC. The category at-risk was introduced on ARC maps in 2006; before then only the four other categories were used.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-05-13 |title=County Economic Status in Appalachia, FY 2006 - Appalachian Regional Commission |url=https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=5 |access-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513064133/https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=5 |archive-date=2017-05-13 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-05-13 |title=County Economic Status in Appalachia, FY 2005 - Appalachian Regional Commission |url=https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=10 |access-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513064150/https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=10 |archive-date=2017-05-13 }}</ref> | The ARC uses an index-based system to classify counties based on economic status, with five categories: distressed, at-risk, transitional, competitive, and attainment. In addition to county classifications, the ARC additionally classifies specific census tracts within non-distressed counties as distressed if they meet the standards of economic distress set by the ARC. The category at-risk was introduced on ARC maps in 2006; before then only the four other categories were used.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-05-13 |title=County Economic Status in Appalachia, FY 2006 - Appalachian Regional Commission |url=https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=5 |access-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513064133/https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=5 |archive-date=2017-05-13 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-05-13 |title=County Economic Status in Appalachia, FY 2005 - Appalachian Regional Commission |url=https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=10 |access-date=2023-07-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513064150/https://www.arc.gov/research/MapsofAppalachia.asp?MAP_ID=10 |archive-date=2017-05-13 }}</ref> | ||
The ARC uses several indicators to designate an area as distressed, including median family income and the local poverty rate.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.arc.gov/distressed-areas-classification-system/|title=Distressed Areas Classification System - Appalachian Regional Commission}}</ref> Additional factors that go into determining a county's status are the three-year average unemployment rate and per capital market income.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.arc.gov/distressed-designation-and-county-economic-status-classification-system/|title=Distressed Designation and County Economic Status Classification System - Appalachian Regional Commission}}</ref> | The ARC uses several indicators to designate an area as distressed, including median family income and the local poverty rate.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.arc.gov/distressed-areas-classification-system/|title=Distressed Areas Classification System - Appalachian Regional Commission}}</ref> Additional factors that go into determining a county's status are the three-year average unemployment rate and per capital market income.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.arc.gov/distressed-designation-and-county-economic-status-classification-system/|title=Distressed Designation and County Economic Status Classification System - Appalachian Regional Commission}}</ref> | ||
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