Bill in Congress would put Brunswick Co. back into Wilmington MSA

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — Southeastern North Carolina’s Congressional delegation says it is working to put Brunswick County back into the Wilmington area. Statistically speaking, that is.

Two years ago new rules from the Census Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget moved Brunswick County from the Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area to the Myrtle Beach MSA. MSAs are commonly used by businesses to determine the size of new markets and to analyze the workforce.

Today, Sen. Richard Burr, Sen. Thom Tillis and Rep. David Rouzer introduced legislation to change things back.

“I strongly urge the administration to correct this mistake,” Rouzer said in a statement. “Separating Brunswick County from the greater Wilmington area hinders economic growth in the Cape Fear region.”

In a news release from Sen. Burr’s office, the Republicans say separating Brunswick County from Wilmington has led to an understatement of the size of the state’s economy in the region and hurt economic development. They say the legislation requires the Director of OMB to consider Brunswick County part of the same MSA as Wilmington, as has historically been the case.

“In a classic Washington maneuver, this mindless application of bureaucratic rule at the federal level has had an enormous effect on the economy in the area. This is a fact that all North Carolinians know — Brunswick County is part of the greater Wilmington area,” Burr said in a statement.

“The Administration made a misguided decision to separate Brunswick County from the Wilmington metropolitan area, which in turn has had a harmful economic impact on the region,” Tillis said.

In the wake of the move, Brunswick County leaders appealed for a reconsideration, and then Rep. Mike McIntyre unsuccessfully lobbied in Washington to change things back to the way they were.