U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development State Director Betsy Dirksen Londrigan today highlighted the Biden-Harris Administration’s first-year accomplishments to help ensure that rural residents and businesses have equitable access to housing, health care, economic development, and other essential services.
"Rural Illinoisans fight hard every day to improve the lives of their families and communities, and Rural Development stands beside them. Dirksen Londrigan said. From our water and environmental programs to housing and pandemic relief, USDA Rural Development has worked together with individuals, businesses, organizations, and communities in rural Illinois to create lasting partnerships to Build Back Better and not only recover from the COVID-19 pandemic but prosper. We look forward to continuing that progress."
Rural Development awarded more than $2 billion in loans, grants, and loan guarantees in Fiscal Year 2021 for underserved communities and rural communities that have experienced persistent generational poverty. This includes $1.3 billion for electric infrastructure to utilities that serve communities of persistent poverty, $350 million for the purchase of homes by very-low-income individuals and families living in persistent poverty areas, $48 million to improve water and waste disposal systems in Native American communities, and $9 million to improve community facilities and access to essential services for people living in Appalachian communities.
Rural Development offers several other types of assistance to groups that have historically had difficulty accessing financial and business markets and economic development assistance. For example:
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The Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant Program provides technical assistance to socially-disadvantaged groups through cooperatives and Cooperative Development Centers. USDA provides funding through the Tribal College Initiative Grant Program to 1994 Land Grant Institutions (Tribal Colleges) to help them make capital improvements to their educational facilities and to purchase equipment.
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Last fall, USDA invested $86 million in loans and grants through 218 projects to help support rural businesses and to invest in equity-building projects in rural communities. This included support to improve facilities and equipment at tribal colleges, to help improve housing for low-income rural residents, and to help local groups implement economic development projects.
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Also in 2021, USDA began offering priority points to projects that advance key priorities under the Biden-Harris Administration to help communities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, advance equity and combat climate change. These extra points will increase the likelihood of funding for projects seeking to address these critical challenges in rural America.
Selected Housing Preservation Grant Programs in Illinois:
Crosswalk Community Agency will use a $136,687 grant to provide housing rehabilitation/repairs to approximately 12 very low- and low-income homeowners in conjunction with other leverage funding in the counties of Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, and Williamson: excluding homes in the city limits of Carbondale, Marion, and Mt Vernon. These funds will be made available in the form of a grant to the homeowners.
Western Illinois Regional Council-Community Action Agency will use a $100,000 grant to provide housing rehabilitation/repairs to approximately 15 very low-income homeowners in conjunction with other leverage funding in the counties of Fulton, Hancock, Henderson, Knox, McDonough, and Warren (excluding homes in the city limits of Galesburg). These funds will be made available in the form of a grant to the homeowner.
Rebuilding Together will use a $139,039 grant to provide housing rehabilitation and repairs to approximately 15-20 very low- and low-income homeowners in conjunction with other leverage funding in Henry County. These funds will be made available in the form of a grant to the homeowners.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean-energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans 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, tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
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