USDA bill could fund rural regional planning

Rural Innovative Initiative

Jon Boyd, Jul 14, 10.

A new federal program to assist with strategic regional planning for rural areas could be funded through the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) budget, according to a post in a New Republic blog, called “The Avenue.” US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is working with the appropriations subcommittee responsible for funding USDA to include his Rural Innovative Initiative within the 2011 USDA budget.

The New Republic writes:

Intended to make available a pool of money to support regional planning and coordinate USDA assistance in rural communities, the Agriculture initiative is potentially a watershed for its thoughtful synthesis on the rural side of ongoing “metropolitan” concerns as regionalism, planning, and program integration.

But it is also intriguing and instructive for its programmatic approach. Complicated “silo-busting” to link, align, or fuse disparate or rigid existing programs is a familiar back-office requirement of any federal effort to regionalize its offerings. Accordingly, USDA has hit on a novel scheme to knit programs and funds together. Cleverly, the agency plans to set-aside and pool about five percent of the funding from approximately 20 existing programs for a total of $135 million and allocate these funds competitively among regional pilot projects tailored to local needs and opportunities. To enhance the effort’s impact the initiative provides additional money for staff to provide technical assistance and support for rural communities developing Regional strategic plans. That way, rural communities will receive useful help as more and more of them realize they are better off working regionally to compete globally, especially by leveraging regional assets and creating win-win partnerships with nearby metropolitan and micropolitan hubs.

House Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee Chairwoman Rosa De Lauro said this in her statement about the markup:

Rural development. In terms of our investment priorities closer to home, one of the innovative new ideas we have included in this legislation, at a funding level of $176 million, is the administration’s Regional Innovation Initiative proposal.

In order to increase the economic viability of rural communities, this Initiative seeks to promote a regional outlook in the planning and coordination of rural development programs at USDA. While USDA Rural Development is expected to provide leadership for this initiative, the Agricultural Marketing Service is also expected to participate. And some of the supporting programs include the Business & Industry Guarantee Loan Program, the Rural Business Enterprise Grant Program, and the Intermediary Relending Program.

Just as the First Lady’s HFFI has its roots in successful programs in Pennsylvania and other states, this Regional Innovation Initiative is a proposal that Secretary Vilsack has spoken of very highly, based on his experiences with a similar state initiative as Governor of Iowa. And like HFFI, it is a successful state idea that we are proud to take national in this legislation.

(This is a photo taken in downtown La Grange, TX. Photo credit: Jon Boyd)