Investment to Expand Transportation Options; Save Valuable Budget Dollars
COLUMBIA, MO, Oct. 5, 2020 – The Trump Administration, along with Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development State Director for Missouri Jeff Case, today announced that the USDA is investing $25,500 for the Hermitage R-IV School District to purchase a passenger vehicle.
“USDA Rural Development is a steadfast partner of supporting education in Missouri’s rural communities,” said Trump Administration Official State Director Case. “This project will improve the school district’s transportation infrastructure while stretching its budget to allow for other needed student support. Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA has been working tirelessly to be a strong partner to rural communities in building stronger and healthier communities, because we know when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
Hermitage R-IV School District covers more than 60 square miles in Hickory County and provides education to 265 pre-K through 12th grade students. The district used a $25,500 Community Facilities Grant to purchase a full-size passenger vehicle to add to its fleet of six owned and three leased busses. The Chevrolet Suburban can transport up to nine passengers at a time and is proving to be more economical than larger diesel busses for transporting smaller groups of students and staff. For example, recently, the junior high basketball coach was able to transport his team to a game without needing a full-sized bus. The Virtual Education Coordinator has also used the vehicle to deliver meals to students attending school virtually. The purchase will stretch the district’s transportation budget and comes at an opportune time with school district administrators paying close attention to their annual spending.
Funding for today’s announcement was made available through the $150 million in grants included in the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act that President Trump signed into law on June 6, 2019. These grants are to help eligible rural communities continue their recovery from the devastating effects of hurricanes, fires, and other natural disasters such as recent years’ severe storms, tornadoes, and flooding in Missouri.
Currently, Missouri has 84 counties included in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Major Disaster Declarations; view the complete list of the state’s designated counties.
More than 100 types of projects are eligible for Community Facilities funding. Eligible applicants include municipalities, public bodies, nonprofit organizations, and federally recognized Native American tribes. Projects must be in eligible rural areas with a population of 20,000 or less. Grant applications will be accepted on a continual basis until funds are exhausted.
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas.
Contact USDA Rural Development
Information on programs available through USDA Rural Development is available by visiting www.rd.usda.gov/mo, by calling (573) 876-0976, or by emailing RDMissouri@usda.gov.
USDA Rural Development has 25 offices across the state to serve the 2.2 million residents living in rural Missouri. Office locations include a state office in Columbia, along with local offices in Butler, Charleston, Chillicothe, Clinton, Dexter, Eldon, Farmington, Higginsville, Houston, Kennett, Kirksville, Maryville, Mexico, Moberly, Neosho, New London, Poplar Bluff, Richmond, Rolla, Sedalia, Springfield, St. Joseph, Troy, and West Plains.
If you’d like to subscribe to Missouri USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.