In the World of Transportation, U.S. corn growers have reaped the benefits of one of the finest, most efficient transportation infrastructures in the world. Our system of railroads and river ways has provided U.S. corn growers access to world markets and an advantage over competitors. Transportation is critical to the success of U.S. corn growers because, in large part, the efficiency of grain movement between local river terminals and export ports determines the competitiveness of the entire market.

Despite tremendous production advantages over many of our competitors, the aging transportation infrastructure in the United States is becoming a bottleneck and beginning to undermine our ability to compete in the world market. Why? To compete effectively in the world export market, U.S. farmers need efficient and cost-effective transportation networks. For commodities such as corn, that means transporting shipments to overseas markets via modern barge transportation.

Unfortunately, our transportation infrastructure on rivers in the United States is antiquated and deteriorating. The lock-and-dam system on the rivers that serve the Corn Belt states is more than 60 years old. Some of the locks on primary thoroughfares to export mar- kets, such as the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, are only 600 feet long. That's far too small to accommodate the modern 1, 100-foot barge tow, leading to delays that drive up the price of transportation – and our commodities on the world market.

The NCGA views improvements to the entire transportation system as critical to the United States' ability to remain competitive in the world market. Increasing the efficiency of barge transportation on the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers will directly impact corn producers throughout the nation. Barges on the upper Mississippi River system haul more than 1 billion bushels of corn annually to export markets. Furthermore, major processing plants base their bid prices on river elevators, which in turn impacts prices on the rail lines and highways away from the mills. An efficient river system will increase bid prices on the river and subsequently raise prices throughout the United States.

The NCGA is committed to ensuring transportation never becomes a barrier to trade. We support a vital and competitive rail network for moving corn and corn products to domestic and foreign markets. We are also leading the effort to rebuild our entire lock-and-dam system with an understanding of the long-term commitment of leadership and financial resources it will entail. It is an investment in the future of U.S. corn production.

Knowing that improvements will likely take 20 years to complete, we are working with Congress and the Bush administration to ensure the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers immediately finalizes its study of the upper Mississippi River and the Illinois Waterway System. Once the studies are complete, improvements can begin.

Finally, the NCGA supports operations on the Missouri River that place the highest priority on economic uses. The only way to truly protect the environment is with a vibrant economy.