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WASHINGTON, Oct. 21, 2014 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA is investing $4.9 million in 50 projects across the country to support small and emerging rural businesses and rural transportation projects. "USDA is working to expand economic opportunities and bring well...

To me, the phrase 'economic development' is more than a buzzword – and that was reinforced during an all-too-brief trip to western South Dakota. It's easy to get caught up in the policymaking and program implementation in Washington, D.C., and I find great value in getting to the field so I can see...

Representatives of five rural Louisiana regions participated with USDA Rural Development, Southern Rural Development Center, Louisiana Economic Development, and the AgCenters at Louisiana State and Southern University as they launched the “Stronger Economies Together” (SET) Program. This meeting was...

Earlier this month, USDA Rural Development-Puerto Rico held an Intermediary Relending Program Roundtable meeting for area stakeholders. Our staff provided a brief overview of the program followed by a very dynamic question and answer session. The most significant issues discussed were the current...

A group of coders in hooded sweatshirts and big headphones stare intently at their computer screens. In the corner, staff take a break at the foosball table, while a young woman in an oversized beanbag chair types away on her laptop. You might be picturing the headquarters of a Silicon Valley...

Local construction contractors attended a June 22 nd ‘work day’ event in the Crescent Shores Subdivision in Lincoln, Delaware to tell the audience of volunteers, homeowners and federal and state officials of how the USDA Rural Development Self-Help Housing Program has kept their businesses alive...

Cross posted from the White House blog: Today, I am hosting a forum focused on the rural economy at the Iowa state fair. But, Rural America has been in the spotlight all this week as I joined President Obama to travel across parts of Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois, visiting rural communities to...

Access to the world via internet and mobile phone services is at the fingertips of most Americans, but this is not the reality for residents of many rural communities across the Nation. In October 2014, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $190.5 million in grants and loans to make broadband...

As the USDA Rural Development State Director for Oregon, I’m aware of the significant economic benefits our programs have produced in partnership with rural communities, residents and businesses in every corner of my state. As I drove across the country during my recent vacation, I was curious to...

Imagine for a moment what it must be like to get injured in an accident, or have a heart attack or stroke, and have the nearest medical facility be an hour's ambulance ride away – and that's after the ambulance from thirty miles away gets to you. That's an unfortunate reality faced by many rural...