From the President:
IFB Board approved funding for the Corn Belt Ports. This initiative supports efforts to secure additional federal funding to improve waterway infrastructure on the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers.
Before 2019, Illinois was missing out on significant federal funding because they did not have any federally recognized ports above St. Louis.
In 2021, three Port Statistical Areas (PSAs) making up the Corn Belt Ports were federally approved. The three PSAs are the Illinois River and Waterways Ports and Terminals PSA, Mid-America Port Commission PSA, and the Upper Mississippi River Ports PSA.
Collectively, the Corn Belt Ports' three PSAs are the equivalent of the 17th largest port in the United States and the largest inland port in the nation.