to offer one excellent means of carrying the work of Project Progress forward in a practical and productive manner. It offers a means both of assessing local resources and of providing technical assistance needed for the design and implementation of action programs. By requiring 50 percent local financing it assures continuing local interest and support. It does not, however, provide a means for promoting the resources and potentials which may be found to exist in Washington County. (7) A strong promotional program will be required to enable Georgia counties to compete, once they know their assets and are fully prepared to pursue new payrolls. While this might be done to a limited extent with local resources, it appears more logical to have promotional efforts concentrated in a broadened program in the Department of Commerce. (8) A total of 68 counties actually lost manufacturing employment during the period 1947 through 1958-a finding which we found not only surprising but appalling. This single fact dramatizes the importance of vigorous action to implement our recommendations. The steadily increasing competition already referred to simply underscores the importance of taking early action to prevent even more counties from losing out in the race for new payrolls. It should be noted also that 19 additional counties each had a manufacturing employment gain of less than 100 workers-with the annual average ranging from less than 1 to less than 9 per year. These counties also must be considered to be in urgent need of technical assistance. Together they constitute 55 percent of the counties in the State. (9) Even more discouraging in some ways are these additional statistics on the State's industrial growth: (a) Only three counties-Cobb, DeKalb, and Fulton-had more than 35 percent of the total manufacturing employment gain during the 11-year period from 1947 through 1958; (b) More than 50 percent of the State's gain was concentrated in only seven counties; (c) Only 15 counties had over 66 percent of the total gain; and (d) Seventy-five percent of the total was shared by only 31 counties. To summarize briefly, most local development groups need as wide a range of technical services in the industrial field as Georgia's farmers are accustomed to receiving in the field of agriculture. Among the specific problems which require technical help are the identification and evaluation of industrial sites, the planning of industrial districts, the collection and analysis of resource data, the evaluation of each county's best industrial potentials, the analysis of manpower resources, and many others. In most cases local development groups find it impossible to do a good selling job on the rare occasion when they do encounter industrial prospects for the simple reason that they do not know what they have to offer that might be of value to the industrialist. In addition, they need instruction in the various techniques that can be used to make an effective presentation when they do have an opportunity to talk to a legitimate prospect. In those counties where good prospects exist for the development of the tourist industry, assistance is also needed. The planning of adequate accommodations is only one of several aspects of tourism which need attention. The committee selected the six counties in two groups of three counties each, in order that problems of economy, population loss, etc., might be considered on an areas basis. Considering the magnitude of the job of auditing the potential, blueprinting a program of development and carrying it through to a practical conclusion, the committee was limited in the number of counties to be brought into Project Progress at this time. However, experience in these six counties will benefit other counties. This experience will point out general problems, needs, and solutions which can be used to help other areas with their own problems and opportunities. This is true, especially, if funds and personnel permit expansion of needed economic development resources within the State. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS More than 4 months have been spent through Project Progress in studying means of putting the State's economically hard-pressed counties back on a sound footing. Six counties, Washington, Hancock, Greene, Dooly, Macon, and Taylor were selected as being typical of the many which badly need more and new payrolls. The State department of commerce, the State chamber of commerce, vard in g local nd im cing it ride a o exist unties le new rces, it dened during rising ion to Tready Georgia Tech's industrial development branch, the State department of educa- It is our considered opinion that unless the recommendations enumerated below are implemented at the earliest possible time that within 5 years a number of counties will have suffered such great population and other losses that it will be virtually impossible for them ever to rebuild their economies. With these sobering facts before us, we urgently recommend that the following steps be taken: 1. The limited amount of research now being done on the auditing and analysis of the State's industrial potentials should be rapidly increased by expanding the industrial development research program of Georgia Tech's Engineering Experiment Station. Also, the various units of the University of Georgia which naturally lend themselves to economic development should be evaluated and research programs strengthened where necessary in order that full practical advantage may be taken of the peculiar and valuable services offered by the university system of Georgia. 2. A statewide industrial extension service should be established in conjunc tion with Georgia Tech's industrial development research program to provide to local industrial development organizations the same breadth of technical assistance and research long available to Georgia's farmers and to organizations concerned with agricultural development. It is further recommended that such an industrial extension service can best be implemented through the establishment of a statewide network of field offices or branch stations of the engineering experiment station, as authorized by house bill 745 passed unanimously during the 1960 session of the general assembly. 3. Industrial arts training programs should be expanded as rapidly as possible to make such training available throughout the State. Industrial education and area industrial vocational facilities should also be provided on a broader basis in order to insure that our young people are better prepared for the nonfarm jobs which now provide the vast majority of new job opportunities. 4. The advertising and promotional program of the department of commerce should be expanded, both to strengthen promotional activities concerned with the State as a whole as well as to make it possible for the department to provide support and technical assistance to local development agencies in their promotional programs. It is further recommended that the department of commerce be put on a basis to insure that the very best professional personnel will be attracted to the department and will be kept through succeeding State administrations in order that adequate programs may be properly developed and perpetuated in the most progressive manner. Only through such bold steps do we feel that it will be possible to meet the needs of the many counties in Georgia which are economically hard pressed and have an urgent need for new payrolls. Project progress has just begun and this is a preliminary report, only. For the project to be fully successful it must be carried on year after year in each of the participating counties, until all of their resources and economic potential have been audited and a blueprint for progressive development is complete. Once the blueprint is complete, there must be a continuing effort on the part of the local people to carry it out to the most fruitful conclusion with the assistance of the agencies. |