Fiscal Year 2026 Appropriations Community Project Funding Requests
Project Name: Covington County Emergency Operations Center
Requested Amount: $1,500,000
Intended Recipient: Covington County Emergency Management Agency
Recipient Address: 502 S. Arrington Avenue, P.O. Box 848, Collins, Mississippi, 39428
Request Explanation: Covington County is home to the most petroleum pipelines and bulk fuel storage facilities in Mississippi and the southeastern United States. Additionally, Covington County also has two major highways, Highway 49 and 84, running the length of the county, making Covington County a major hazardous materials potential threat. Covington County is also prone to natural disasters, such as severe weather, tornadoes, flooding, and hurricane impacts. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because a new state-of-the-art Emergency Operations Center would promote public safety by serving the citizens, first responders, and industry of Covington County, as well as benefit the State of Mississippi as a forward operating Emergency Operations Center for natural and man-made disasters.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Rankin County, Section 219, MS
Requested Amount: $3,800,000
Intended Recipient: Vicksburg District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Recipient Address: 4155 Clay Street, Vicksburg, Mississippi
Request Explanation: The Rankin County Board of Supervisors came together in 2018 to develop one of the first holistic countywide watershed-based stormwater assessment and management plans in Mississippi that could be the model for other counties statewide. This proactive initiative led to the detailed identification, assessment, evaluation, and prioritization of structural and nonstructural related deficiencies throughout the county watersheds and to the development of an actionable short- and long-term implementation plan. This funding would provide for the implementation of stormwater improvements in the Pelahatchie Creek Watershed that were identified in the Rankin County Watershed-Based Stormwater Assessment and Management Plan. Specifically, the project would address complex flood prevention, water quality, stormwater management, erosion, and sediment control challenges in the Pelahatchie Creek Watershed. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because these areas suffer from chronic flooding and water quality issues, mainly the Ross Barnett Reservoir, which is the drinking water source for the City of Jackson; and the project would allow for improvements to include stormwater management infrastructure enhancements that would reduce flood risk and restore water quality.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Bozeman-Reunion Crossing Interconnectivity System, Madison County, Mississippi, MS-03
Requested Amount: $10,000,000
Intended Recipient: Madison County Board of Supervisors
Recipient Address: 125 West North Street, P.O. Box 608, Canton, Mississippi, 39046
Request Explanation: This funding would be used for the construction of Bozeman Road, which runs north-south from Mississippi Highway 463 to Gluckstadt Road. The scope of the work would include widening the existing road to a four-lane boulevard section from Mississippi Highway 463 to Gluckstadt Road with 10-foot multi-use trail from Mississippi Highway 463 to Gluckstadt Road. The Bozeman Road project is an element of the larger Bozeman-Reunion Crossing Interconnectivity System, a program consisting of three components developed as a part of the South Madison County Transportation Plan completed in 2016 by the Board of Supervisors working in conjunction with the Mississippi Department of Transportation and the Jackson Mississippi Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). The entire system is part of the MPO plan. The fundamental value and impact of the Bozeman Road project would be to connect the Reunion Parkway Crossing and a new interchange on Interstate 55, southerly to Mississippi Highway 463, providing capacity and safety enhancements to the immediate area both in terms of traffic congestion rallies at the over-capacitated Highway 463/I-55 interchange, as well as by providing local arterial capacity to bring traffic into the interchange more safely and efficiently.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: City of Brandon, Mississippi, Cornerstone Tank and Distribution Project
Requested Amount: $3,000,000
Intended Recipient: City of Brandon, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 1000 Municipal Drive, P.O. Box 1225, Brandon, Mississippi, 39042
Request Explanation: Currently this area of the City of Brandon is only served by water from one direction, with the nearest elevated storage tank located more than two miles away. The City is currently under contract with a contractor to install a new water well adjacent to this proposed tank, and the City is planning to build a new elevated storage tank and connecting waterlines as part of this project. All of the right of way needed for this overall project has already been acquired, and the design of the project has been completed. This project is critical in ensuring safe and reliable drinking water to all residents by providing another source of water and a loop to the existing water system. These funds are important to allowing the City of Brandon to continue providing safe, reliable, clean, and high-quality water to all of its residents.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: City of Starkville, Mississippi, Wastewater Treatment Plant
Requested Amount: $5,840,000
Intended Recipient: City of Starkville, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 110 West Main Street, Starkville, Mississippi, 39759
Request Explanation: The funding would provide for replacing critical infrastructure at the wastewater treatment plant headworks facility and increasing capacity to address growing needs for the City of Starkville, Mississippi State University, and Oktibbeha County. The new headworks structure would contain mechanical screens rated for higher flow capacity, as well as one manually cleaned bar screen for redundancy. A vortex grit removal system would be installed that utilizes a more efficient grit removal method than the existing aerated grit chamber, thereby reducing the amount of grit that continues to downstream processes and reducing the effective volume of these processes. The City of Starkville recently completed a comprehensive evaluation of the wastewater treatment plant, and the headworks were identified as undersized and of critical importance to permit compliance and efficiency. This project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because the project would ensure that the City of Starkville can continue to satisfactorily operate its wastewater infrastructure in compliance with Federal regulations.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Dale Drive Intersection Improvement and Road Widening, Town of Marion, Mississippi, MS-03
Requested Amount: $4,700,000
Intended Recipient: Town of Marion, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 6021 Dale Drive, P.O. Box 310, Marion, Mississippi, 39342
Request Explanation: This project would provide necessary transportation improvements to an all-way stop at the intersection of Dale Drive and Lindley Road, currently overwhelmed with traffic volume, and add turn lanes to Dale Drive both north and south of the intersection and NE Industrial Park Drive east of the intersection. The project would improve vehicular volume signal warrants, as described by the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), and crash experience at the intersection; and would allow the traveling public to reach their destinations both safely and efficiently.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Fannye Cook Parkway Project, City of Flowood, Mississippi, MS-03
