WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate today gave final congressional approval to legislation sponsored by the Mississippi congressional delegation to make property in Tishomingo County available to Mississippi for economic development.

The Senate approved HR.3044 by unanimous consent on Thursday, clearing an important hurdle for this legislation authorizing the transfer of Yellow Creek Port properties in Iuka from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), on behalf of the United States, to the State of Mississippi.

HR.3044 is a companion bill to Yellow Creek legislation (S.212) authored by U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and cosponsored by U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).  HR.3044, introduced by Representative Alan Nunnelee (R-Miss.), was passed by the House of Representatives in September.  HR.3044 will now be sent to the White House to be signed into law.

“The transfer of this land to state control should open up new opportunities for economic development and job creation in north Mississippi,” Wicker said. “I am pleased that we were able to get this bill across the finish line.”

“We want to allow the state to maximize the economic potential of the Yellow Creek Port.  This legislation would create more opportunities for cooperation between the State of Mississippi and the TVA to attract more jobs and industry to north Mississippi,” Cochran said.  “I appreciate the coordinated efforts of our entire delegation, especially Representative Nunnelee, to get this jobs bill enacted before the end of the 113th Congress.”

“I appreciate the work of my Senate colleagues to get H.R. 3044 to the President’s desk,” Nunnelee said.  “The Mississippi manufacturing sector has a bright future, and the approval of this 173 acre land transfer allows our state to remain competitive and attract new business.  Giving the state the ability to more efficiently manage the port will further job creation and economic development in the area.”

The legislation authorizes the TVA to transfer an estimated 173 acres of the Yellow Creek Port to the State of Mississippi for commercial and manufacturing development.  The Mississippi legislature in 2011 approved a bill authorizing the state to receive the property pending a successful environmental assessment.  Economic development is among the missions given to the TVA when it was created in 1933 as a public power provider to the Tennessee Valley region that includes North Mississippi.

The TVA, the Mississippi Development Authority, the Yellow Creek Port, and the Tombigbee River Water Management District all supported the property transfer as S.212 was approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in June and as HR.3044 was advanced by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in July.

HR.3044 was also cosponsored by Congressmen Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) and Steven Palazzo (R-Miss.)