HYDE-SMITH WEIGHS PROS & CONS FOR MISS. IN FY27 TRANSPORTATION BUDGET
Miss. Senator Back Continued Essential Air Service Funding, Other Infrastructure Grant Programs Benefitting Rural Communities
VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith Weighs Pros and Cons for Mississippi in FY2027 Transportation Budget.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) this week weighed the pros and cons for Mississippi in the administration’s FY2027 budget request for the U.S. Department of Transportation, signaling continued support for programs like the Essential Air Service that benefit passenger air service in smaller Mississippi communities.
Hyde-Smith, chair of the Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations Subcommittee, made the assessment in her opening remarks for a THUD Appropriations hearing Tuesday afternoon with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
“I’ve heard from many of my constituents across my home state of Mississippi about the need for continued investment in our surface, aviation, maritime, and safety projects,” Hyde-Smith said. “We need to make sure that our appropriations bill strikes a balance to meet the needs of all Americans, especially those in rural communities, which face unique transportation and economic development challenges.”
“We will work through these challenges to produce a bipartisan product worthy of Senate consideration. And as I’ve said many times, I believe that our funding decisions should be guided by fiscal responsibility with the taxpayers in mind,” the Senator continued.
On the con side, Hyde-Smith expressed disappointment with the reprised recommendation to cut the Essential Air Service (EAS) program, which would undercut rural communities’ ability to provide dependable commercial air service.
“The EAS program is critical to connecting our nation’s rural communities like those in Greenville, Tupelo, Meridian, and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to the broader transportation network,” Hyde-Smith said. “Significant funding cuts would jeopardize economic development and threaten jobs in local communities across the country, as this program supports more than 170 small and rural communities across 35 states.”
Hyde-Smith also said the recommendation to eliminate the Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development or BUILD competitive grant program would result in fewer resources for communities to support multimodal and multi-jurisdictional projects.
“Investing in rural America through programs like BUILD fosters economic growth, connects rural residents to essential services like schools and hospitals, and improves the quality of life for communities that may lack the resources necessary for infrastructure improvements,” Hyde-Smith said, pointing to a $21.3 million grant awarded last year to remake the US 49 and MS-13 interchange in Simpson County.
On a positive note, Hyde-Smith praised the funding recommendations for the Federal Railroad Administration’s CRISI and Rail Crossing Elimination grant programs, as well as the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP). Mississippi received an $11.2 million PIDP grant last year for the Gulfport Intermodal Improvement Project.
“Mississippi and its shipbuilding capabilities are well-positioned to support the administration’s agenda to restore America’s maritime dominance by returning critical shipbuilding programs to experienced American-owned hands. I am pleased the department’s budget once again proposes significant investments in PIDP and small shipyard grant programs,” Hyde-Smith said.
Elsewhere, Hyde-Smith pledged to work in a bipartisan manner to support major investments aimed at improving the nation’s air traffic control system and modernizing Federal Aviation Administration infrastructure nationwide.
Read Hyde-Smith’s opening remarks here.
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