The United States Congress passed the Fiscal Year 2009 Farm Bill, which included Representative Silvestre Reyes's border economic development initiative.

El Paso and the Southwest border region are poised to benefit from this year's Farm Bill. Last week, the United States Congress passed the Fiscal Year 2009 Farm Bill, a multibillion-dollar measure that provides funding for federal farm, nutrition assistance, rural development, and agricultural trade programs. Despite the bill's broad bipartisan support in both the U.S. House and Senate, the President has threatened to veto the measure.

While the bulk of the bill provides support for U.S. agriculture, the measure also deals with foreign food aid, environmental conservation, domestic food assistance, and agricultural research. This year's Farm Bill includes language, which I authored, to establish the Southwest Border Regional Commission (SWBRC), an initiative that will coordinate local, state, and federal efforts to spur economic growth.

The SWBRC, the first of its kind in the Southwest, will provide funding for projects in economically distressed counties along the U.S.-Mexico border. This initiative is modeled after the Appalachian Regional Commission, which coordinates local, regional, and federal economic development planning from southern New York to northern Mississippi. The SWBRC will function as an independent agency, and will have the exclusive authority to fund economic development projects in the Southwest border region. The Commission will be comprised of one Senate-confirmed federal representative, in addition to the governors of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.

Border counties have long endured stagnant economic conditions, and the Southwest border region continues to lag behind other parts of the country. According to research complied by the Interagency Task Force on the Economic Development of the Southwest Border, over 20 percent of border residents live below the poverty level, and unemployment rates often reach as high as five times the national unemployment rate. The national poverty rate currently stands at 13 percent, and unemployment at five percent. As one of the fastest growing regions in the United States, the federal government must invest in innovative approaches to improve conditions in Southwest border communities.

The SWBRC will coordinate economic development efforts at all levels of government. Currently, states and counties must compete against each other for a limited amount of federal funding. This approach fails to provide a unified approach to regional economic planning, as states and local governments have little incentive to cooperate with their neighbors. Such competition is unproductive and results in missed opportunities to leverage regional resources.

The Commission will fund proposals designed by local communities, and will streamline state and regional economic development efforts. This initiative will also leverage cooperative partnerships in the private sector, creating a holistic approach to regional economic planning. Projects that are consistent with both local and regional goals will be given the highest priority.

For too long, the needs of the Southwest border region have been ignored, overlooked, and under-funded. I am pleased that a sufficient number of Democrats and Republicans support the FY 2009 Farm Bill to override the President's threatened veto, bringing the Southwest Border Regional Commission one step closer to reality.