The U.S House has approved the creation of a regional commission and $3 million to help with economic development in northern Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and New York.
If approved by the Senate, the Northern Border Regional Commission would make decisions about how to best use the money on projects such as broadband expansion and other infrastructure projects in the region.
Congressman Peter Welch, a Democrat, says the things the border communities have in common are hard working people who earn low wages and have a higher unemployment rate than their state’s average.
Welch says the commission is based on a model of successful regional commissions in other parts of the country.