The Mississippi Economic Council’s Pacesetter Tour will stop in Brookhaven Dec. 10 with the goal of gathering opinions about the state’s transportation infrastructure.

The 22-city MEC tour will focus on transportation, economic competitiveness and the effects of a healthy and productive workforce. There is no cost to attend the program at Mitchell’s Special Events & Catering, but pre-registration is required.

The program, co-hosted by the Brookhaven-Lincoln County Chamber of Commerce and the Industrial Development Foundation, will take place from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.  To register, visit www.msmec.com.

“MEC is setting the pace for transportation infrastructure funding in Mississippi — and we need your help,” the organization said on its website. “On the MEC Pacesetter Tour, you’ll have the opportunity to provide feedback on the importance of transportation infrastructure across the state, and your opinions will help us build a better Mississippi for tomorrow. We need your involvement.”

The MEC serves as the state’s Chamber of Commerce. It created a transportation task force that studied the state’s transportation needs and how to pay for them.

The committee was expected to recommend a combination of new or increased fees and a new fuel tax, according to the Mississippi Business Journal.

“A 2013 report by the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review, or PEER, concluded state funding had fallen far behind road and bridge maintenance needs since passage of 27 years ago of an 18.8 cents a gallon gasoline tax and a program that built 1,807 miles of four-lane highways,” MBJ reported. “PEER said Mississippi would need to spend an extra $400 million a year just to keep roads and bridges from getting worse.”

As Mississippi leaders study ways to deal with the state’s crumbling highways and bridges, declining federal funds aren’t helping the situation.

The Federal Highway Trust Fund allotted $1.4 billion to Mississippi in 2013. After adjusting for inflation, that’s 3 percent less than in 2008, though it’s 10 percent more than 10 years ago. The money comes from federal fuel taxes, and the share that flows to the state Department of Transportation makes up almost half the current $1.1 billion budget.

Despite years of warnings that the nation’s roads, bridges and transit systems are falling apart and will bring nightmarish congestion, the House earlier this month passed a six-year transportation bill that maintains the spending status quo. The bill is similar to a transportation bill passed by the Senate in July.