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WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) was in Portageville, Missouri today to speak at the 57th Annual Delta Research Center Field Day. At the event, Blunt provided an update on his work in Washington and what he sees as the next steps needed to harness productivity and expand opportunity in rural communities.   

“Having access to broadband is as important as the telephone was to jobs and education 70 years ago,” Blunt said. “Whether it’s a farmer using precision agriculture or a student doing research, it’s important that we get broadband access to every corner of our state and I’ll continue working to do that.”

Blunt voted for the Senate-passed Farm Bill and the Department of Agriculture funding bill, both of which include dedicated resources to expand rural broadband. Blunt is also working to expand the USDA Rural Utilities Service, which provides grant and loan funding for infrastructure improvements in rural areas, including the deployment of broadband infrastructure.

Turning to trade, Blunt said he was encouraged by the progress on NAFTA negotiations, but will be carefully reviewing the details of any final agreement. “We have to continue to open more markets for our products, not close them,” Blunt said. “But we also have to ensure fair treatment, and that means robust enforcement of our trade deals and consequences for violations.” 

Blunt continued, “Whether it’s getting our Missouri products to markets around the world or courting a manufacturing plant to locate jobs in America, the first two questions you ask are, ‘can we pay for the utility bill,’ and ‘does the transportation system work for what we want to do?’” 

Citing location as one of Missouri’s greatest competitive advantages, Blunt announced that he will be voting for Proposition D, the transportation ballot initiative that would provide funding to help pay for critical road and bridge projects. “Transportation matters, and it’s even more important to us than most states,” said Blunt.

Since the gas tax was last increased in 1996, Missouri has added 2,500 more miles of road and is now home to the seventh largest highway system in the nation. Since highway construction projects are generally funded on an 80 percent federal / 20 percent state cost share, Proposition D would enable Missouri to potentially receive more than a billion dollars over the next four years that would otherwise go to other states. 

As a national transportation hub – including highways, railways, and waterways – the future of Missouri’s economy is directly tied to the strength of its infrastructure. The world price of grain, Blunt gave as an example, is the market prices less what it costs to get it there. The better the transportation network, the more competitive every Missouri industry will be, especially manufacturing and agriculture.

With all of the groundbreaking innovation that’s underway at Fisher Delta Research Center and ag research institutions across the state, Blunt sounded an optimistic note about the future of the industry. As world food demand is expected to double sometime in the next 30 to 40 years, Blunt said the state is especially well-positioned to take advantage of the big opportunities that lie ahead.