WICHITA FALLS, TX — Today, Congressman Ronny Jackson (TX-13) announced Wichita Falls will retain its Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) status. In response to Jackson’s efforts, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has confirmed it will not pursue an original proposal that would have stripped MSA status from 142 metro areas in the United States. MSA status is critical for Wichita Falls’ ability to access certain federal funding and resources. Examples include the Community Development Block Grant, Federal Transit Administration grants, and Medicare’s reimbursement system for acute care hospital inpatients.

Congressman Jackson sent letters in March and April to the OMB fighting to retain Wichita Falls’ MSA status.

Jackson said: “I am proud to have helped secure Wichita Falls’ eligibility for federal resources. The economic development made possible by Wichita Falls’ MSA status is an important way to help communities in TX-13 prosper. I will always have the backs of our local citizens and I will not sit back while Washington bureaucrats look for ways to deny us resources. The stream of federal funding that Wichita Falls will benefit from in the years to come will open our community up to limitless opportunities for growth.”

Background:
On January 19, 2021, OMB announced a proposal to change the population standard for MSA status from a minimum of 50,000 to 100,000. According to the OMB, Wichita Falls would have lost its MSA status if this rule had taken effect. After a public comment process through the Federal Register and aggressive efforts from Jackson in addition to a bipartisan group of his colleagues in Congress, OMB has agreed to maintain the population threshold that has been in place since 2010.

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