Arkansas Grant Program Receiving Applications
The Arkansas Waterways Commission announced April 4 that the Arkansas Port, Intermodal and Waterway Development Grant Program is accepting applications for the 2022 grant season. A total of $1,952,102.55 in funding is available.
The Arkansas Port, Intermodal and Waterway Development Grant Program is open to Arkansas public port or intermodal authorities or facilities located along the Mississippi, Ouachita, Red and White rivers. The program provides public funds for projects such as construction, improvement, capital facility rehabilitation and expansion of public port and intermodal facilities, including maritime-related industrial park infrastructure developments. The program can fund up to 90 percent of the project cost. Dredging projects are also eligible with a 50 percent match.
“Commercially navigable waterways are an economic driver for Arkansas. Barge transportation is the most cost-effective, safe and eco-friendly mode of shipping bulk and oversized freight,” said AWC Director Cassandra Caldwell. “Industries pay an ad valorem tax on the value of barges traversing Arkansas’ navigable rivers. This grant program boosts Arkansas’ competitive advantage by reinvesting those ad valorem taxes in our public port infrastructure.”
Applications are available on the commission’s website at www.waterways.arkansas.gov. All applications and supplemental documentation must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. May 15.
The Arkansas Waterways Commission, a division of the Arkansas Department of Commerce, is the sole state agency responsible for developing, promoting and protecting waterborne transportation in Arkansas. The commission also promotes economic development for ports on the five commercially navigable rivers of the state: the Arkansas, Mississippi, Ouachita, Red and White rivers. The Arkansas Department of Commerce is the umbrella department for workforce and economic development drivers. Its divisions and regulatory boards include Division of Aeronautics, Waterways Commission, Wine Producers Council, Division of Workforce Services, Office of Skills Development, State Bank Department, Insurance Department, Securities Department, Economic Development Commission and Development Finance Authority. It was established July 2019 as part of Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s wide-sweeping efficiency and transformation efforts to reduce 42 cabinet agencies to 15 while maintaining services for all Arkansans.