Requested Amount: $5,000,000
Intended Recipient: City of Flowood, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 2101 Airport Road, P.O. Box 320069, Flowood, Mississippi, 39232
Request Explanation: This funding would support the proposed Fannye Cook Parkway (FCP), which would be an alternate route for commuters in Central Mississippi. Lakeland Drive (Mississippi Highway 25) and Old Fannin Road are widely utilized roads in the area, with almost 60,000 vehicles traveling these roads through Flowood each workday. The FCP project is a proposed new roadway connecting Lakeland Drive to Old Fannin Road, which would help alleviate pressure on these existing routes. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds as it would improve public safety and traffic flow throughout Flowood, interconnectivity in the region, and citizens' quality of life by minimizing traffic congestion and delays.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Lincoln County-Brookhaven Industrial Park Road Improvements, Lincoln County, Mississippi, MS-03
Requested Amount: $4,880,000
Intended Recipient: Lincoln County Board of Supervisors
Recipient Address: 301 South First Street, Brookhaven, Mississippi, 39601
Request Explanation: This funding would allow for improvements to the roadway leading to the Lincoln County-Brookhaven Industrial Park, which supports 2,000 existing jobs. Specifically, the project would include milling, base reclamation, drainage improvements, a new traffic signal, overlay, and stripping of Industrial Park Drive and access roads. This would resurface just over 5.3 miles of roadway used to service the Lincoln County-Brookhaven Industrial Park. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because it would enable continued economic growth in the region and provide a safer industrial transport route.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Madison Avenue Widening, City of Madison, Mississippi, MS-03
Requested Amount: $3,700,000
Intended Recipient: City of Madison, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 1003 Madison Avenue, Madison, Mississippi, 39110
Request Explanation: This funding would provide for improvements to extend from Crawford Farms Road Intersection to the Railroad. These improvements would add a traffic lane to the route and support residents and existing businesses with better infrastructure. This project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because it would widen the road for increased traffic flow and will bolster Federal efforts to promote more comprehensive transportation options.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Meridian, Mississippi, Medical District Treated Water Storage Project
Requested Amount: $3,200,000
Intended Recipient: City of Meridian, Mississippi
Recipient Address: 311 27th Avenue, Meridian, Mississippi, 39301
Request Explanation: This funding would allow the City to install a new water storage facility in the City’s Medical District to ensure safe and sufficient water is available for critical water use. This project is a good use of taxpayer funds due to its critical nature in ensuring healthcare services that require sufficient and clean freshwater for their operations.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Pat Harrison Waterway District Archusa Dam Repair and Rehabilitation
Requested Amount: $5,500,000
Intended Recipient: Pat Harrison Waterway District
Recipient Address: 17 JM Tatum Dr. #120, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, 39041
Request Explanation: This funding would allow for the repair and rehabilitation of the Archusa Creek Dam in Clarke County, Mississippi, which failed on July 16, 2023. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because it would reestablish the economic driver in the region and construct a safer and more resilient dam.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Raspet Flight Research Laboratory Improvements at Starkville, Mississippi, Airport
Requested Amount: $4,578,509
Intended Recipient: Mississippi State University
Recipient Address: 301 Research Boulevard, Mississippi State, Mississippi, 39762
Request Explanation: This project would make improvements to the Raspet Flight Research Laboratory (RFRL) at Mississippi State University. RFRL hosts one of the largest inventories of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in academia and works closely with industry and government partners on critical UAS research and innovations. Additionally, RFRL’s staff size is increasing from 3 to 57 full-time personnel. These proposed laboratory improvements are a valuable use of taxpayer dollars, as they are needed to accommodate the UAS inventory, staff growth, and ongoing economic development.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: Town of Sandersville, Mississippi, Water Well and Drinking Water Treatment System
Requested Amount: $2,080,000
Intended Recipient: Town of Sandersville
Recipient Address: 110 East Main Street, P.O. Box 692, Sandersville, Mississippi, 39477
Request Explanation: The proposed project would fund new water infrastructure to help address poor water quality issues in the Town of Sandersville. The project would drill a new well and target a higher aquifer that is known to produce better quality water than the current aquifer that is high in sediment and iron. Additionally, a pressure filter treatment system would be installed to provide quality drinking water. The discharge main would also be replaced from the water well to the system. The project is consistent with the targeted goals of the EPA and the Safe Drinking Water Act and is eligible under the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds loan program. This project would provide safe, quality drinking water for the Town of Sandersville’s residents.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: University of Mississippi Medical Center Research Lab Equipment
Requested Amount: $2,405,000
Intended Recipient: University of Mississippi Medical Center
Recipient Address: 2500 North State Street, Jackson, Mississippi, 39216
Request Explanation: This request would outfit the lab located on the eighth floor of the original research building at the University of Mississippi Medical Center with new lab equipment. This project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds, as it would enable UMMC to continue its world-class cardiometabolic disease research; cancer health disparity research; and neuroscience research in addiction, neurotrauma, and cerebrovascular disease.
Financial Disclosure Certification
Project Name: US 51 RR Bridge Between McKay and Hayles Road
Requested Amount: $2,000,000
Intended Recipient: Pike County Board of Supervisors
Recipient Address: 175 S. Cherry Street Magnolia, Mississippi, 39652
Request Explanation: This funding would allow for a bridge to be constructed over the Canadian National Railway (CN) railroad, granting access to the Metro Pike Industrial Park. The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because it would allow CN Railroad to service important corporations within the Park, attracting new economic investment, and address critical emergency response delays.
Financial Disclosure Certification