AMES, Iowa—The Ames Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Commission is pleased to announce Ames will maintain its Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) status.
The United States Office of Management and Budget issued a proposal in January 2021 that would have eliminated more than 140 MSA communities across the United States, including Ames.
“The MSA designation is critical to the greater Ames area for a number of reasons,” said Dan Culhane, President & CEO of the Ames Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Commission. “When it comes to economic development projects, often, consultants and site selectors look to MSA communities first. Ames has also made a number of distinguished “best of” lists as a result of being in the MSA data sets. Additionally, larger communities, like Ames, benefit from direct federal entitlement payments and ultimately less competition for federal dollars and grants. This is a direct result of Ames being categorized as a metro area by the federal government”
Culhane worked closely with the Iowa delegation in Washington D.C. to prevent the proposed changes from implementation. “We acted quickly with Ames Mayor John Haila and City Manager Steve Schainker, along with peer communities across the U.S. that also would have been impacted negatively by the change, when we learned of the proposed elimination of a number of MSA’s. I am extremely grateful to Representative Randy Feenstra and Representative Ashley Hinson for their leadership to support U.S. House legislation that denied this change, that would have directly impacted major cities (Ames and Dubuque) in their respective districts. We received similar support from Representatives Cindy Axne and Marionette Miller-Meeks, the other two members of the U.S. House of Representatives representing Iowa. Companion legislation in the United States Senate denying the change was similarly supported by both Senator Charles Grassley and Senator Joni Ernst, who mobilized resources from their offices to lend their voices and votes as well. I could not be more pleased with how responsive the entire Iowa federal delegation was on this matter,” said Culhane. The Office of Management and Budget announced earlier this month they would not be making any changes to the MSA definition.
“Keeping the MSA designation is tremendous victory for our community,” said Culhane. “I am greatly relieved that no change took place and look forward to the continued growth we will see as a result of maintaining this status.”
