The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) released a report that puts Chattooga County in the lowest tier of counties in the commission’s 423 coverage area.

The study compares each of the counties in the Appalachian Region from New York to Alabama with national averages for unemployment rates, per-capita income and poverty rates over the previous three-year period.  Chattooga County was ranked as “distressed” economically, according to the report.

Chattooga County Commissioner Blake Elsberry says that the loss of two major manufacturers in the county over the past year could have been a contributing factor in the recent designation by the ARC.  Showa Best Glove in Menlo shut down manufacturing operations at its glove mill in Menlo, an industry that had been a mainstay for over 75 years.  Also over the past several months, Dixie Dye at the Trion Industrial Park ceased operations.

Elsberry says that the designations by the ARC are used to determine the match requirements for ARC grants, as well as resource investment strategies targeting the Region’s most distressed areas. This will change Chattooga County’s current match for any ARC funding from 70-30 to 80-20. That means for any ARC funding for a project the county applies for and is awarded ARC will fund 80% and the county will be responsible for 20%.

ARC funding can only be used for projects that directly impact economic development in an area.