UPDATES
Ironton, Ohio Receives $2 Million in ARPA Funds for Infrastructure
Under the Coal Communities Commitment, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) is leveraging American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars to diversify the economy of Ironton, Ohio, population 10, 749. The funds, announced in August, will go toward roadway and water infrastructure upgrades intended to attract new businesses, and reliable water service is one primary goal. ...
Rural Jobs Lag Nation as Congress Debates Funding Amount for Rural Economic Development
While rural communities' jobs recovery lags behind the national average, the Chips and Science Act of 2022, which passed both chambers of congress and was signed into law by President Biden in August, authorized $1 billion for the RECOMPETE pilot program to support persistently distressed communities with high rates of unemployment. RECOMPETE invests in ...
American Rescue Plan Directing Funds to “Service Deserts” for Rural Homelessness
In a first-of-its-kind funding opportunity, The Biden-Harris administration has made $54.5 million in funding available specifically to address homelessness in rural communities in May of this year; rural Continua of Care have until October 20th to apply. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) found in a 2021 report that for the first ...
ARPA Funds Leveraged for Workforce Development in NC Coal Town
The Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced last month nearly $700,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars to support a new workforce development center in Marion, North Carolina. Marion, a town of 7,800 people, is a coal mining town and was ranked a tier 2 distressed community based on 1021 analysis by the North ...
Wayne County, Michigan Receives ARPA Boost to Small Businesses and Economic Diversity
The Downriver Community Conference in Southgate, Michigan (population 29,000) was awarded $1.6 million from the Economic Development Administration (EDA) through the Coal Communities Commitment. The award will support the Conference in overseeing " a community-inclusive strategic planning process to redevelop two coal plant sites and establish a new small business technical assistance program to ...
Climate Tradeoffs in the Inflation Reduction Act
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), passed in August and making historic investments in climate and other rural priorities, came with tradeoffs; among the most visible are those faced by Tribal Nations. Tribal Nations were awarded $720 million in direct allocations from the bill for climate resilience and energy funding, and Tribal leaders acknowledge the ...
Local community groups in central and southeastern Ohio spoke to 1,100 residents about issues facing their households. Here’s what they said.
Politicians need to localize their legislative platforms and focus on decreasing daily expenses and improving quality of life to engage residents living in rural communities like ours. That’s the preliminary finding from our four-month Participatory Civic Research project in high-need, low-engagement neighborhoods in rural Ohio. The Local Progress Report surveys, which collected responses from ...
USDA’s ReConnect Rural Broadband Program Round 4 Funding Opens Today
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Rural Development division opened applications for their most recent round of funding in the ReConnect program, a critical vehicle for expanding broadband internet into rural communities. Funding from the Infrastructure, Investment, and Jobs Act, passed in the fall of 2021, has provided critical boosts of funding to this ...
USDA Announces Members of the Equity Commission’s Rural Development Subcommittee
In February of this year, the USDA established an Equity Commission to "address longstanding inequities in agriculture" and "confront the hard reality of past discrimination and its lingering harm." Last week, the Rural Development subcommittee and its 12 members were announced. While much of the USDA Equity Commission's work is focused on issues for ...
$121 Million in USDA Funding for Rural Climate Change Infrastructure
Last week US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Dr. Jewel Bronaugh announced the department is investing $121 million in infrastructure to combat climate change, this coming on the heals of the $40 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) for climate-smart agriculture. “Rural America is on the front lines of climate change," Bronaugh ...
Farm Bill Stakes Beginning to be Placed after Inflation Reduction Act Passed
After the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) was passed and signed into law earlier this month, progressive groups are beginning to name their priorities for the 2023 Farm Bill. While Farm Action published their Farm Bill Policy Handbook as early as May of this year, others like Minnesota's Land Stewardship Project have waited until now ...
With Big Federal Investments including RECOMPETE, Rural Communities Need Capacity
The RECOMPETE pilot program passed as a part of the CHIPS Plus Act earlier this month could change the dynamic that big cities are usually first in line for federal grants, as it focuses on economically distressed communities which are overwhelmingly rural. Still, for rural communities to be able to utilize this and other ...
Rural Virginian Noticing Rural Wins from Federal Action
From the Lake Frederick, Virginia, one resident is noticing that Democrats are delivering for rural Americans. In her letter to the editor of the Winchester Star, Catherine Giovannoni detailed the way the recently-passed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will be supportive to rural folks by reducing energy costs, expand rural access to high-speed internet, and ...
IRA Will Bring $40 Billion to Rural America
Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), is celebrating IRA's historic investments in rural America. “It really is a once in a generation, once in a lifetime level of investment. We haven’t seen this level of investment, for example in conservation, since the Dust Bowl,” reported Mark Dorenkamp. About half ...
Elkins, West Virginia to Receive $5.4 Million Workforce Development Investment
The Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced a $5.4 million American Rescue Plan (ARP) award for a 16,000 square foot building in Elkins, West Virginia, which will be used for workforce development, conferences, and events. The grant will be matched with $1.3 million in state funds and is expected to create 100 new jobs and ...
Biden-Harris Administration Cross-Department Partnership for Underserved Rural Communities
To ensure underserved rural communities have access to basic wastewater infrastructure, the Biden-Harris administration is launching a new partnership between the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Closing America’s Wastewater Access Gap Community Initiative will start as a pilot in 11 communities across ...
REAP Program in the Inflation Reduction Act a Hidden Gem for Rural Small Businesses
Now slated to have hundreds of millions more dollars available after Biden's signing of the Inflation Reduction Act, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) runs a the Renewable Energy for America Program (REAP) which has already helped over 20,000 rural small businesses, ranchers, and farmers. REAP helps reduce costs in rural areas by supplementing ...
Rural Minnesota Seniors Supported by ARPA Grants
In Rural Minnesota, $336,000 in American Rescue Plan money will go to improve two senior living facilities and expand critical care in rural Minnesota for elderly residents. Heartland Senior Living (DBA Parkview Care Center) in Wells, Minnesota and Kenyon Sunset Home in Kenyon will receive the investments. “Having affordable, accessible health care infrastructure in ...
$266 Million from ARP to Bring High-Speed Internet to Rural Montana
This month, Montana Senator John Tester announced the $266 million allocated for high-speed internet development in rural Montana, coming from the American Rescue Plan (ARP). “Access to high speed internet is one of the biggest keys to success for Montana’s students, families, and small businesses,” said Tester. “If we want to compete in the 21st century, it’s ...
ARPA Grants Bolster Healthcare, Food Security in Rural Maine
Nine American Rescue Plan grants, worth over $3.5 million, are serving six counties in Maine. The grants include support to food pantries like the Piscataquis Regional Food Center which needed a freezer and a backup generator, healthcare facilities like the Hometown Health Center, and an ambulance for Dover-Foxcroft. "The delivery of healthcare services in ...