Lobbyist: Better Little Rock ties will help capture more federal funds

Steve Pruitt told the Fort Smith Board of Directors and city staff that one of the best things they could do to secure more federal funding is to improve relations with state officials and agencies in Little Rock.

Pruitt, with the Washington, D.C.-based Watts Partners, was in Fort Smith on Thursday (Dec. 17) for a special study session of the city board. The city pays the Watts firm $8,500 a month for lobbying services.

Pruitt advised the board to be prepared to “more aggressively” push for funding of priority projects in case a second federal stimulus bill is passed. He also said reauthorization of the federal highway bill and federal water resource bill is likely to happen in 2010. Consideration of the highway bill in the House of Representatives could happen in early 2010, according to Pruitt.

The four primary types of projects members of Congress will likely approve in the next highway bill are repair of existing roads and bridges, highway safety and capacity, congestion relief and to reduce greenhouse emissions and improve air quality, Pruitt said.

The key to capturing more federal dollars allocated for highway, water system and other major projects is to build relationships in Little Rock where many of the decisions are made on how to allocate federal funds, Pruitt advised. He said Fort Smith has to conduct more “positive interaction” with the Governor’s office, Arkansas Highway Commissioners, Legislature and other key actors.

“You have to get more aggressive with relationship building,” Pruitt said.

To that end, Fort Smith City Director Gary Campbell suggested a member of the city staff attend all Arkansas Highway Commission meetings, and Director Kevin Settle suggested the city invite U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark. — and a member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee — to Fort Smith to show him progress on the short section of Interstate 49 through Chaffee Crossing.

The board added one item — seek funding for Lake Fort Smith water transmission line — to its list of 11 top federal funding priorities. The 12-item list is as follows:

City of Fort Smith — Federal Funding Priorities
• I-49 between I-40 and U.S. 71 South (near the Jenny Lind community)
• Industrial site improvements (water, sewer, roads, rail extensions) at Chaffee Crossing
• May Branch flood control project
• Wet weather sanitary sewer system improvements
• U.S. Marshals Museum
• Highway 45 widening between Zero St. and U.S. 71 South
• Arkansas River levee certifications
• Development of new river port east of Lock and Dam 13 (the board may wish to defer this item since the regional intermodal authority has been established)
• Jenny Lind Road project between Dallas St. and Phoenix Ave.
• Trolley (steel rail) system extensions in downtown Fort Smith
• Highway connection between I-540 and Clayton Expressway
• Lake Fort Smith water transmission line