Agri-Pulse

US Department of Agriculture (USDA) leaders are looking to ensure that billions in government funding are easier to access by the rural communities many federal programs are meant to serve. USDA Undersecretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small highlighted USDA's ReConnect Program, which is currently seeing more applications than available funding.

As Jessica Rosenworcel transitions into the role of acting chair of the Federal Communications Commission, rural broadband leaders are expecting her to maintain her criticism of the agency's broadband coverage maps and keep a focus on identifying gaps in high-speed internet service. Mike Romano of the NTCA-The Rural Broadband Association expects improving rural broadband access will be an area where the FCC can move ahead. “One of the things Chairwoman Rosenworcel has been interested in from the start is making sure every American, rural or urban ...

Companies say internet network capacity has stayed strong the last two months, but some providers are struggling to repay loans, provide internet routers, or find enough personal protective equipment to protect workers from COVID-19. Federal Communications Commission Chair Ajit Pai told the House Communications Subcommittee May 19 one reason the networks have been able to handle the traffic increase is because of investments and improvements in broadband infrastructure in recent years. “Since 2016, for example, Internet speeds are up over 80%.

Advanced broadband is a high-tech phenomenon of today. Farming is a practice that stretches back ten thousand years. Together, they can help fight the continuing impact of climate change. Today’s high-tech farming depends on data – from remote sensors, from tractors, irrigation equipment, nutrient application machinery, and harvesters that communicate.

The leading Democratic presidential candidates are all calling for major increases in spending for roads, bridges, rural broadband and other infrastructure needs, but they'll need large increases in tax revenue to pay for their plans. The Democrats' plans rely far less heavily than private investment than President Donald Trump would, as President Trump's 2018 budget proposed spending $200 billion “to spur at least $1.5 trillion in infrastructure investments with partners at the State, local, Tribal, and private level.” President Trump hasn't pursued the plan with Congress.

There are several places where farmers, rural entrepreneurs and small-town business owners can seek help to create jobs and stimulate the economy in rural areas through farm bill programs, but the most prominent is US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development (RD) mission area. It’s an unsung and some would say underappreciated farm bill “hero” of sorts. With names like “Individual Water & Wastewater Grants,” “Community Facilities Guaranteed Loan Program,” and “Value-Added Producer Grants,” the offerings are not particularly sexy or flashy. But with more than a $216 billion loan portfolio, there’s plenty of potential. And rural leaders say there is plenty of need.

Shortly before President Donald Trump was inaugurated, leaders of over 200 organizations wrote that the “scope of the investment needed is staggering” across rural America. The letter states that “transportation infrastructure improvement is the most obvious need in rural communities,” but also highlights the “critical needs” that “exist in providing clean water for rural families, expanding broadband to connect rural communities to the outside world, and enhancing the ability to supply affordable, reliable and secure power for the rural economy.”