WASHINGTON, February 4, 2008—President George W. Bush proposed a federal budget for fiscal year (FY) 2009 today that requests $65 million for the Appalachian Regional Commission’s (ARC) community and economic development programs.

The Commission’s programs are designed to advance the four goals of its strategic plan: 1) increasing job opportunities and per capita income in the Appalachian Region to reach parity with the nation; 2) strengthening the capacity of Appalachia’s citizens to compete in the global economy; 3) improving the Region’s infrastructure to make Appalachia economically competitive; 4) building the Appalachian Development Highway System to reduce the Region’s isolation.

ARC Federal Co-Chair Anne B. Pope welcomed President Bush’s budget proposal for the Commission. “I am pleased that the president’s budget provides $65 million for ARC,” she said. “This will enable ARC to continue in its mission of bringing the Appalachian Region into socioeconomic parity with the rest of the nation.”

The administration’s FY 2009 budget proposal must now go to Congress for its consideration.