About DRA
The Delta Regional Authority works to improve life for the 10 million people who reside in the 252 Delta counties and parishes in parts of eight states. Led by the Delta Regional Authority Board comprised of the Federal Co-Chairman, appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, and the governors of the eight states, the Delta Regional Authority fosters partnerships throughout the region as it works to improve the Delta economy.
In 2000, Congress established the Delta Regional Authority to enhance economic development and improve the quality of life for the hard-working residents of the Delta region. With investments from the States’ Economic Development Assistance Program, formerly the Federal Grant Program, to improve transportation and basic infrastructure, the Delta Regional Authority supports job creation and retention. Initiatives such as iDelta and the Healthy Delta Initiative ensure that Delta communities are connected and healthy in the 21st century.
The 252 counties and parishes served by the Delta Regional Authority
make up the most distressed area of the country. The disparities between
the Delta region and the nation as a whole are stark. As defined by the
Economic Development Administration, virtually all the counties and
parishes in the region are distressed.
- A recent study shows that life expectancy for men and women in the Delta region, is years behind the national average.
- According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, when unemployment
spiked across the nation in November 2010, the number of those out of
jobs in rural counties was twice that of the national average.
- Of the 252 counties and parishes served, 250 have per capita income levels at or below the national average.
- The poverty rate in the region is 55 percent higher than the national rate
- Compared with the national rates, deaths in the
Delta from circulatory diseases are 21.2 percent higher, deaths from
cancer are 12.7 percent higher and deaths from accidents are 42 percent
higher.
Devastating statistics such as these are what led Congress to create
the Delta Regional Authority in 2000 after years of commissions, task
forces and study groups. The time for studies was over. The time for
action had arrived.
Since its creation ten years ago, the Delta Regional Authority has
worked to improve the lives of the 10 million people who live in the
Delta. Targeted investments in each of the eight states has created over
6000 jobs and retained nearly the same number of jobs. With a leverage
ratio of 23:1, the Delta Regional Authority leveraged $1.4 billion in
private investment with DRA projects and helped 17,000 families gain
access to clean water and sewer service.
The Delta Regional Authority forges partnerships throughout the region. Local development districts are key partners, as are the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development offices in the region and state economic development departments.
Federal Co-Chairman Masingill and the eight governors, including States’ Co-Chairman Governor Nixon, provide a strategic economic development investment in the Delta region’s communities, families and businesses.
Click here for a copy of the 2011 Year in Review